This is Non-Toxic Environments, Quick Take On Insulation. Green Building, Eco-Friendly, Environmentally Preferred, Zero VOC, Terms we see and hear every day but to be really know what they mean. Welcome to Non-Toxic Environments. I'm Andy Pace, an international expert in home health and wellness.
And this program is here to help you in your quest to build, remodel, or just live in a healthy home. So if you suffer from allergies, asthma, chemical sensitivities, or just desire to avoid these issues for yourself or your family, this program is for you. Each week we'll discuss hot topics, delve into a component of home building, and even bring in expert guests who can answer your questions and allow you to literally breathe a sigh of relief. Welcome once again to Non-Toxic Environments.
Today is not a full episode, but it's one of our quick takes. We're having a quick discussion today on the topic of insulation. This has been the topic of conversation around the office here in the last few weeks. A lot of projects right now at the insulation phase, and we thought it would be a great idea to give you some quick information on what to look for.
Now fiberglass is probably the most familiar type of insulation when it comes to your home. It's available in both a batting and a shredded or blown-in form. Fiberglass is essentially molten sand. It's spun like cotton candy.
People like it because it's easier to work with, I mean wearing gloves and masks. It's fire resistant. It makes fantastic insulation. Now one of the reasons we're not keen on recommending conventional fiberglass is due to a seria fermaldehyde contents.
The use of seria fermaldehyde as part of the binding agent. Urea fermaldehyde is a known carcinogen, and it contributes to poor into air quality, as well as being a monumental problem for people with chemical sensitivities. Now, how bad is fermaldehyde? Well, you can trigger watery eyes, nose irritations, wheezing, coughing, fatigue, skin rash, severe allergic reactions, burning sensations in the eyes and throat, nausea, and difficulty breathing.
These effects can become pounded when your house breathes during typical temperature fluctuations. So if possible, search your local area for fermaldehyde-free fiberglass insulation, which should be able to be found in most hardware stores and lumber yards. You'll find that both in a bat and a blown inversion. Now, specifically, we love working with the Kanoff Eco-Batt brand of insulation.
They're a trusted reputable source for toxin and fermaldehyde-free fiberglass. They do offer what's called a declare label, which we'll get into in other episodes. A declare label basically shows you all the ingredients that go into the production of that product. So, in lieu of fermaldehyde, as a binder, the Eco-Batt uses a mineral oil blend, and it's safe to use by people with chemical sensitivities.
It's still a fiberglass, so you still want to wear gloves on a mask, because those fiberglass shards can be irritating. Now, if fermaldehyde-free versions are not available near you, choosing something more traditional and then sealing it would be your best bet for the next option. Use a garden sprayer and apply AFM Safe Coat Safe Seal, undiluted in two light fog coats, with about a half hour in between coats. Spray the inside face before putting up and then the exterior before putting up the drywall over it.
Now, safe seal can be used in a myriad of other applications around the home, so make sure to buy extra of that. It's, again, we'll talk about that in future episodes, but that is a fantastic all-purpose sealer. Now, another commonly used insulation is spray foam. I'll be honest with you, this is at the bottom of our list when it comes to healthy options.
While it's a great effective product and it can get deep within crevices traditional insulation cannot, it's compromised almost primarily of synthetic chemicals, typically polyurethanes. Spray foam is used quite often in new construction, really in all areas of the home. If your new construction house is filled with this stuff, I'd say use that safe seal we talked about and put a couple of coats of safe seal on the exposed surface to keep it from off-guessing. The next product is a blown-in cellulose, and that's obviously a very good option for those who are looking for an environmentally friendly recycled option.
It's made from shredded or modified paper, and it is a great way to reuse or repurpose other materials. Now, we tend to caution our chemically sensitive customers away from using this as an option, because its content is often chemically de-inked in addition to being treated with flame retardants. Now, there is no current solution to seal that. You can't use safe seal to seal up the cellulose the way you can the other options.
Finally, cotton fabric or denim gene insulation made from pre-consumer denim gene scraps, that can also be shredded and spun into a bat-like insulation, and that's really gained popularity across the country. They use boric acid to clean the fabric and provide flame resistance. Here's the downside. The cotton production that industry uses the most amount of pesticides of any grown fiber in the United States, and then the de-ink and chemicals they use to get rid of some of the color from the denim, will also make this a can be quite irritating and certainly makes it expensive.
Now, when considering insulation for your new home or your existing, bottom line is we recommend the fiberglass that's from Aldaide Free. Second option would be use standard fiberglass, but seal it with two coats of safe seal. Finally, cellulose, and then we like to say at all cost avoid the spray foam insulations. Now, I hope that's helped to give you a little bit of information on what to look for, what to avoid.
So, thank you for listening to one of our quick takes. As always, please follow us on iTunes, hit subscribe, leave us a rating and review. And most importantly, reach out to us at degreeofgreen.com, become one of our followers, and let us know what you'd like us to talk about on one of our next episodes. Thanks for listening and have a healthy week.