Replies

1. 
   Piffin | Sep 04, 2002 08:54pm | #1

   I don't have any info but wanted to learn from this discussion.

   Are you sure it is allergies or is it maybe just sensitivities. Blood tests done? Some woods are more provocative than others and I was wondering if you could identify which and use others that are less obnoxious. I'm adding to my list of woods that bother me as the years go by. We grow out of some ellergies and into others, it seems.

   Excellence is its own reward!
1. 
   Paulgern | Sep 05, 2002 08:12am | #3

   hi.yes more woods as the years go by. we first noticed the reaction when i bought some cedar framed hampers for the laundry. zip guard sealed them effectively, still ok after 4 years. redid daughter #1 room with ply and #2 white pine and sealed with zip again- 2 years ago and still ok. son #1 got his lst year but wanted paint -took a week of open windows to air out the latex but then ok. daughters 2,3 share and got theirs this summer. ply and #2 pine again. 4 coats of agua guard. now, 3 weeks later if the door stays open the room is ok. if it stays closed up for a few hours then my wife cant go in. her dresser is pine and composites. we have had to take out and wash all the clothes twice. 6 coats of zip, on every surface in and out, later and she still cant use it.there are food allergies and chemical sensitivities at work here for sure. the blood tests were years ago and not really very reliable. her eyes turn red and burn, nose starts to run and head starts to pound when some materials are near her.if i have been in really dusty places or been at the saws all day i have to change at once when i get home so my clothes dont set her off. personally i cant paint anymore with out a mask. cedar and redwood dust set me off right now. hardwoods are starting too but plys, pine, fir seem to be no worse.

1. 
   Piffin | Sep 05, 2002 08:52am | #4

   Almost sounds like they are more chemically sensitive to the paint products than allergic to the woods.

   Oak gets me bad and Port orford cedar put me in the hospital, Fir is worth watching out for. I love the smell of pine and white cedar but red cedar is more reactive for me.

   Maybe another round of testing is worthwhile. They've got newer, more efficient processes lately. Find a good allergist. I just went on a nasal spray that deals with 90% of my problems in that area. Plus, I wear a mask more often than I used to.

   Good luckExcellence is its own reward!

1. 
   Paulgern | Sep 06, 2002 08:11am | #6

   we had to wash the clothes to get the wood smell out of them, it is the wood. and yes the products seem now to be culprits also. that is why i am looking for a new product?

   only used port orford cedar once and it was treated and it was nasty.

   so what nasal spray works for you, perscription? over tahe counter?

   i use a neti pot to wash out my nasal passages. works for me.

1. 
   SgianDubh | Sep 06, 2002 08:48am | #7

   Paul, I find it extremely interesting that your whole family seem to suffer from this sensitivity to wood and wood finishes. I'm no biologist, doctor, or  geneticist, but it crossed my mind that you and your wife (of course) are made of different genes, and a prediliction to be affected by things like this tend to be rather unique; so if there is a sensitivity on one parents side or the other, then half of the children could be expected to suffer  a similar sensitivity. How do your respective parents-- assuming they are alive, and your respective siblings react when they visit your house? What about your cousins, friends, etc., that visit? I'm just wondering if the wood/finish thing is a red herring, and the cause of your families problems might be something as yet not identified. Just a thought. Slainte, RJ.RJFurniture

2. 
   Piffin | Sep 06, 2002 08:49pm | #8

   Having similar thoughts - why I mentioned the sensitivity vs. allergie and new tests.

   I rinse saline and insert FlonaseExcellence is its own reward!

3. 
   4Lorn1 | Sep 07, 2002 06:03am | #9

   There is a relatively new blood test that can check for allergies. They show up as antibodies to the proteins concerned in the blood. The test isn't cheap but it is considerably more comfortable than skin testing and can, if the reports are correct, be more accurate. You might ask your doctor about this. From what I read it, the blood test, is the main method for differentiating between a true allergy and the more common irritants.

4. 
   Paulgern | Sep 07, 2002 07:47am | #10

   2 of the 4 kids do have very sensitive noses, not in that they react to the things my wife does but they just dont like strong smells. they dont have physical reactions. they happpily moved into their new rooms as the typical odors we all smell from new finishes dissipated over a day or two. my reaction to dust is a result of too many years in our profession without a dust mask. we all wear them now dont we? along with our bifold saftey glasses? i know a lot of guys who as they get older get sensitivities to cedar and redwood for example. sounds like piffin been there.my wife's situation is a little different than that. more typical of hay fever- runny nose, sinus pain, headache, lethargy. what puzzles me is that she had no problem with the two water base clear finishes i have used in the past but now cant tolerate them. the raw wood has always been a problem but not the finishs. there must be another "natural"or "environmentally correct" clear finish out there? what the blood test would tell us we already know. now i need something to use that wont cause the reaction. hopefully. and thanks for all the posts too. paul.

2. 
   MikeS | Sep 04, 2002 11:28pm | #2

   Paulg

   Just because a finish is "natural" doesn't mean that folks won't be allergic or sensitive to it.

   I've used a product similar to livos, it also had a citrus based solvent. If I apply it on a small project- no problem, but when I would do a floor my skin would become mildy itchy, not particulary were I'd gotten the liquid on my skin. My guess is that the evaporated orange oil was causing the irritation, but then my skin itches when I cut the grass. After a day of drying I noticed no problems, just the faint smell of oranges.

   I've never used the AFMsafecoat products but they were offered by many of the "green" building materials web sites that I've seen.

   Mike

   It's O.k. to think out of the box,           Just don't walk off of the plank!

   
   

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   Edited 9/4/2002 4:30:49 PM ET by Mike S

   
   

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   Edited 9/4/2002 10:53:05 PM ET by Mike S

3. 
   Joby | Sep 06, 2002 05:28am | #5

   Be careful of falling into the pattern of feeling sensitive to a certain material because you are thinking so much about it.  It ends up being a form of hypochondria.  If its on your mind, any reaction may be blamed on the wood.

   If that is not it think steel studs and cement trim.