What are VOCs and can they be harming us
I once visited a beautiful flat and after being inside it for about 30 minutes or so, I started feeling sick. I felt like I needed fresh air. Because you see, there was a particular smell in the air.
I asked my potential client if they had any work done to the space. Turns out the flat was recently renovated and, more importantly, recently repainted. And I then I knew. I knew what that smell was.
My nausea was triggered by the paint! More specifically, by the amount of VOCs in the paint used.
Image by Anastasia Shuraeva via Pexel
You see, VOCs are volatile organic compounds, chemicals present in paints that hang around long after the paint has dried. They can be present in solvent-based paints and in smaller quantities in water-based paints, coats, cleaners, and other solvents. Their purpose is to act as a bridge or a way to transfer the paint onto the surface, and to keep the paint from spoiling, decolouring over time, etc.
However, once and in the process of drying, the paint releases these VOCs into the air. That is why the main advice is to keep windows and doors open while painting. To avoid inhaling these chemicals. The problem is, that these chemicals hang around even after the paint has dried up.
Why is this so important? Because to put it simply, VOCs can directly affect the quality of your indoor air.
VOCs can cause different health issues in people, depending on the level and length of exposure. Health issues can include eye irritation and itchiness, asthma attacks, sneezing or runny nose, allergies, and headaches. In long exposures, they can even cause eczema, lung problems, and kidney problems. In worse cases, they can be a contributing factor to human and animal cancer. Of course, the level and organs affected differ from one medical source to another. But, if you think about it, nothing good can come from inhaling chemical compounds.
That is why it is so important to choose sustainable paints that have the lowest VOC amount possible when you decorate.
How long do VOCs (volatile organic compounds) linger in the air?
Well, depending on the quality of the paint it can be anywhere from 48 hours to a few days, to 2 - 3 months, even 6 months.
While 6 months might not seem like something to worry about, remember all of the health issues that can develop, both short term, but especially long term. If you or a loved one are more sensitive and prone to breathing problems (especially asthma or any kind of breathing difficulty), you would definitely want to know that you can breathe easily and safely at home.
Image by Ivan Samkov via Pexel
So what can you do then?
There are a couple of things you can do when picking the best paint to use inside your home.
1.Look for the VOCs inside the paint.
When you choose your paint, look out for these chemicals. While this is not a complete list, it is a start. You can find out more about this here but these are the more common ones, so do make sure you read the label before buying the paint. Even more so if the paint is less expensive. Cheaper does not always mean it’s better. Especially when your health is on the line.
Benzene
Formaldehyde
Sputum eosinophil
Ethylbenzene
Ethylene Glycol
Methylene chloride
Toluene
Xylene
Hexane
Styrene
2. Look for the level of VOCs inside a paint.
Each paint should have a label system on it to help you identify how much VOCs are in the paint easily. There are 5 classifications on the packaging and these are:
Very High = voc content more than 50%
High = voc content between 25% - 50%
Medium = voc content between 8% - 24.99%
Low = voc content between 0.30% - 7.99%
Very Low = voc content between 0.1% - 0.29%
Trace = below 0.1 %
3. Ask for the VOCs information from the paint company. And be aware of greenwashing.
You can look for the information online before either ordering online or going to buy directly from stores. Sustainable brands have no problem at all sharing this information on their sites. However, if this information is not readily available, you can always ask for this information and the company should be happy to share it. If not, well…that is something to ponder. There is a lot of greenwashing happening at the moment, such as stating on their website that they are VOCs free but you can’t actually find the figure or VOCs stats anywhere.
Some companies proudly claim they are VOC-free, but you can’t find the actual number stated on their paint details. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as completely 0.00% VOC-free paint. Due to the nature of the materials used and the process by which they are made, there is bound to be at least a trace somewhere. So be aware of this tactic as well.
The good news, however, is that with new standards coming out (in order to reach the global/climate change emergency net zero goals), companies will have no option but to catch up. And that is a hopeful and good thing.
To help you a bit on your home journey and to reduce the stress of research, here are a couple of paint companies in the UK that are on the right track. Mind you, I did not receive anything from either of these brands to talk about them. I just share them in the hopes that you might find them helpful.
Graphenstone Paints - they also have C02-absorbing paints besides numerous certifications and data (that you can easily find on their website)
That’s it!
The only thing left now is to remember that research is the best guidance (don’t be tricked by good marketing) especially when it comes to your home but more importantly, your health.
NOW YOU KNOW!
Until next time, Xx
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All images that are credited as '©Detail Movement', are done by Raluca Vaduva for Detail Movement. All rights reserved. All pictures that are not my own, I credit them to the best of my knowledge & research, to their offline/online sources. I do not claim ownership over them in any way. If you see your picture on this site and do not wish for it to be displayed, please get in touch and I will remove it or add additional notes at your request.