Volatile Organic Compounds may be in your floors. What are they? What can you do about it?

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) are all around us.  One place where they are most common is in your floors.  A new report from UL Environment, an independent global science safety company came out with a new report that shows how much VOCs can damage indoor air quality and how they are putting consumers at risk.

The report had many interesting findings including:

• Solvent-based floor coatings emit up to 11 times more volatile organic compounds than clean water-based coatings 24 hours after the last application.
• Solvent-based coatings still emit more volatile organic compounds 7 days after application than the clean water-based coatings emit after 1 day. Think you and your family are safe waiting for a week after the last application? Wrong. Solvent-based coatings continue emitting VOCs for months afterward.
• Solvent-based coatings emit more than 60 chemicals, including a high amount of chemicals:
  • 2-ethyl hexanoic acid Impacts a woman’s fertility
  • Ethylbenzene, Formaldehyde and Acetaldehyde have been linked to cancer
  • Toluene causes brain damage
• Even traditional water-based coatings emit high amounts of the chemical N-Methylpyrrolidone or “NMP” which is linked to birth defects, including low birth weight and even miscarriage.
• Less than 17% of the products sold to consumers are safe. Out of the 12 products tested by UL Labs, representing the vast majority of the products available to U.S. consumers, only 2 qualify as clean floor coatings.

Most coatings for wood floors contain multiple VOCs.  These solvent-based coatings are in schools, homes and workplaces.  The key to getting these harmful substances out of your life is by switching to clean, water-based floor companies.  Places like Vermont Natural Coatings can help.

 

Andrew Meyer, CEO of Vermont Natural Coatings and Scott Steady, Product Manager at UL in the environment division connected with Michelle Tompkins for TheCelebrityCafe.com about Volatile Organic Compounds, how they are harmful, what the study revealed, how these chemicals are in most coatings for wood floors, what products you should use instead to keep your family safe, what is the new environmentally friendly option at Vermont Natural Coatings and more.

Listen to the interview here:

Learn more about VOCs and Vermont Natural Coatings here.