| Thinking of painting your house or doing a | | | | until applied). As the paint dries the |
| spot of DIY? Well I was and I was searching | | | | solvent evaporates and leaves the dried paint |
| the net looking for a good deal and I came | | | | on the surface. This process is the same with |
| across organic and eco paints. | | | | all paints. |
| | | | |
| My first thought was how can paint be | | | | But as the paint begins to dry, components |
| organic? Isnt that for vegetables? | | | | called volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are |
| | | | released into the air causing toxic air |
| | | | pollution (that nasty smell) and increasing |
| | | | your chances of becoming chemically |
| I did some more research and found that the | | | | sensitive. These and other chemical compounds |
| term organic can be a highly misleading term | | | | can cause chest complaints, aggravate |
| when applied to paint so many companies dont | | | | allergies, contribute to the greenhouse |
| use it and tend to use the term eco or | | | | effect and pollute the environment. |
| natural instead. Unlike the food and textile | | | | |
| industry, there is currently no legally | | | | Most paint manufacturers set out to make a |
| defined standard or recognised certification | | | | paint that is non toxic and doesnt give off |
| scheme in place for organic paints just like | | | | VOCs so it will be a safe paint for humans as |
| soap pods (what are soap pods I hear you | | | | well as environmentally safe. Unfortunately, |
| ask?). | | | | research has found that most organic paints |
| | | | and components release VOCs. |
| It is possible for some organically grown | | | | |
| plants to be utilised in the manufacture of | | | | The vital difference between conventional |
| some of the natural paints and to obtain | | | | paint and eco/natural paints lies in using as |
| organic pigments from some plants and | | | | many eco friendly and natural ingredients as |
| insects, but these are not ideally suited to | | | | possible as pigments, binding agents and |
| use in paint because they tend to fade. | | | | solvents. |
| | | | |
| It has been found that ingredients such as | | | | |
| the solvents, acrylics and acrylic softeners | | | | |
| used in most conventional paints are | | | | People should also look to buy paints made in |
| hazardous both to health and the environment | | | | their own country as not only does it reduce |
| as paints consist essentially of pigments | | | | the pollution caused by the transport of the |
| (the colourant), the binding agent (which | | | | end products and sometimes the raw materials, |
| binds the colourant to the surface) and of | | | | it also supports a more local approach to |
| solvents, (which keep the paint in suspension | | | | buying goods and services. |