Environmentally-Friendly House Painting

Environmentally-Friendly Paints

When planning to paint the interior of their home, many people are now considering environmentally-friendly paint.

Natural non-toxic paints

Natural paints contain only natural ingredients. They are the earth-friendly choice, ecologically sound and safe for the immediate home environment. These paints are typically made of natural materials like plant dyes, linseed oil, or milk protein (casein). Natural paint allows surfaces to breathe freely, while chemical paint often creates an impermeable film, which can promote mold and fungus growth in the home. Most natural paint manufacturers openly declare all ingredients used in the products, which allows those with allergies to make appropriate decisions about their use.

Non-toxic paint sources

Antique Drapery Rod Company
AuroUSA
Bio Paints
BioShield Paint
The Old Fashioned Milk Paint Company
Sawyer Finn
Weather-Bos

Commercial paints

Commercial paints contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which are a primary contributor to inside air pollution. VOCs are solvents which allow the paint to be spread evenly on a surface, and evaporate when the paint cures. Much of the "paint odor" we're so familiar with is caused by VOCs.

Typically, a pound of paint will have 250 to 350 parts VOC. A low-VOC paint allows one part VOC per pound of paint. It is essentially a no-odor product, but some chemically sensitive people will still react to the VOCs. Non-VOC paints, or low-odor paints, are the safest of this category yet they do have other components that might nonetheless induce reactions in the chemically sensitive.

Note that U.S. EPA regulations do not require full disclosure of all paint ingredients, many of which are toxic.

Non- or low-VOC commercial paints