Updating the look of your home with a fresh painting is an easy and inexpensive, but requires homeowners to adhere to several indoor painting safety tips in order to ensure a safe working environment. You can minimize the risk of serious side effects caused by the chemicals found in paint by following the proper safety precautions.
The first step in ensuring a safe painting environment is selecting the right paint. Choose paint that has no or low VOCs -- volatile organic compounds -- which are dangerous to humans and pets, as well as the environment.
Wearing masks is an important part of painting safety. We recommend you to look for masks and respirators that have been tested and approved by the Underwriters Lab, or UL. The right mask type is your choice. Avoid the plain white paper masks found in many home stores, as they may trap harmful substances rather than block them.
Proper ventilation is essential to a safe painting environment. Painting fumes are very harmful so when you paint your house, you should wide open your windows to help dissipate the fumes. Box fans should be placed in the windows to help drown the harmful fumes out of the room. After the project has been completed, all windows should be left open for two to three days so the fumes can clear. Try to schedule all your painting projects when the weather is more conducive to having the windows open.
For your safety it is important to take several breaks because prolonged exposure to paint fumes can lead to headaches, eye watering, dizziness and difficulty breathing. If you experience any of these problems, stop painting immediately and get some fresh air. If possible, humans and pets should avoid the freshly painted area for two to three days while paint fumes clear.
