New Wood Floor Smell
The process of installing new wood flooring inside of a house or office building can stir up an array of health issues, odors, and buildup of chemicals within the air of this personal indoor environment. Among the selections of flooring that someone can select for their home, there are few options that contain no traces of chemicals within the composition of the material. Wood flooring, along with carpeting are all known culprits of VOCs and other chemicals inside the home.
When new wood flooring is installed inside an enclosed area, the flooring will begin to emit chemicals into the environment, in a process that is referred to as off gassing. Off gassing occurs as new chemicals enter into an environment with regulated temperatures that elicit the chemicals to turn into a gaseous state and begin to release this chemical gas into the air and taint the quality of the air, along with the odor inside the environment.
How does new wood flooring affect indoor air quality and what are the consequences of off gassing new wood floors on the health of those exposed?
Is Wood Flooring Toxic?
Wood flooring has been identified as a potentially hazardous material inside an indoor environment. Flooring including wood flooring is composed of a blend of different chemicals that are used and applied during the manufacturing process. The adhesives, glues, and wood-pressed materials that are used to construct wood flooring all utilize VOCs and other chemicals that will enter into the home after new wood flooring is installed within a home.
A commonly found VOC that is present within new wood flooring is a chemical known as formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is a naturally occurring chemical that is found in building materials and wood-pressed materials. This chemical becomes dangerous as it becomes a gas, as it can invade the air space and taint the air quality and the health of those breathing in this contaminated air.
When formaldehyde is present in low levels within the air, it can elicit adverse health symptoms in an individual, these symptoms include the following:
✓ Irritated eyes, nose, and throat
✓ Skin sensitivities
✓ Asthma attack
✓ And other respiratory problems
How to Get Rid of New Wood Smell
After new wood is installed and applied inside your home, the odors and chemicals that it emits can be both hazardous and compromising to the quality of the indoor air. If you start to experience both noticeable symptoms and a looming odor inside your environment after new wood floors are installed, there are mitigation methods to apply to get rid of new wood smell.
Opening windows and allowing air circulation inside the environment will help to flush out the toxic chemicals produced from new wood flooring. As new air flows inside the indoor space, it helps to push out the contaminated air and replace it with cleaner outdoor air. Also, added a deodorizer such as baking soda or vinegar to the flooring may help to alleviate the odors produced from the chemicals in the wood flooring – but it will not completely eliminate the odors and chemicals entirely from the environment.
If, however, the chemicals and chemical odors are overtaking the environment and wreaking havoc on your personal health, it will be necessary to implement a solution such as an air purifier to help mitigate these chemicals/chemical odors from the air. The EnviroKlenz Air Purifier is a great solution for effectively eliminating and neutralizing chemicals, odors, and airborne contaminants from the indoor air. EnviroKlenz utilizes a patented earth mineral technology that is capable of capturing and breaking down/neutralizing the chemicals found within the air, including VOCs like formaldehyde.
Below is testing that was conducted to show a comparison of air purifiers and their effectiveness against VOCs including formaldehyde.
Air Purifier Comparison Testing Against Effectiveness of VOCs
In this chamber study, a volatile organic chemical was released in an environmental chamber under ambient conditions. The various air systems and technologies were remotely controlled to not disturb the environment. The IQAir was the air system that was able to remove the chemical the quickest, but since the system uses carbon media, the chemical has the potential to be released back into the atmosphere with an increase in temperature or changes to humidity and pressure. In some of our real-world evaluations, we have seen carbon systems start to desorb VOCs as the temperature rises towards only 80 degrees.
The EnviroKlenz Air Purifier out performed the Blue Air and MoleKule system, while also offering more than just physical absorption. The EnviroKlenz Air Cartridge works though a combination of physical and chemical mechanisms.
In the study against formaldehyde, the IQAir was able to reduce the compound the fastest from the chamber due to having a much higher loading of media. The MoleKule did not have much impact on the formaldehyde in this study. The BlueAir HEPA media and bare carbon filter did show some physical absorption of formaldehyde, but physical absorption is very prone to releasing whatever it may have absorbed over time since there is no chemical interaction.
The EnviroKlenz Air Purifier does actively react with the formaldehyde through adsorption and polymerization on the oxide surface of the EnviroKlenz media.
Frequently Asked Questions – New Wood Floor Dangers
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EnviroKlenz Mobile Air System
(Standard Model)
$699
EnviroKlenz Mobile Air System
(UV-C Model)
$799