Question from HEG

We have committed to a rental property and have noticed some lingering smells from fragrance products used in the unit. The floors are marble so they probably don’t absorb the odor too much 9I assume), but I was wondering if there is a sealant that we can apply to the walls over the paint to lock the odors in? I am assuming a new coat of VOC-free paint won’t suffice, but I was curious about whether any of the AFM sealers may do the trick?

Thank you.

Debra’s Answer

You are right…a coat of VOC-free paint probably wouldn’t do it. As for the AFM sealants, you should contact them and ask for their recommendation.

Readers, do any of you have experience using any sealants to block fragrance odors?

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Question from liz

Hi Debra,

Thanks for your wonderful site. I am looking for an inexpensive dust-mite barrier for my son’s mattress. Aller-Ease has a mattress cover (the “Original” style) made from polypropylene fabric with a polyethylene film. Do you think that would be safe? I know that you’ve stated that polyethylene is safe and doesn’t off-gas, but what about polypropylene?

If you don’t recommend that one, Aller-Ease also makes a cotton mattress cover. Do you know of any reason why that wouldn’t be safe? (The advantage of the Original is that it is waterproof).

Thank you!

Liz

Debra’s Answer

There is a slight toxicity to polypropylene that polyethylene doesn’t have. If the polyethylene is in the outside, I would say it’s fine.

The cotton one would be better if there is no finish on the cotton.

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Question from HEG

I am looking for some nontoxic rugs in a new apartment and I am being extra careful to select nontoxic ones due to the fact that I have an infant. I have found that the ones sold specifically as nontoxic by the sites that are recommended here are VERY expensive, and we simply don’t have the budget now for those. I noticed that IKEA sells 100% wool rugs. Are these toxic? What questions could I ask them about the rugs to determine if there is anything toxic about them? Are there are widely available stores that I should check out? Because we have an infant who is just starting to crawl it is important to me to have a very thick well-cusioned rug in case she falls because the flooring underneath is marble.

Thank you.

Debra’s Answer

The main things you want to look for are backing materials and mothproofing. Often latex and jute backings have strong odors. Mothproofing is usually sprayed on wool carpets.

That said, I once found a totally nontoxic wool area rug at Home Depot, of all places. I still have it in my hallway and it has never had an odor, and I’ve never experienced ill effects.

I wish I could send you to “The Nontoxic Rug Store” at a mall near you, but unfortunately they don’t exist.

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Question from Jenny

Hi Debra,

We live in a house that is about 40 years old and has wood casement windows. When we first moved into this house about 16 years ago, we had looked into replacing the windows but the gentleman that came out to give us an estimate was quite honest in saying that the windows we had were a good quality and we should just replace the weatherstripping and mechanisms. 3 1/2 years ago it was discovered that I have MCS and we are having to revisit the window issue. The windows are double pane but we live in Canada and the standard now is triple pane, so we do have some energy issues that we are dealing with and more importantly, mold issues on the window frames. When the temparture drops, water vapour builds up on the windows and has led to mold growth. I saw in a previous post you did that you had 40 year old wood windows and you prefered those over new windows. However, I wonder what you would do if you were dealing with the mold and heat loss issues we have. I would hate to have to replace these if I have another option. Do you or any of your readers have any suggestions.

Debra’s Answer

Readers? Any success with window replacement?

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Question from Barbara

Are you familiar with these heaters? We’ve heard they are good but wanted to get your feedback.

Debra’s Answer

I went to their website at www.infraredappliances.com/ and called Customer Service. They were very helpful.

This is a unit that has a far infrared unit inside a metal box. The heat from the far infrared unit comes out the front, and does not heat the housing. Around the metal box you can have your choice of plywood or plastic housings, the plywood housings covered with your choice of wood veneers.

The representative said “this heaters do not outgas.” They are concerned with health as well as saving energy.

Has anyone actually used one of these? I imagine you might be able to special order it without the plywood or plastic housing.

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Question from JJM

Hey Debra…I wondered if you had time to look into this product I just bought and about to return from Protect-A-Bed…I saw this whole show just last week on Dr. OZ about bed bugs and when you travel and how these bugs do not discriminate and how easy they can be brought home.

So I invested a bit of money and ordered the mattress and box spring & two terry pillow covers. I washed 2 times in Seventh Generation free and clear and put them on. The smell was so annoying and made me dizzy. I called the company to return and they are…I have learned my lesson and will read the fabric next time. I just didn’t want bed bugs and freaked. I talked to a customer service rep there and sent her what I could about the following materials on your site to educate her.

On their packaging states: 100% Polyester (Main Panel), 100% Polyester (Skirt), Lining 100% Polyurethane all sides laminate! Any comments there!? I would like to send them your response. I have sent them that article from the Polyurethane.org about the safety of it like you posted once.

Debra’s Answer

If you are concerned about bed bugs, get Nature’s Defender Cedar Oil products. You can carry a spray bottle with you and spray the mattresses in hotel rooms. The cedar oil kills them. You can also spray this in your home if you are worried you have bed bugs.

It does smell like cedar, but the smell dissipates and it is not toxic.

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Question from Terry Ann

Debra

I want to buy my dog a new leather collar, but can I assume that it is safe in terms of chemicals outgassing or leaching into his skin? I know leather is natural, but do they treat it somehow during the manufacturing process? My dog has immune issues and I worry about just about everything anymore that he comes into contact with.

Thank you! Terry and Dusty

Debra’s Answer

Leather itself is not toxic, as it is simply the skin of an animal. However, it may be treated with various different substances, some of which can be quite toxic.

I would contact the manufacturer and see how the leather used was treated.

I find some leather products to have quite an odor and others to have none at all.

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Question from Amy

Dear Debra,

I would like to get your advice about using a laser treatment for a skin lesion on my face. The laser treatment would be at a dermatologists office.

I have some hereditary lesions on my skin that are quite small but noticeable and I would like to have the ones on my face removed.

I was told the most effective treatment was to zap it with a laser, but that it might require actual insertion of a needle and laser to get underneath the skin.

What do you think about the safety of this?

Also, would this be any different than, say, hair removal via laser, which perhaps is more readily researched? Are there any safety concerns with laser treatments of the skin.

Debra’s Answer

I haven’t researched this at all, and have not heard of any dangers just in the normal course of reading.

Readers, any experience with laser treatments or knowledge of possible dangers?

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Question from Lisa

Hi, I am trying to find a chest or a small cabinet to store my dog’s dry food inside the bag. I am currently using an old large rubbermaid chest, and am worried about the plastic. I am looking for something fairly large – it could be a small cabinet or chest size for a 40 lb bag of dry food. Any ideas ? Thanks for your help.

Debra’s Answer

We store our cat food in a small galvanized steel garbage can, which you can buy at most hardware stores. It has a lid which keeps the cat food fresh and a handle that makes it easy to move if needed.

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Question from Lyn

Dear Debra,

My landlord wants to repair some cracks in the porcelain tub in my unit. Is there a non-toxic bottle of porcelain repair or should she just caulk those areas with the AFM Safecoat Caulk that I can tolerate?

Thanks for your incredible website,

Lyn

Debra’s Answer

I don’t know of any nontoxic porcelain repair. Use the caulk you tolerate.

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