Ryan assembled it for us and excitedly we put it in the kitchen. Several of us, including Colin, sat at the table for maybe 10 minutes.
Something smelled. I vinegared it. Not advisable with wood, but anything to eradicate the smell. Olive oil didn't do the trick. Still a strong smell. I gave Chris the bad news. "I think we need to move it outside."
It took three of us to move it. We put the table on its side and needed something to cushion it.
Lo and behold, we had the perfect bolster sitting right there on the back patio. The book from the other day, "The E.I. Syndrome - An Rx for Environmental Illness."
Colin had an hour-long bloody nose within a few hours after his short exposure. The label on the table says "finished good is compliant with California section 93120 Phase 1 formaldehyde." Formaldehyde is tough to avoid, but after reading this article I'll be checking labels a little more carefully.Formaldehyde and Cancer Risk
I think we'll stick with the card table for now.
Andrea, I so hope that being in the sun will cause it to off-gas quickly. That has been my experience with furniture over these past 7 years. I bought an antique table to use for my computer a while ago...it had recently been painted with an oil based paint. It smelled icky when I got into the apt. with it...I took it out to my sister's home and set it on the grass...I scrubbed that table hard, hosed it down, left it in the sun for two days....finally!!! I had peace with it in the kitchen, and I use it now while I write this. The sun did the job that the soap and water could not complete. Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteGod bless!
Ruth
Sooo encouraging Ruth! I wondered if the sun would do it. We won't give up on it yet. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteHi Andrea,
ReplyDeleteHere is the "Book" part:
We could not buy used books either (nor borrow from the library) due to both mold and fragrance from hand lotions, etc. To make new books “old” – outgassed – I “baked” them in the oven when my MCS husband was not there (stove vent fan on high, windows open), temp on very low (we don’t want a fire), for a long time.
I liked this better though: I also put them in my food dehydrator (changing where the book was open from time to time) for however long it took, days sometimes, to get rid of the ink solvents and paper smells. Usually, with either method, by the time they were “ready” the binding was shot. But I didn’t care, we still had the information.
We also bought a “reading box.” It is a wood or metal box, with a glass lid and gloves attached through the sides (to use to turn the pages). It keeps the print and paper fumes (mold and fragrances) contained and you don't touch the print.
Hope this helps. Emma
Very helpful Emmma! I'm trying to air some books out in the sun today. They were new but were in the house with pesticides. ( awhile ago).
ReplyDeleteI will try this if it fails.
Andrea
The “Table” part:
ReplyDeleteI read your entry regarding your new table and I sure hope you get to keep it.
Following is what worked for us and might be a solution for you:
We learned that formaldehyde can be encapsulated using environmentally safe sealers. We have used it on both used and new furniture with great success. It dries to a clear and durable finish that still looks lovely today (3 moves and 20 years later). We aired the item first, made sure it was clean and dry, then I put two coats of sealer on it. I also took the sealer to an unfinished furniture store where they applied it to the solid oak pieces we needed and were so thankful to find. We were able to use linseed oil for stain (to give the honey oak color) and then they applied two coats of our sealer. I know there are even safe stains today. Most (not all) of the unfinished furniture was solid wood, not composite core, particle board, or plywood/veneer. Our doctor said to use solid oak only (relatively inert and very dense); evidently pine can bother some sensitive folks and cedar is even worse. Additionally, the sales people at the unfinished store really KNEW what I was talking about when I said NO formaldehyde.
The product we used was called Crystal Aire, but it appears to have been replaced with a product now called “Hard Seal”. Hard Seal is manufactured by AFM, who also makes other helpful sealers. Here is the AFM site address: www.afmsafecoat.com/products.php?page=2. AFM is a good source for other building products as well and they have been around a long time.
Please remember that even though Hard Seal dries safe for most MCS people, you need a good breathing mask and eye protection if you are the one who has to apply it. The best scenario is always for someone who isn’t sensitive to do it out of doors and away from where you are.
I hope this helps. Emma
Hi Andrea,
ReplyDeleteI've been wanting to write to you for months...to you to tell you how much we appreciate all the info you are sharing! It's heart-wrenching to hear (Christian radio) and read (your blog) about all that you/your family are going through, yet at the same time, I'm inspired by your story of strength, courage, faith, and perseverance.
I know each day is a struggle, but I also know that God will get you all through this. My family and I are sensitive to certain chemicals, dust, and many other allergens, so to a certain extent, we can relate.
Two things I wanted to share with you:
1) Re: the table...Are you familiar with Ikea? It's a well-known global eco-friendly, consumer-friendly home store with unbelievably low prices and quality products! Well, they just lowered their prices (not a sale, but an overall price lowering) on many of their products, including tables (and mattresses and pillows...another huge cause of allergies as you probably know)!
Ikea has HUGE local stores across the U.S.A (the one that recently opened near our home is a 2-story building the size of 2-football-stadiums!), as well as other countries (they're swedish-based I think).
Anyway, I saw an ad for a dining table for $199 that can fit upto 8 people (it comes in different colors/finishes).
Here's the link: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10116057
I hope you can find a way to use the one that you already have (with all the great advice you've received from others, I wouldn't be surprised), but just in case, I thought I'd share this with you.
2) Regarding your family's health issue... Have you looked into healing services offered by Christians who have the gift of healing? There are many people who as you probably know are blessed with this gift of intercessory prayer / healing in different Christian denominations (not only among Protestant-Christians, but also Catholic-Christians). Here's one incredibly gifted priest you many want look into...his testimony is online...he's a Catholic priest, Padre Dario Betancourt, who travels around the world sharing God's good news as well as God's gift of healing with millions!...
http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=es&u=http://mx.geocities.com/gposangabriel/testimonios/betancourt.htm&ei=_NeySpr8BYKItgei7visDg&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=5&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dpadre%2Bdario%2Bbetancourt%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26hs%3DIhm
Note: You'll notice that this this is a "translated webpage" using google's translate feature, so the translation may not be accurate (I'm bi-lingual, so believe me, it's usually not translated well). This is why I only read the Spanish version, but if you know someone who speaks Spanish, and can translate the original version for you here it is:
http://mx.geocities.com/gposangabriel/testimonios/betancourt.htm
You can probably get the gist of it from the English translation, but I would still recommend you try to find someone who can read it in Spanish and translate it for you in person.
This priest (Padre Dario) is going to be in my neck of the woods this weekend (Mother of Our Redeemer Catholic Church in Miami Springs, FL), so I'm hoping/praying I can make it. Just a thought...
God bless,
Cary