PAINTING With Asthma and Allergies

PAINTING
With Asthma and Allergies

Having Medical Conditions and being somewhat of an Environmentalist, I can personally recommend DUNN-EDWARDS ECOSHIELD PAINTS (www.dunnedwards.com). Ethylene Glycol Free!

So, I chose FROSTY FOG Semi-Gloss for Living Room, Hall, and Master Bath!

The sheen of your paint will be an esthetic and practical decision. I personally like immaculate walls, with no food residue, finger prints, or scuff marks. Choosing Semi-Gloss allows for both the ability to the wash walls and for oils and stains to not penetrate in the first place!

DUNN-EDWARDS “ECOSHIELD” Paints are available in the following:
Primer
Flat
Low Sheen
Semi-Gloss



DESCRIPTION:

ECOSHIELD™ Semi-Gloss is a premium interior acrylic semi-gloss paint that has very low odor and no added solvents.

ECOSHIELD™ Semi-Gloss provides a durable, washable film and has excellent hide, block resistance, and adhesion.

ECOSHIELD™ Semi-Gloss applies easily and its low odor formulation makes it ideal for commercial office buildings, schools, hospitals, and other closed ventilated buildings.

ECOSHIELD™ Semi-Gloss is also recommended for residential use.

SOLVENT TYPE: Waterborne
RESIN TYPE: 100% acrylic


AVERAGE DRY TIME AT 77°F/25°C (ASTM D 1640)
To touch: 1-2 hours
Recoat: 4-6 hours

APPLICATION EQUIPMENT
Brush, roller, airless spray

PACKAGING
One-gallon, five-gallon containers

CONFORMS TO:
Master Painters Institute (MPI) #147
Green Seal’s Standard GS-11 & LEED requirements
Section 01350/CHPS requirements

My experience with DUNN-EDWARDS “Ecoshield Semi-Gloss Paint”

Primered walls required more paint and retouching, whereas painting over existing Semi-Gloss (base color “off white”) Paint was virtually effortless!

If walls are only Primered or painted with older paint, I suggest using DUNN-EDWARDS Ecoshield Paints firstly (Ecoshield Primer Paint if needed), or two coats of ECOSHIELD Paint.

I used hand held rollers, rollers with extensions, two sizes of brushes (which included a medium and extra small brush about the size of a highlighter pen), and “Shur-Line Edger” (with guided wheels for ceiling lines, around doors, and windows) that I hand-held at times and other times placed on extension pole.

Being concerned with toxic fumes, skin sensitivity, latex allergy, and asthma… I am very pleased with my painting experience.









All content by Europa Pirate

Preparing To Paint: Interior

Preparing To Paint:

Interior Walls/Surfaces

Unless your structure is New and Freshly Primered, you will have as much Prep Work as you will have Painting! As a consequence, this is the reasoning behind most homeowners choosing to Pay Professional Painters when requiring Home Interior Painting! Exterior (Building) Painting is a World of Its Own, which I won’t detail here.

Your Prep Work will include:
Removing all Furniture
Removing all non-essential and non-industrial light sources, such as chandeliers, ornate light fixtures, ceiling fans (if you are painting ceiling), etc.
Removing all switch plates/outlet plates (turn off Power firstly)
Dusting walls by sweeping with clean/”like-new”, stiff broom
Possibly sanding uneven surfaces
Patching and curing holes
Sealing cracks

Failure to remove debris on walls, uneven surfaces, and brushes/sprayer with remains of old paint and dirt are the main causes for paint peeling.

Now that half of your Prep Work is Complete:

It is time to wash your walls.

Firstly, spot check your wall for any stains or smudges. A dampened “paste of Baking Soda and Water” on a clean lint-free cotton cloth will remove most marks. Do not rub too roughly, that you remove paint to the bare wall. Anything that cannot simply be rubbed off of your wall should probably be primmered or spot primmered prior to project.

Washing the Wall really entails wiping the wall down (from top to bottom) with a damp (natural material) cloth- Not soaking your walls! The point is to remove any debris that your broom did not pick-up yet, keeping your wall relatively dry.

After “Washing The Walls” you are now ready to mask off your windows, door frames, baseboards, sconces, and any other detailed item that will not be painted –or- will be painted at a later time. Remember to have ceiling somewhat clean irregardless of whether or not ceiling is to be painted, as dust, cobwebs, and particles can drift down onto your freshly painted walls.

Follow this step with the covering of the Floor, unless you have pulled-up old carpet or tile before hand. Paint will follow gravity and drip onto flooring (either from walls, brushes, or the unfortunate spilling of paint buckets). Knowing that you are painting over a drop cloth is much more settling to your mind than worrying about your flooring.

Drop Cloths:

Any Furniture, Appliance, Carpet, or Flooring must be covered with some sort of Drop Cloth prior to Painting!

You will have an array of choices in this area. I like to think in term of the type of Paint, when considering drop cloths. Additionally, budget is a factor as well as the color of paint also playing a part in your drop cloth purchase. How often are you to paint? Can you pass-on the painting accessories to a neighbour, relative, or charity home remodeling group? Or, should you simply avoid purchasing a professional drop cloth in light of using something already in your possession?

Being concerned with the environment, I rather avoid using plastic, whenever possible. Canvas drop cloths are more expensive yet can last nearly a lifetime, with proper care.

• 1st Canvas
• 2nd Assorted Cloth
• 3rd Paper

*The last two I would suggest: Paper/Poly, and finally Plastic





All content by Europa Pirate

MakeUp and Body Product Care

Product Care

In the United States, standards on Cosmetics shelf-life are usually much less than those in Europe. Furthermore, shipping the products to their "Retail destination" can result in temperature fluctuations, whose outcome may be unseen to the retail consumer.

Reliable Manufactures selling to their department store/salon clients will predetermine and guard against nearly all shipping dilemmas, using only reliable Trucks/Ships/Airline Companies with temperature-controlled cargo containers. Do not support businesses or individuals unaware of poor shipping and handling practices. And, do not purchase any Make-up/Cosmetic, Prescription Medicine, Over-the-Counter Med, or Topical/Body Product placed in direct sunlight or adjacent to any heat source!

The easiest tip you will ever get regarding home beauty/body care is this-

Once you have opened, used, touched

“the Product”:

You will have 6mo-1year Use/Lifespan

Sealed, Unopened Products

• may be stored inside an airtight plastic bag, in their original packaging, in your moisture-controlled refrigerator!
  

For cleaning/renewing make-up here are some tips:

• Use applicator, whenever possible (instead of using finger)



• Clean Eye Shadow by gently removing a layer of powder/cream with clean tissue or unused cotton swab



• Wipe Lipsticks off onto a (lint free) tissue once a week, removing film as if you were applying lipstick to your own lips



• Smudge Eyeliner/Lipliner onto clean tissue regularly (in same cleaning manner as Lipstick)



• Sharpen Make-Up routinely, prior to and after using



• Wipe the solid surfaces of your Make-Up Containers and Applicators with Cotton Squares or Cotton Swabs dampened with 50% to 70% Rubbing Alcohol



• When sunny days are present, carry your Make-Up or Medicine in an Ice Chest plugged into your Automobile or with “Blue Ice”, in waterproof bags/baggies rather than lying on a seat where sunlight and trapped heat can spoil items



• Never share products that directly touch your skin, eyes, mouth

For the fear of any sort of Contamination to Eye or Skin from Make-Up, I chose Epsom Salt Rinses and immediately discard the Item in question!



All content by Europa Pirate