his Q&A blog is open for all to participate. Feel free to ask your own questions and answer questions posted by others. I know all of you have a wealth of information and experience on healthy living and you are welcome to share it here. 
Building
Need nontoxic wood putty
New construction - need to cover nail holes in door trim etc with wood putty. I got wood putty sticks but carpenter says they are too brittle and he wants to use Minwax putty, which has a strong smell for me.
Any other ideas, alternatives? Need something fast. Thanks!
Just mix a little sawdust from the wood you are using with yellow woodworker's glue to make a paste. Totally nontoxic and the color blends perfectly!
Redwood Deck
We have to build a new deck. I know that cedar can be problematic for many with MCS, but what about redwood?
Readers, what is your experience with woods for building decks?
Here in Florida wood rots really easily so wood products are sold that mix wood particles with other materials, such as recycled plastic or cement. If you go with recycled plastic, look for recycled polyethylene decking and avoid recycled PVC.
Non Toxic Plastic to Cover Windows?
Hi Debra,
I recently bought a home built in 1976 with original windows. Now that winter is approaching (I'm in Maryland), I'm seeing just how inadequate the window seals are. Not only is the cold air coming through the edges, but the smell of burning wood from fireplaces nearby is coming in, too. I cannot afford new windows right now. Is there such thing as a safe plastic I can use to put over any of my windows? The one my dad recommended literally stinks.
Thanks in advance!
~Melissa
Yes. Polyethylene or polypropylene.
Toxic-free Lustron Homes
In our continuing search for nontoxic homes, I couldn't resist posting when I saw this: homes made of steel panels coated with porcelain enamel (like refrigerators), manufactured like cars and transported across the USA. Magnets or glued-on hooks used to hang pictures on metal walls.
Read more and see a photo at About.com: Lustron Homes
More photos: Google: Lustron Homes
Wood flooring - safe sealant?
I have multiple chemical sensitivities and allergies. I am moving house soon, and getting the new place ready beforehand is proving tricky. The carpets are being removed, and I am hoping that the floorboards underneath will be OK as flooring instead.
The question is what to seal them with (if they are not already sealed - that would be best case scenario)? Is a water-based polyurethane floor sealer OK? How long does it take for off-gassing? Is there a better option? (it's public housing, so my choice of products is a bit limited). I have read about cork flooring being good - what do I need to look for if tat's an option? Any other helpful advice/tips? Thanks!
My ex-husband and I just completed refinishing the wood floors in our entire rental house with Varathane® Crystal Clear Water-Based Polyurethane made by Rustoleum. It says "no odor" on the label, but it did have a slight odor. However, it did dry very quickly, and the odor dissipated very rapidly. The finish is beautiful.
They do make some toxic finishes as well, so make sure you get this specific one.
We found it at Lowe's.
We also have used wood finish from Vermont Natural Coatings that we were very happy with.
Concrete Floor finishing products?
Hi there,
I need to finish two concrete slabs (upstairs and downstairs - yes we have a concrete floor upstairs!) in our close-to-being-finished new healthy home. I would appreciate some feedback on two products, AcriSoy sealant and any sealant designed to go on top of diamond-polished floors.
Downstairs (kitchen, living room, bathroom) Slab: After reading great things about the durability and healthyness of diamond polished floors (supposedly no maintanence for decades!) we went ahead with it as a DIY project - professionally diamond polished concrete services are super expensive. After a bit of a learning curve, the floor is polished, and looks lovely. The densified, polished surface is naturally somewhat water-repellant, but can still stain if the source of the stain is not cleaned up right away. Living with two young, messy boys, this is bound to happen. I am trying to decide whether to use an additional sealant, and if so, which one. It would need to be designed to seal on top of diamond-polished floors, since there will be minimal penetration posssible with this floor treatment. This is the sealant from the company that we got our concrete densifier from. What do you think of the safety of this product from an MCS perspective, based on its MSDS? Our move in date is aprox 2 months from now.
http://www.xtremeharddensifier.com/uploads/Shield.pdf
The upstairs slab (bedrooms, bathrooms, laundry room) need to be finished differently. Somehow the waterproof additive Xypex was added to this pour in addition to the pour for the walls, where it was supposed to be, so we could not diamond polish it. The waterproofing does not protect it from stains, necessarily. We were thinking of sealing it with Acrisoy.... any thoughts, experience?
http://www.ecoprocote.com/Acri-Soy-Penetrating-Clear-Sealer-s/91.htm
TIA!
Claire
The AcriSoy looks good to me on paper. Has anyone tried it?
The other one I wouldn't use. It says it is not hazardous under normal conditions, but contains Dipropylene Glycol Normal Butyl Ether which is pretty toxic when you are applying it. It's probably OK once it dries, but the coating is acrylic plastic and I'd prefer another material for you.
Linseed Oil on Brick
I am in the process of buying a house. Current owner used linseed oil as a sealer on all the floors in the house (all brick) and I am having really hard time with the fumes.
Does anyone know if the I can either removed it or seal it with another product?
Thank you
Inessa
Readers, any suggestions?
I did a little research on this and found that linseed oil is extremely difficult to remove, even with very toxic chemicals, and brick is very porous, so that makes it even more difficult.
It is also difficult to seal because many finishes will not stick to the oily surface.
If you must buy this house, my recommendation would be to cover the floors with a physical barrier, such as heavy duty foil-backed paper, and then lay a new floor of your choice on top of that. Cement would also block the fumes--put a skim coat of cement over the brick and then use the cement floor as your floor or lay flooring over that.
Nontoxic Sound insulation
I'm wondering if anyone has a good suggestion for sound insulation (during building process). Builder wants to use insulation batts (Certainteed Insulsafe) but I've been worried about having any batt insulation around the bedroom in case I react to it.
My husband thought blueboard (rigid foam) might be more inert.
Opinions/ideas welcome.
Readers, any ideas?
Green Board from Home Depot
Does anyone know if Green Board carried by Home Depot is typically tolerated or not by people with chemical sensitivities? We built with block construction to avoid using drywall or insulation on our exterior walls, but the original builder didn't line up the windows and blocks properly and they need to be trimmed with something. The new builder is suggested Green Board. I don't know enough about it though.
Opinions and even other material ideas welcome. He said cement board, which we're using in the bathrooms, would be too heavy and expensive.
Thanks!
I don't recommend greenboard. I haven't researched what it in it, but it has an odor and tends to disintegrate.
Is this a big space that needs to be filled in? Can you fill the space with mortar?
P.S. I just noticed in another post there is a product called Green e-Board. Are you talking about this or standard greenboard that is used instead of cement backerboard?
Finding a Safe Place to Rent
Hello. We will be moving to another state within the next year and will be selling the home we live in. At this time, we will not be able to afford to purchase another home. I am very worried about finding a new place to live in, because of the toxic pesticides that could have been sprayed, fertilizers used, bug bombs, plug-ins, fresh paint, fresh carpeting (even getting the old carpeting cleaned). This will be a 1,500 mile move, and I don't know how I am going to find a safe place to live! I have so many chemical sensitivities and am very sick right now because of some exposures to toxic chemicals in the last 9 months. I need help on how I can find a non-toxic place to move into. We hope we can move into a home, not an apartment. Thank you so much everyone for any help you can give me. We hope to be moving to the Boise, Idaho, area, or somewhere else in the Pacific Northwest.
Perhaps some of you reading this could write about the process you used to find safe housing, and your success in doing so.
