When your home needs some sort of revival or updated palate, the most common and easiest project to invest into is a fresh coat of paint on the walls. Most of us turn to this renovation first because it can be done via DIY or by an outside professional, it depends on the type of painting job, funds to do so, or your availability. There are more steps to painting that many of us realize.
Gathering supplies is a great place to start if you are new to the painting world or just don’t necessarily consider yourself a world star painter. One important phase of preparation is finding the best quality of paint to use, there are different brands, types, and qualities, but have you ever considered using eco-friendly paint, let alone have you ever heard of eco-friendly paint?
What is Eco-Friendly paint?
Eco-friendly paint can be considered an alternate and natural based paint that does not contain as high levels of harsh, volatile organic chemicals. I think we all can notice when someone has just finished painting by the odor left behind, this is caused by volatile organic chemicals. While it is unpleasant to breathe in and sometimes can cause a headache, they also have the ability to generate potential health problems, both short and long term.
The chances of this happening are increased when proper protection is not used, or if you are exposed to the fumes in a poorly ventilated area. Some of these can be headaches/migraines, dizziness, nausea, irritation to the eyes or respiratory tract, and even potential damage to the heart or lungs. You can still be at risk for these health issues from a few days after painting all the way up to months or years.
What are the benefits?
Some of the issues listed above can also have an increased potential if you have underlying health problems. If this is the case, you may want to consider using eco-friendly paint instead of a regular, higher risk paint that may increase the severity of your current condition. Eco-friendly paint is a safer route to take because its use of natural based ingredients; such as milk protein, citrus, balsam, clay, and other natural based substances.
The benefits of having ordinary paint chemicals being replaced with natural ones in eco-friendly paint can include first include the lower amount or even absence of VOCs that are harmful to not only the environment, but to the human body. Eco-friendly paints also make use of recycled material like fruit peels, seed oil beeswax, and natural clay, all of which do not give off damaging volatiles.
So, you’re probably wondering why you may not have heard of eco-friendly paint before, or it is not as commonly used. The biggest reason for this is the fact that eco-friendly paints will likely be more expensive for a project you probably want to spend the least amount of money on. The majority of us just want to invest in whatever paint will get the job done and liven up our home at a budget friendly rate.
Ultimately, it is your decision regarding if you want to spend the extra money on eco-friendly paint, but keep in mind it’s more than your walls being affected here, your health and the environment is also at risk.
Eco-friendly paint has also been considered well-worth it by the majority of past users. If you still have further questions regarding eco-friendly paint, contacting your local paint specialist or professional can never hurt.
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