This air filter was different. ORECK air filters clean the air significantly better than their competitors. The difference was immediate. He was able to breathe in his own home. Even I could ‘breathe’ the difference. It wasn’t a smell or lack of a smell, it was actually easier to breathe with this filter on.
Painting your bedroom for health & wellness
We spend 6-8 hours a day sleeping in our bedrooms. What we are surrounded by, what we breathe, touch, see and feel, all affects our health and well being. Many of us are blissfully unaware of the chemicals in the backing of our carpet, the VOC's in the paint on our walls, or the toxins in our bed covers. Many of us are also unaware of the HEALTH BENEFITS of painting your bedroom.
1) Specific colors/color frequencies can help relax your body, reduce tension, lower blood pressure.
2) Paint with zero VOC's is good for your health. The alternative being paint with VOC's (VOCs are volatile organic compounds, which are chemicals that off-gas into the air and into your lungs. Yes, they are bad for your health.)
3) Painters that are EPA Certified Renovators know how to provide the extra care needed to keep the dust and related particles contained and away from your loved ones and pets. (This includes lead dust from lead paint that might be on a layer of paint on your home that is older than 1978)
Of course, I cannot flaunt this information without offering a package deal for the Valentines day month of February! FEBRUARY SPECIAL: Professional color CONSULTATION, zero-VOC PAINT, and professional EPA certified Painters to paint your bedroom for only $400. Call or email me for more information! 206-517-4424 (Restrictions apply, projects must be scheduled by Feb 28, 2011 to qualify for this offer.)
Cabinetry & Formaldehyde
Did you know that 'regular' cabinetry off gasses urea formaldehyde into your home for up to five years? And, if you have a done a great job insulating and weather proofing your house, those voc's (volatile organic compounds) don't leave the house, you simply breathe them into your lungs. This is one example of why EPA has determined that the indoor air quality of our homes is 5 TIMES worse than the exterior air quality.
The quick solution is to purchase cabinetry that is made with a plywood box. Careful, there is plywood available that DOES have added urea formaldehyde in it. Make sure that the plywood that you are paying extra for (and you will be paying an up charge) is formaldehyde free.
There are other options to complicate our decisions: there is a new particle board (EcoCore) that consists of 100% recycled materials that also contains no urea formaldehyde. There is also 'Environmentally Preferred Particleboard' which has extremely low amounts of urea formaldehyde. Or, you can purchase cabinets and allow some time to 'air them out' in an area that circulates air out of the home (open the windows?). They will still off gas into the years, but the majority of the formaldehyde will be gone.
Many of you may be asking the same question that I asked - why do all these products have urea formaldehyde in them? And why can't we use 'solid' wood? The answer is that solid wood reacts to water and moisture in the air which causes warpage. That is why, if you order a 'slab' style door, it is never 'solid' wood, it is a wood veneer on a substrate that does not warp. And, that is why cabinet boxes are not made of solid wood, because they would be constantly expanding and contracting and warping. The materials that do not warp significantly are plywood (many layers of wood) and particle board. Particle board is made up of many particles that are held together with binding agents. Most of these binding agents contain urea formaldehyde. That is why some plywood and most particle board off gas voc's. Sometimes, by solving one problem, we seem to have created others.
Breathe well & Have a Happy Thanksgiving,
Christine