hemster
Global Moderator 
Particle Manufacturer
...still listening... still watching
Posts: 51,951
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Post by hemster on Feb 23, 2014 18:01:02 GMT -5
While we're discussing formaldehyde, please bear in mind that it is used in the production of burlap material. It doesn't have fibers as such but the chemical residue remains and emits a nasty smell.
There are options available for formaldehyde-free burlap and it's only a little more expensive. Certainly worth considering, IMHO.
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Post by yves on Feb 23, 2014 19:18:11 GMT -5
It's the formaldehyde that comes out of the insulation that causes cancer. There are a lot of "experts" who claim that it's harmless if you just let it off-gas for about a day or so. Even if that's true, most fiberglass or mineral wool insulation has a really bad smell IMO, and it doesn't easily go away. Knauf insultation that uses "ECOSE technology" doesn't contain formaldehyde, and it doesn't smell. www.gearslutz.com/board/9270504-post6.htmlwww.knaufinsulation.us/insulationYes formaldehyde causes cancer. However there are other binders in fiberglass that also cause cancer. The fibers of fiberglass itself are carcinogenic in the same way as asbestos is carcinogenic. Any fine small particulate fibers which can be airborne is potentially carcinogenic. I personally use OC703 but I made sure to seal the front AND back with fabric to keep all fibers in. Better safe than sorry in this case especially with chemicals, materials which are known to be very problematic for humans. I agree that it's best to walk the extra mile and staple some cheap, breatheable "muslin" cotton fabric to the back of the panels because it does help a lot to keep the fibers in, and it doesn't hurt the acoustic properties of the panel. However, there is no evidence that supports your claim about the fibers themselves being potentially dangerous except if you breathe air that contains abnormally high amounts of them, like for example if you work with the insulation material on a regular basis and, at the same time, often refuse to wear a dust mask while doing so. |
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Post by aboroth00 on Feb 24, 2014 0:21:33 GMT -5
Yes formaldehyde causes cancer. However there are other binders in fiberglass that also cause cancer. The fibers of fiberglass itself are carcinogenic in the same way as asbestos is carcinogenic. Any fine small particulate fibers which can be airborne is potentially carcinogenic. I personally use OC703 but I made sure to seal the front AND back with fabric to keep all fibers in. Better safe than sorry in this case especially with chemicals, materials which are known to be very problematic for humans. I agree that it's best to walk the extra mile and staple some cheap, breatheable "muslin" cotton fabric to the back of the panels because it does help a lot to keep the fibers in, and it doesn't hurt the acoustic properties of the panel. However, there is no evidence that supports your claim about the fibers themselves being potentially dangerous except if you breathe air that contains abnormally high amounts of them, like for example if you work with the insulation material on a regular basis and, at the same time, often refuse to wear a dust mask while doing so. Fibers that do not break down and remain in your lungs such as those of asbestos, silicates, fiberglass are carcinogenic. That's a fact, there is plenty of evidence for that. However, of course that has to be qualified by the amount you're exposed to and how regularly you are exposed. Insulation is supposed to go into walls and most risks are mitigated by this but especially in our toxic world, IMO, it's not wise to be continually exposed to something as sinister as fiberglass. I work with dangerous chemicals, materials, solvents, carcinogens on a daily basis, so I'm more acutely aware of these risks. Any way to reduce exposures to artificial man made carcinogens in your home is a good thing. There are plenty of substances which we are aware of that most likely cause issues for humans which we don't term carcinogenic or toxic because it's pending "further studies" but for something we know is bad for you, dangerous, carcinogenic like fiberglass, why take the risk? |
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Post by Boomzilla on Feb 24, 2014 7:10:19 GMT -5
Formaldehyde is a sensitizer. A little (very, very little) bit will trigger allergic reactions in some people (my wife is one of them). Although you'll never read this in any medical journal, the sensitivity can be overcome. How? By dosing the person (no more than once or twice) with a LARGER dose of formaldehyde vapor.
This is akin to the discovery that children born and raised in houses where animals are present are less likely to have allergies as adults. The medical explanation for this is that in the absence of real threats, the immune system becomes hypersensitive and over reacts to things that aren't really threats. This hypersensitivity manifests itself as allergic reactions.
Therefore children whose bodies DO see real biological threats (from the animals in the house) lose their hypersensitive immune reactions and only react when true threats are present. By exposing those who have hypersensitive reactions to formaldehyde vapor to larger concentrations, their bodies learn that only higher exposures are true threats and lose their hypersensitivity.
As an industrial hygienist in a Formaldehyde plant, I noticed that new employees occasionally exhibited allergic reactions, but after a few weeks, the hypersensitivity declined and the employees no longer had those allergy symptoms. Note that this was back in the "bad old days" when formaldehyde exposures were not as well managed as they are now.
The bottom line is that the body can be "trained" to distinguish between false & real threats and that doing so virtually eliminates allergies.
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Post by bub on Feb 24, 2014 14:48:45 GMT -5
While we're discussing formaldehyde, please bear in mind that it is used in the production of burlap material. It doesn't have fibers as such but the chemical residue remains and emits a nasty smell. There are options available for formaldehyde-free burlap and it's only a little more expensive. Certainly worth considering, IMHO. |
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