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by Steve Rush, 05/13/07Steve Rush has been a consultant with Environmental Inspections and Solutions, Inc., in Agoura Hills, California, since 2001. A Certified Indoor Air Quality Professional (CIAQP) and active member of the Indoor Air Quality Association, Inc., Steve's strong science background and construction experience give him the skills and understanding needed to conduct inspections and address indoor environmental problems. He approaches his work from the perspective of building science, analyzing moisture intrusion, heating and ventilation systems and construction practices and protocols.
Question: My wife is in her sixth month carrying twins. We have two rooms downstairs with floors that are in dire need of sanding and refinishing. Is it a bad idea to consider doing the floor refinishing now? We can get out of the building for maybe a week. Are there any natural floor finishes that are not dangerous to her and yet work very well?
– John Salerno, Hoboken, NJ
Answer: This is quite a project to take on just before two new ones are coming into your life, but if it has to be done, I recommend before the twins are born.
You have three issues to contend with:
The key to all three of these is separating the areas of the house that will be worked on from the areas that you and your expectant wife will be living in. Of course, getting out of the house for a week (or more, if possible) will help, but if you do not have the correct “critical barriers,” the dust will get everywhere and will remain in the air after you have returned to the house.
Carefully separate the upstairs from the downstairs by placing plastic sheeting over the stairwell and in other areas between the two floors. This step is very important to avoid contaminating the entire house with toxic dust. If possible, tape over cracks around doors, including the bottom. Then set up an exhaust fan to constantly pull air out of the house at a location where it will not blow into a neighbor’s house or onto a passer-by. Attach a furnace filter during the sanding part of the work to prevent as much dust as possible from escaping into the air. You can further limit the amount of dust by using sanders attached to vacuum cleaners.
Before applying the finish you choose, be sure that all of the dust from the ceiling, walls, and floors is gone. You can do this by first vacuuming all surfaces then wiping them down with damp cloths. Start with the ceilings, then do the walls, and finally the floors.
It is very important to protect yourself while doing the work. Always wear a respirator, at least a half-face respirator with a NIOSH rating of 95 or higher (these will usually have N-95 or N-100 written on the face mask). Also wear a Tyvek or similar suit that has attached booties and a hood, and of course, gloves.
Newborns have very delicate systems, and using a low-toxicity product as the floor finish is very important. You can find reviews of some of the least toxic products on GreenHomeGuide's Clear Coatings Directory. One finish that I recommend is Elements Zinc-free Floor Finish. Another good choice is Osmo Hardwax Oil. It has a slight crayon-like odor for the first week or two after applying, but it has very low toxicity.
GreenHomeGuide's Ask A Pro archive has answers to dozens of other green home questions from our network of the best and brightest green architects, designers, contractors and consultants across the U.S.
On May 15, 2007, Andrew Pace wrote:
The homeowner doesn’t say what type of floor they have. If they have hardwood floors, the ‘Elements’ product is an incorrect recommendation, as it is designed for VCT and stone surfaces like terazzo and marble. The OSMO contains solvents that may be offensive. For a hardwood floor, a better recommendation would be the AFM Naturals Oil Wax finish, which contains a blend of organically sourced plant oils and waxes.
On May 18, 2007, Anna Hackman wrote:
Two things. I would check with your HVAC person when you sand to make sure you should even be running your HVAC unit during sanding. I was told to tape up my vents with plastic and not turn on the HVAC. My guess, is that no all the particle get into the filter and really mucked up the HVAC units. Check.
Steve-do you think they should have their ducts cleaned after they are done?
Second, when I was finishing my floors, I was talked out of OSMO hardwax oil by green stores because it is not durable enough for areas used alot. I don’t know what you are planning to do in those rooms. Kids are really active and will think nothing of dropping hard objects on your beautiful floor (I know unfortuneately...) It is a consideration.
I have a question for Andrew-have you used the AMF wax and do you have kids? If so, does high traffic areas stand up with it and does it need to be re-done every 6 months like regular wax floors? Also if you do the wax, can you take it off and reapply a water based polyureathane if you are not happy? A floor person once told me that wax has oils in it and once you use it, you can never use a water based product with it. I was just wondering because I love the wax idea but hate the maintenance. Something to check out.
My reccommendation is to speak to AFM tech people to see what your intended application is or speak to a store that is really reputable who sells it. Ask Paul at Green Depot his thoughts. He is in Brooklyn and you can go there. He sells AMF. If you don’t feel you get a good answer, you canI call the AMF sales and techical people when I was not really sure which product to buy. I was so glad I did.
They may say high traffic areas need water based poly, which they have and is excellent. If I recall I think you have to do a certain part satin to a certain part glossy. It tells you on the label.
Also, if you go with poly keep your floors natural so the scatches will not show up. Put foor protectors on your furniture and never drag your furniture over the floors. I hope this helps and good luck with the babies. They grow up and fast and then they start driving...need I say more? anna hackman http://www.green-talk.com
On May 19, 2007, andrew Pace wrote:
Anna- The AFM Oil Wax has worked for us for several years. If we decide to put AFM’s Polyureseal BP over it in the future, it’s as easy as a light sanding, then the application of the poly.
Regarding the water-based Polyureseal BP; I didn’t recommend it because John asked for a natural finish in his original question. Otherwise, it certainly would have been my first choice. I have been working with AFM products for about 14 years and the Poly BP is definately AFM’s best product!
Andy Pace http://www.safebuildingsolutions.com
On May 20, 2007, Anna Hackman wrote:
Thanks Andy for replying. Two more questions: First, is your wax in high traffic areas? (dogs and kids traffic too) and second, how often do you have to re-wax high traffic areas and low traffic areas? anna hackman
On May 29, 2007, Scott D. wrote:
Regarding the sanding of the hardwood floors, there are systems we use at Bay Area Floors that capture the “sanded dust” , These systems are widely used by flooring professionals today. The equipment is not something for a DYI. The sander is equipped with powerful vaccums, directing all of the sanded dust into hoses; the hoses are directed out of the house into a large containers situated on a trailer. All dust is contained.
Any professional Flooring Contarctor should have this system, or aware of the process.
Scott
On June 13, 2007, Lisa wrote:
No amount of cleaning can ever get contaminated HVAC ducts truly clean. Explore non-toxic alternatives, but, at minimum, for the sake of you AND your babies, block off all of the vent in and out registers during the entire job and after completion, until the space is aired out and thoroughly cleaned.
On July 6, 2007, Nylinfloors.com wrote:
As a hardwood floor professional for over 20 yrs and a firefighter, I know the hazards of toxic dust and smoke. For the last 3 years nylinfloors has been using a state of the art dustless floor sanding system . 99% of the dust is hepa filtered and evacuated by a highpower vacuum system via hoses to a dustproof and fireproof containment system usually located outside - but can be located inside as well with no contamination. Along with the green finishes out there we have been able to accomodate sensitive situations such as above with great success. I highly suggest you hire a floor sanding company with a dustless floor sanding system such as ours. Feel free to contact me at http://www.nylinfloors.com
On July 19, 2007, Mary Cronin wrote:
Hi, I found this site by googling for information about refinishing hardwood floors in home of a family with small children. I planned on being out of my home for 1 week and using a water-based poly (no stain) on the floors. I didn’t even think about sanding issues. Does anyone know of a company in the metro NY area that does the dustless sanding? Plus is 1 week long enough to keep the children out of the house. My one son is crawling so this is a huge issue for me right now. We want to do it soon since we are putting the house on the market shortly. Thank you, Mary Cronin
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