Archive for the 'Home Decor' Category
Green Paint…
April 11th, 2008 categories: Home Decor, The Greener Side
Whether you are about to undertake a complete remodel or just sprucing up your digs, you can make a huge impact without spending a fortune. Color! Wall coatings add so much to your decor and the colors you choose can have a dramatic effect on your emotional state. Cool colors relax and subdue the anxious mind while warm colors give you energy and can bring sunshine into your home even on the darkest day. But, colors are not the only choices you have to make. There are many different brands of paint offering endless shades but some also offer VOC’s or Volatile Organic Compounds harmful chemicals that contribute to poor air quality and can cause respitory irritations or worse if one is particularly sensitive. The solvents in paints can include benzene, formaldehyde, toluene and xylene, which are known carcinogens or neurotoxins. Oil-based paints rely on VOC-emitting solvents such as mineral spirits to control their drying time, but conventional water-based latex paints aren’t necessarily milder: They can contain such VOCs as formaldehyde and the suspected carcinogen acrylonitrile, as well as ethylene glycol ethers associated with lowering sperm count, and fungicides and preservatives to combat mold and mildew.
Here’s some examples of paint alternatives from The Green Guide;
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