Going green - painting your home edition
Painting a room is the easiest way to make it look updated or completely change its feel. Next time you are preparing to redo your living room, don’t reach for the traditional gallon of paint that you always use. Harsh and harmful chemicals are in that can, and once on your wall it takes up to three-and-a-half years for the paint to stop emitting toxins into the environment you call home. What’s in a normal gallon of paint? Chemicals I can’t pronounce. Research has shown these chemicals play a part in causing insomnia, depression, anxiety, and other ailments. Never mind when you first walk into a freshly painted room and get dizzy, feel lightheaded, and suffer from a headache.
How can you avoid this? Buying paints that have no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is the first place to start. While there is no current standardized governmental regulation, third party reviewers stamp the green seal of approval on healthier paints. They review all parts of the process of creating paint, so you can trust that it is healthy. While organic/green building centers are not readily available for most, ask at your local hardware/paint store if they have any paint that is low/no odor and does not contain VOCs. Your health will thank you.
The most important question: what’s the cost? So called ‘green’ paint typically costs $30-40 for a gallon. Regular paint averages $20-35 a gallon, so paint that is good for you and the environment is more expensive but not prohibitively so. Moving into a new home and plan on repainting every room? You can expect to spend a couple hundred dollars more, but think of all the benefits. One step at a time, and you can easily go green!