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Question from Carole

I have a question about interior paints. I just rented a small efficiency apartment with hardwood floors. I specifically asked the landlord not to refinish the floors before I moved in, which they did not. They did paint and he assured me that they use latex paint that dries within a few days. Well, I just began moving in and there is still a faint odor from the paint. Noone else can smell it, of course!

I am in there for a short amount of time and start feeling dizzy, which is my main symptom from MCS. I really need to do whatever I can to make this place work. My friends have offered to do whatever they can to help. Should I get some type of sealer to put over all the paint? I noticed that the kitchen cabinet is a metal and they painted it. I’m concerned about this because it was painted over 2 weeks ago and the windows are wide open. I’ve been in homes and even my office that was painted and was fine after a few days.

Any help and suggestions would be so very appreciated! Living with this sensitivity to chemicals is so scary and difficult sometimes. I really need to make this work if at all possible.

Thank you so so much!

Carole

Debra’s Answer

Updated 2020:

You can read more here about how to minimize odor and off-gassing from paint.

I’ll just reiterate here, if you have MCS, make sure the unit is tolerable BEFORE you rent it.

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