Himmelstein McConnell Gribben & Joseph LLP. If you are considering refinishing your bathtub or shower, click on Find a Location or call our toll free locator number, 1-888-271-7690 . If the cost of removing the old tub and installing a new one versus reglazing are similar or your tub is particularly old or damaged, it might be better to get a new one. Reglazing a tub doesnt actually take that long to do. on the dangers of isocyanates in coatings and application hazards. I wish they warned me and Id have had means to stay out of house for a few days. In order to assess learn more about the products that are being used for the re-glazing, assess the air quality of your apartment, prevent exposure or remediate any hazards, seek assistance from the building owner or manager. Thank you so much for this great article and hope that others now are aware of the safety measures that need to be followed. For example, if you have a beautiful clawfoot tub made from heavy cast iron, refinishing is absolutely the way to go. It hurt to know my best friend was no longer alive but his body stayed warm and breathing only by use of machines. Thanks for your comment. Seek medical attention for treatment and evaluation. It is often referred to as dichloromethane and has many industrial uses, such as paint stripping, metal cleaning, and degreasing. I did two tubs in old houses yesterday. Symptoms such as difficulty breathing, chest pain, palpitations, dizziness or difficulty staying awake require immediate medical attention. But two days later it still bothers me. a great article! I have been thinking about reglazing our kitchen countertop (tiles). I cannot replace the tub without it being a major, expensive remodel. He was formally pronounced brain dead at the hospital, the same day of the incident. Specifically, typical mobile LEV units have a fan, flexible ductwork, and a hood near the tub that exhausts hazardous vapors to the outdoors. I wish I had read this blog before the procedure. Keep posting as I am gonna come to read it everyday! I am all for saving money and dont wish to come off like I dont appreciate the effort but if your already saving $5000 why not let a pro do it. We share your concern for the workers who worked on the tub in a confined space with the door closed. There are exposure limits, but they are not based solely on how long a worker may be exposed to the chemical. Methyl chloride has high vapor pressure, meaning that it evaporates extremely quickly and turns into gas that can easily be inhaled, especially in a small bathroom that may not be adequately ventilated. Thank you for taking the time to confirm your preferences. Without a thorough investigation of the respirator, process used, and procedures it would be hard to identify the source of this adverse effect. I thought it was re-porcelained but have just been told that it was refinished with a polyurethane/acrylic finish. Every 10 minutes or so I would have to leave and go outside because my eyes burning so bad. And if we can afford it, let the pros do their jobs. I use a flexible flat blade scraper and then sand with an aggressive grit. Im 70 and have no place to go except my apartment. Dust masks do not protect you from bathtub refinishing vapors. Please let me know where to seek more information, particularly in the Australian climate? Provided your surface was prepped correctly, you can expect your reglazed tub and/or tile to be good for about seven to 10 years, and the more you take care of it, the longer it will last. I stripped the lead paint off the outside of an old cast iron tub using a low-VOC paint stripper suitable for lead paint, and then primed and painted the exterior. If they continue, you should consult your doctor. You will be subject to the destination website's privacy policy when you follow the link. (Obviously, no, but you get the idea.). This bathtub renovation option goes by many names resurfacing, recoating, refinishing or reglazing but has a pretty straightforward process. Cookies used to enable you to share pages and content that you find interesting on CDC.gov through third party social networking and other websites. I live in low income housing, a few years ago they said my tub need to be refinished. So, it presents no long-term hazard to the resident. and it was very helpful for people, In addition to the hazards of strippers, old porcelain bathtubs, sinks and tiles manufactured before the mid-1990s could also have lead in the glaze, which could leach into bathwater, or if sanded or scraped could form a dust that if ingested by young children (who touch it with bare skin) could cause lead poisoning. There are bathtub refinishing companies out there, [company name removed] are using safe processes for refinishing your bathtub, you just have to ask the tough questions. Jimmy White of Staten Island-based Custom Spraying and Reglazing, who has been doing it for more than 30 years and is considered the reglazer to the starsheworked on Faye Dunaway's and Candace Bergens bathroomssays it can be done in a few hours, plus 24 hours of dry time. Reglazing a tub doesnt actually take that long to do. Scratching the tub would not release any methylene chloride vapors. Will these chemicals be leaching out of the surface, presenting a health concern from contact? I think our tub would look so much nicer if we had it refinished. Resurfacing is when we paint the counters, cabinets or tubs. And Bathtub Aliphatic Acrylic Urethane MSDS. Follow the links to the Material Data Safety Sheet (MSDS) that the search will find. You should ask the installer to check that the product was applied correctly. Leave the room immediately after applying the methylene chloride-based stripping agent to limit exposure to methylene chloride vapors. But the air looked pretty fume filled to me This is a nightmare for someone with my health issues! Material data sheets, now referred to as Safety Data Sheets (SDS) are prepared by those who sell chemical products. I dont know of incidents that may have occurred, buy you can never be too careful with peoples lives. Maybe others reading this blog will be able to help point you in the right direction. I am concerned about having a surface that is toxic and that can harm my family in the long run. Adults? An apartment maintenance man entered the apartment to look for the man and found him behind the closed bathroom door, unresponsive, and slumped over the tub. Of course I wont be using it for a good week or so just to be safe, but I dont even use bleach or Flash to clean my tub because of the chemicals getting into the bathwater; even rinsing thoroughly. Bathtub refinishing is being used more by hotels, apartment complexes and homeowners because of a housing downturn, a mortgage-meltdown, and overall depressed and depressing economy as a way to save money in their bathroom renovation. Thanks so much for the info! This situation creates dangerously high concentrations of methylene chloride and even replaces the breathable air. I am older with heart disease and lung disease. Fumes associated with bathtub stripping chemicals have taken the lives of those that did not follow the warnings on the product. Second tub went smoother because I had a window to open for air circulation. How can -re-glazers be allowed to do this line of work if it is dangerous to everyone involved? Enter a zip below and get matched to top-rated pros near you. Is that smell dangerous for children? Sad to hear, but at least proves to me that I was right! Kimberly Evans. Its either not portable or cost prohibitive. Thanks for sharing such a helpful information. Our beloved pet went into respiratory failure the next day, was rushed to the ER and spent three nights in the veterinarian ICU. Needless to say, I was shocked, I am taken aback by the statistics. I have been refinishing tubs for 23 years. There is still a strong smell in my bathroom espicially when it is hot and humid. I personally have never heard of this being such a serious problem. This article does a good job calling attention to the dangers of methylene chloride products and noting that many people dont know how dangerous it is. Coatings suitable for bathtub reglazing include: You can use these materials on several surfaces, including acrylic, ceramic, porcelain, and fiberglass bathtubs. This study is great for warning against the potential dangers. I have learned some incredible information in this report. My tub was removed from my home and refinished by a company here in Portland, OR. You may want to contact the Environmental Protection Agency or The Consumer Product Safety Commission. This research only focused on worker methylene chloride exposures during bathtub refinishing. If youve been considering a bathroom remodel, then replacing an older tub might just make sense. They took all precautions and said the fumes were gone, its only a smell. thank you so much. They were all exposed to open tanks of Methylene Chloride and cutting up bodies causing carbon monoxide. After working in retail for many years, my mother retired, began buying and refinishing furniture. Any other surfaces in the vicinity of the tub should be covered in protective paper and drop cloths, and you should wait a day or two to remove everything and use your bathroom and tub. Bathtub refinishing is very risky. Our blog focused on the exposures from methylene chloride to workers during the process of stripping the old paint off of the tub prior to refinishing. Alternative products and processes exist for bathtub refinishing. I have one side of my nose feeling congested and post nasal drip and a headache. Agree with your perspective. Being relatively poor most of my life Ive always been a do-it-yourselfer. At high enough levels, it can stop breathing. I certainly will be approaching this much differently. Eyes, skin and residual in clothing adsorbption can also be significant and detrimental. Ms. Scott thank you for your interest in our blog Dangers of Bathtub Refinishing and your question regarding how to assess exposure to toxic vapors. Effective ventilation would have to be ensured in order to shield the worker from toxic fumes of the process. Very helpful and will definitely be one of the things to look out for on my rehabs.. Great article. Publication number 81-8c-2013. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It gives me hope to see that some commenters are specialists who are trying to recreate safer and more effective processes that will phase out use of this agent. I think this post was very helpful in knowing the bad effects Bathtub refinishing of such dangerous products. I stripped the two sinks using a chisel and a heat gun. (273) Questions & Answers (148) +3. This is a great article. If you just bought a Mercedes, would you put a rubber mat on the roof? White asks. What if they put a horrible smell into the product that would alert the user before overexposure. THANK YOU! Mostly problem is that it can broken. Bathtub refinishing can be very dangerous indeed, I have seen many poorly trained so called bathtub refinishing specialists using dangerous chemicals to refinish bathtubs in peoples homes without the proper ventilation systems in place and without using the proper protective equipment necessary. Great amazing blog post I really love such lovely blog posts. See the NIOSH topic page dedicated to occupational safety and health hazards associated with Isocyanates (http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/isocyanates/default.html). I have tried a couple of my wifes lotions to easy the burning, which has only made it worse.. any suggestion on what to take the stinging away.. If you know the name of the product that was used, you may be able to find it by searching on the Internet. Finding a Miracle Method office. Wearing a dust mask should not be confused with fitting a respirator with organic cartridges. Bathtub refinishing fumes are dangerous and you do not want yourself or anyone in the home breathing them. Perhaps this us not the case. Real time instruments such as Photoionization detectors (PIDs) can be used to measure volatile organic compounds (VOCs). I have blocked the drain over night but it did not eliminate the smell. If your bathtub is on the older side, then youll need to determine whether its worthwhile to refinish or reglaze it or just replace it altogether. Pacific Reglazing provides high quality, affordable kitchen and bathroom repair and refinishing services throughout the Greater Los Angeles area, the San Fernando Valley, Ventura, Orange County and Riverside County. Right now, I am surrounded by vacant apartments, and the new owner is reglazing all of the tubs. Why can strippers with this ingredient be sold to consumers in U.S. hardware stores that do _not_ sell the full-face air supplied respirators that should be worn while using it? Ive spoken with many other tub resurfacing company owners and employees, and most of them do not use or even own full-face air-supplied respirators. After reading this post I think I can live with those scratches until I can hire a professional. There are alternatives to using methylene chloride (MC) for bathtub stripping. From now we must be aware if wanna to do that. If you have a tub that has seen better days, but you dont want to remove and replace it completely, then you may need to have it reglazed or refinished to restore it to its original state. I sure wish homeowners not use those diy Kits. Thank you. It is the first time I visit your blog, but I was extremely impressed. The guy who came to do tub had a fancy breathing mask that covered his whole face and tubes attached to his belt I was concerned when I saw the precautions he took but said it was no problem. Is there some disconnect between science, policy and legal enforcement? I use it in good ventilation and, if Im going to be doing much work, I use a respirator. So how and why are these places allowed to keep doing that tub refinishing if its so dangerous?? As exposure increases so do the health effects, with a potential for suffocation, loss of consciousness, coma, and sudden death. If I had of done a little research I guess I would of been more informed. Do these products continue to leech into air/water once project is completed? They take the dirt out but also take part of the glaze, he says. discovered that the fumes were coming through the vent in her bathroom. Ask Sam: I saw my apartment on a listing site, but I havent received any notice from my landlord.
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