Question from mm42111
We purchased a home recently and had the hardwood floors refinished in the whole house–upstairs and downstairs (sanded, stained, & sealed with polyurathane), and the entire house painted & kitchen cabinets sprayed. There is alot of dust and fumes in the house–there is no carpet in the house. We are going to have the ducts cleaned next week. Everything was done 1week ago and we move in 10days. I am 6 weeks pregnant and have asthma and have a 5 year old son and we are very concerned about the fumes. Could you recommend any solutions to help get rid of these fumes so we feel safe to move in. Also I read we should crank up the heat to try and cure the floors. Wondering if you know if this helps.
Debra’s Answer
Heat does work. I would suggest that you simply turn up your central heat as high as it will go and “bake” your house. I’ve done this many times for myself and clients and it DOES work. What it does is speed the outgassing of the toxic components of all those finishes you’ve used.
For the dust, I would get some fans and blow all the air out of the house before you heat.
Then heat for 24 hours and air the house out. Then another 24 hours and air, until you feel comfortable there are no more fumes. The longest I’ve ever had to do this is a week, so you should be able to get this done in your 10 days.
This is an old one but was curious if you think just refinishing old carpeted floors would be wise and what to use. Especially stair and sealer. Going to have it done in the spring. I have oak floors under the carpet.
Yes, I have done that a number of times. At the moment, I would use Ecos or Vermont Natural Coatings.