What are Eco paints and are they any good?
Volatile Organic Compounds
The constituents of conventional paints may include formaldehyde, heavy metals and nasties known as volatile organic compounds, or VOCs for short. Those VOCs are given out while painting – and for up to five years after your brushes have dried.
Eco-friendly paint, or natural paint, is paint that has been specially designed to have lower levels of volatile organic chemicals (VOCs, for short). … Outdoor paints and paints designed for bathrooms or kitchens may also contain fungicides, while many paint brands include biocide to increase the product’s shelf life.
Eco paints can be hard to get hold of – they still only account for a minute percentage of the market and so, although they are stocked in green outlets all around the UK, it’s probably easiest to buy them online (see below). They’re also more expensive than conventional paint, though not horrendously so – especially when you consider that you’re paying for natural ingredients and, very often, low-carbon or carbon-neutral production (and the ability to compost any leftover paint – yes, really!).
Using eco paints used to mean fiddling about with mixing powders and base paint, but these days you can buy eco paints ready-mixed, in a wide range of colours, and even have them colour-matched to your desired shade. They can be applied in the same way as ordinary paints, with similar coverage, though paints made with natural oils tend to take longer to dry.
What constitutes Eco friendly paint?
1: The ingredients
For a paint company to be truly eco-friendly, they should be able to provide evidence by telling you what ingredients they use. This should be displayed on the paint pots or available upon request from the company.Eco-friendly paint consideration
2: The manufacture
Of course, the way any product is manufactured has an environmental impact. It makes sense to consider a paint company’s carbon footprint when deciding how eco-friendly they actually are.
3: Breathability
Traditional paints that contain plastic create a plastic barrier on walls when applied trapping air, which leads to mould and other problems. Eco-friendly paints should be breathable as a result of using only natural ingredients.
Tikkurila is a leading Nordic paint company whose products are manufactured of carefully chosen raw materials that meet the highest quality standards. Premium products provide customers with quality that will stand the test of time and weather. Tikkurila operates in seven countries and our 2,700 dedicated professionals share the joy of building a vivid future through surfaces that make a difference.
The market is changing due to consumers’ worries and aspirations. Increasing understanding of environmental issues is pushing consumers to pay attention to what they buy – and in turn, painters and construction companies look for more sustainable solutions to answer to consumers’ demands for better housing and a healthier environment.