A fresh coat of paint is the best way to rejuvenate your home. A perfect weekend DIY project for your home and it’s also cost-effective. While a fresh paint job can make your home visually appealing, it can also leave your space smelly for several days or even weeks, which can be hazardous to your health. Ventilation is one of the quickest and simplest ways to remove paint fumes from your home but sometimes it just isn’t enough. So, to help you out, here are some useful tips on how to remove paint fumes from your home.
In order to better resolve a problem one needs to thoroughly understand the reason behind it. So first let’s try and understand why painting your home usually leaves behind a foul odor.
There are four major components that all paints comprise of: resins, pigments, additives and solvents. Water-based paints use water as the primary solvent. But, in oil-based paints, organic solvents such as mineral spirit are used. These are used to make the color wet and applicable. The Volatile Organic Compounds or better known as VOCs, present in most oil based paints release toxic gases in the air.
HOW LONG DO THESE PAINT FUMES LAST?
The truth is that the time duration varies depending on the type of paint used and other factors. These include if the surface had been primed before being painted, the number of paint coats applied, the temperature and humidity in the room, and most importantly, the ventilation of the room.
Side effects of inhaling paint fumes?
Here are some of the most common short-term side effects of inhaling paint fumes.
- Itchy eyes
- Headache
- Dizziness
- Scratchy throat
- Nausea
- Breathing troubles
- Irritated lungs
These side effects and their intensities may vary from person to person. Someone having respiratory issues and any allergies are more prone to these side effects.
HOW TO GET RID OF PAINT ODOR
So lets get started, here are some tips on how to get rid of paint smell using household items such as:
- Tap water
- Baking Soda
- Vinegar
- Coffee grounds
- Deactivated charcoal
- Vanilla extract
- Candles
The best part about the above methods is that most of these are readily available in every home. Also you don’t have to wait until your room is completely painted. You can apply any of these methods while the paint work is in progress. Moreover, combine two or more methods for quick results.
BUCKETS OF WATER
The simplest, easiest and most common trick to get rid of the fumes is to leave two or more buckets of tap water in a freshly-painted room for about eight hours. After eight hours you can throw away the water and repeat the process. The water will absorb some of the toxic vapors in the room. This trick works in most of the cases but might not be as effective as other methods on this list.
Additional Tip: Add in a few slices of lemon to the water bucket it will help make your space smell clean and fresh without using any chemical air fresheners or other products.
BAKING SODA
Baking soda is the most important item in every pantry due to its incredible and multi directional capabilities. It is used in cooking and also is one of the best cleaning agents plus helps relieve many digestive problems. People also place baking soda in refrigerators to get rid of bad odor. In the same way you can use baking soda to get rid of paint fumes in your home. All you need to do is place its small quantities shallow bowls and placing them all around the room. You can also sprinkle some baking soda on the floor to get thorough results. Just make sure that you don’t turn on the fan or else it will scatter all around like dust and stick to everything around including the wet paint on your walls. This is one of the most effective ways to remove paint fumes from your home.
VINEGAR
Vinegar ranks pretty high on the list. Like baking soda, Vinegar is one of the most useful item in every kitchen. You can use it to remove paint odor inside the house. The process is similar to baking soda. Pour some white or apple cider vinegar in small bowls and place one in each corner of the room. This magical liquid will absorb the toxic vapors get rid of all paint smells bothering you.
COFFEE GROUNDS
Everyone loves the fragrant smell of freshly ground coffee. This is yet another smart and cost-effective way to get rid of bad smell by using dry coffee grounds. Place coffee grounds in shallow bowls and leave them in a room overnight to absorb the paint fumes. Coffee grounds will not only remove bad fumes but also mask the smell of the fresh paint. Just throw the coffee grounds away when done.
DEACTIVATED CHARCOAL
Deactivated charcoal has amazing odor absorbing properties. Just like baking soda, people also place deactivated charcoal in their kitchen cabinets and refrigerators to get rid of bad smell. Just like other methods just put some crushed charcoal in the freshly painted room overnight. Make sure to keep the fans and windows closed because powdered charcoal is very light and can spread all over the place with a minor burst of air.
VANILLA EXTRACT
If you love baking then you must have vanilla extract/essence there in your pantry. For this method you will need some cotton balls as well. Place a few drops of the vanilla essence on some cotton balls and toss them around the room. In few hours you you will get rid of paint fumes with your room smelling like vanilla.
Just in case you don’t have vanilla essence then you can also use any pleasant-smelling natural essences, like, lavender.
CANDLES
In the end the last method is lighting up a candle(s) is also a great way to get rid of paint smell. The candle flame burns out any solvent vapors from the air resulting in clean odorless air. But you must ensure to use only natural beeswax candles, as paraffin-based candles actually emit more toxic fumes upon burning. Using a perfumed beeswax candle can also leave you with a soothing fragrance in the room. However when using candles you must ensure extra precaution if you have children and pets at home.
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