[TheForge] household poisons

Sat Jun 7 02:22:01 2003

I am amused I didn;t figure many people knew about fabric softner, here is a
little info about the stuff

Sometimes it's hard to believe that health problems can arise from the
simplest products used in every day living. There is a movement going on
right now to participate in a class action lawsuit against manufacturers of
fabric softeners. Why?
Turns out that the chemicals used can cause serious trouble with your
central nervous system! Exposure can be through inhalation from the exhaust
of dryers or skin contact from the treated fabrics. Symptoms include (but
are not limited to): disorientation, dizziness, headaches, memory loss, neck
and spine pain, etc.

A brief glance at the ingredients used along with some basic research from
their 'Material Safety Data Sheets' is enough to make me stop using any of
it.

Alpha-Terpineol-"highly irritating to mucous membranes"."aspiration into
lungs can produce pneumonitis or even fatal edema"."can also cause loss of
muscular coordination"----"Prevent repeated or prolonged skin contact".

Benzyl Acetate-"Cardinogenic (linked to pancreatic cancer). "from vapors:
irritating to eyes and respiratory passages, exciting cough".."can be
absorbed through the skin causing systemic effects"."do not flush to sewer".

Benzyl Alcohol-"irritating to the upper respiratory tract"."headache,
nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drop in blood pressure, depression, and death
in sever cases due to respiratory failure".

Camphor-On EPA's Hazardous Waste List. "readily absorbed through the body
tissues"."irritation of eyes, skin, nose and throat"."dizziness, confusion,
nausea, twitching muscles and convulsions"."avoid inhalation of vapors".

Chloroform-(You've got to be kidding!!)

Ethyl Acetate-Narcotic. "may cause headache and narcosis"..."may cause
anemia with leukocytosis and damage to liver and kidneys"."wash thoroughly
after handling".

Limonene-Carcinogenic. "prevent its' contact with skin or eyes because it is
an irritant and sensitizer"."always wash thoroughly after using this
material and before eating or drinking"."do not inhale limonene vapor".

Linalool-Narcotic. "respiratory disturbances"."in animal tests: ataxic gait,
reduced spontaneous motor activity and depression...depressed heart
activity...development of respiratory disturbances leading to death".

Pentane-"danger-Harmful if inhaled.Avoid breathing vapor"."inhalation of
vapors may cause headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drowsiness,
irritation of respiratory tract and loss of consciousness. Prolonged
exposure can cause dermatitis".

----- Original Message -----
From: "Catherine Jo Morgan" <[email protected]>
To: "'Blacksmithing mailing list'" <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, June 06, 2003 5:29 PM
Subject: [TheForge] household poisons

> Quote: I am just going to play devils advocate here for a second, while
> I do agree,
> any overexposure to solvents is bad, and I do extensively use a full
> face
> respirator, but there are way more toxic things than solvents under your
> kitchen sink, some of them more carcinogenic, if you read the fine print
> or
> the non-existant print than you can even believe.[End quote]
>
> Yes, I agree. That was one of the more disturbing things I discovered in
> researching the chemicals I was using or considering using in the
> studio. I couldn't avoid discovering that most home air quality is
> actually worse. One chemist wrote to me to mention that he works with a
> lot of toxic chemicals in his lab, with care of course, but that he
> forbids any liquid fabric softener to enter his home because it's so
> toxic.
>
> Re my conclusions about finishes - for most purposes I ended up with
> General polyacrylic - easy to brush on, passed adhesion tests well,
> works over the DTM (direct to metal) paint I chose (a Rustoleum brush-on
> commercial DTM.) But for a really matte finish, or a high gloss finish,
> other water based finishes are better. I'll check my records and post
> tomorrow.
>
> By the way, a good way to begin testing clear coats is on a sheet of
> glass. (Tape the edges with electrical tape first, for safety.) You can
> tell some things about the clearcoats on glass, that would be harder to
> discern on another surface. Since most clearcoats require 3 coats, or 2
> minimum, set it up so you can see each coat separately. Sometimes a
> finish that looks great in one coat, looks worse on the second - or the
> reverse.
>
> Then whatever finishes pass this first screening, are worth trying on
> your metal (or wood.)
> -----
>
>
> Catherine Jo Morgan
> Morgan Sculpture
> Iron and mixed media vessels
> [email protected]
> 706-754-3812
>
> online artist journal: http://radio.weblogs.com/0120691/
>
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