Should You Ask Painters in Omaha, NE to Use Non-VOC Paints?

To ask painters to use non-voc paints or not, that is the question that you may face — and the answer is a lot more complicated than a simple yes or no one.

Using non-voc paints has its up sides, but it also comes with some negatives that you should consider before insisting that your painter use them.

Let us look at whether you should ask painters in Omaha, NE to use non-voc paints.

What are VOCs?

VOC stands for volatile organic compounds, and they are toxins that are emitted into the air from certain kinds of paints.

Not only do they cause damage to your health both in the short and the long term, but they are not friendly to the environment.

These compounds are released into the air not only when surfaces are painted with such paints, but even when the paints are stored.

This kind of thing is even more of a concern if you will consider painting in the same home as a pregnant or nursing mother, or even children -- they would do well to stay well away from the areas being painted for the duration of the paint job and a couple of days afterward minimum.

There are some who say that the compounds continue being released into the air for long after the paint is dry and can cause all kinds of problems like headaches and worse.

Downsides To Non-VOC Paints

As mentioned above, non-voc paints have their own downsides.

One downside of non-voc paints is that it costs considerably more than voc paints — and depending on the scope of your painting project, that might make it cost prohibitive.

The second thing is that the paints are much faster in drying — and while that might seem to be advantageous, there is a certain time frame in which one should have a full section of area painted, and you don't want some of the paint dry before you have the whole area painted.

A professional painting contractor could help you with this certainly as they would have an entire crew of people that would help you but this too would be considerably more expensive than getting a professional painting contractor to use voc paints.

Needing To Be Painted More Often

As great as non-voc paints can be, they require re-painting more often, and as stretched out as your budget may have been from having to pay more for the paint itself, having to paint on a more regular basis just adds to that.

When you take into consideration how long a typical paint job takes, the thought of having to do it more frequently might just put you off the idea of having to do it more often.

Hard To Find For Exteriors

Non-voc paints can be notoriously difficult to find for exterior paints -- possibly because it is considered that since you are going to be painting outdoors, you will be less concerned about the compounds that will be released into the air.

There are many, however, that will contend that it is still quite important that you absolutely only use non-voc paints or even low-voc paints if you are going to be painting the exterior of your home because ultimately, it is the atmosphere that you will possibly be damaging and there is but one atmosphere in which we live -- and it is our responsibility to protect it.

Ultimately Your Decision

It is ultimately your call if you will ask your painting contractor to use voc paints, non-voc paints, or even low voc paints.

It really lies on your budget and the extent to which you will be willing to return to the project in a shorter amount of time or a longer amount of time depending on the paint that you get.

Naturally, if safety to the environment comes as the top priority for you above all else, then you will get low-voc paints or non-voc paints as that will be the right choice for you.