Smelly floors
Q: We moved into to new place a little over three months ago. The wood floors were refinished before we moved in. The day we moved in we noticed a strong odour that smelled like varnish. The odour was so strong that it made us sick. I experienced a rash, chest pains, cramps, and nausea. We thought the odour would go away in time. It has been over three months and the odour is still with us. It comes and goes, but it is strong about two out of every six hours. The landlord told me that the guys who did the floors used an oil based polyurethane. Is this normal? Should floors be gassing after this long? Sometimes the floor is slick and oily? Is that normal?
A: I had a call from one of my customers last year, that after 5 days his finish still smelled bad and they were getting a brown film on their socks from it. I went to see, and the odour was actually coming from carpet they had installed. The floor finish, as expected, was good and dry, and a good guess would be, 90% cured. It is normal to take up to several weeks for full cure of omu, but after a few days, any “off gassing” is really minute and I don’t think the average person would even detect any odour at all.
If the finish was not dry, the smell would not come and go. You mention that sometimes the floors seem oily and slick. On some very old floors that have been waxed heavily in the past, there can be a reaction with solvents in the finish activating the wax. However, this would definitely not make your floors slick. Rather, they would be sticky and a real mess. This sounds more like an oil type cleaner someone is using on your floor. Not a good thing to use. I can’t explain what this smell is, but I suspect it is not coming from the floor finish. If it was not dry, it would be very obvious by the stickiness of it.
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March 20th, 2006 at 9:07 pm
Follow up Q #1: It is not coming from cleaner, we only have used a broom. Most people that come by smell the odour very strongly. The odour is coming from the floor. There must be someone out there who has heard of this.
A: If you really think so, why don’t you ask the company that sanded the floors to come in for an inspection? If the finish was not dry, it would be obvious. You would have a sticky mess.
Follow up Q #2: It is not “a sticky mess” but it does not appear to have fully cured. I have talked to chemists who say this can happen. The flooring guys don’t seem to know much about chemicals.
A: Something like that can happen, but it is always caused by a contaminant that reacts with the solvents in the floor finish. For example, if a floor had been waxed for years, with the wax getting deep into the grain and between the boards, the mineral spirit solvent will soften the wax and cause what we would describe as wax bleed. This would result in dull areas along board edges, and in severe cases, dull areas on the surface of the boards where the polyurethane has actually been repelled by the activated wax. These areas would remain slightly sticky, until or if they dry. You haven’t described anything of this nature to me.
In another example, a plank floor with large bevelled edges is re finished but the bevels were not scraped clean. This floor is stained and finished and beads of stain keep rising up from the bevels. This would have to be constantly scraped off until it all dried. But again, nothing in your description fits this scenario either.
Finishes also have recommended spread rates. If a person were to double up on the amount of finish used, for example, by applying 2 gallons to 400 sq. ft. instead of 1 gallon, it would take much longer to fully cure. Probably a number of weeks.
If you feel you are being poisoned by this, you can have the floors re sanded and finished with a water borne product. I must say, you would not want to be around this stuff while it is drying either. Not because it smells bad, but it also contains some interesting chemicals that have all sorts of health warnings attached. At least it generally cures much faster than oil borne finishes.
March 20th, 2006 at 9:11 pm
Any chance it’s coming from under your floors? Mold? Neighbor downstairs growing something illegal or enjoying a stinky hobby?