My Chemical-Free House
A Guide to Creating a Healthy Home
These are non-toxic mattress covers to seal in flame retardants, dust mites, pesticides, scents, or mold spores. These options are vetted by the chemically sensitive and mold-sensitive. As for blocking gases, foil is better than plastic, as plastic will eventually absorb the VOCs/scents, and so they will come through to the other side. However, plastic can …
This post covers bed frame options for the chemically sensitive. Metal and metal finishes, solid wood and laminated wood.
Laminate flooring is a click-together wood-look plank floor made of a fiberboard base and a melamine top layer with a printed image. My top picks: My top pick for the most non-toxic laminate flooring is Mohawk. Their lines are formaldehyde-free and ultra-low-VOC. After that I would consider other no-added formaldehyde brands, however we don’t know …
What Gives Wood its Odor? The majority of the identified odorants in wood from one study were 1) fatty acid degradation products 2) terpenoic substances and 3) odorous substances resulting from the degradation of lignin. (Source) 1. Fatty acid degradation products (69% of the odor of wood!) These include alkenals, ketones, alkylic acids and intramolecular …
These are the seven most affordable eco-friendly countertops. Some are low or zero-VOC just as they are, and others need modifications like sealing in offgassing to make them healthy and safe options. Many are affordable right off the shelf, but some are only going to be cheap if you do it yourself. It’s always going …
This post covers concrete finishes that can be used in a healthy home. Low and zero-VOC stains, dyes, and sealants can be used to provide color and sealing on concrete floors. Many of these can be used on brick, concrete walls, and concrete countertops as well. For those with chemical sensitivities, concrete floors can be …
The Least Toxic Wood Varnish? I tested all of the “eco” or, healthy low-VOC, floor finishes. I was looking first at the odor and VOC levels as the main comparison point for those sensitive to chemicals. (None of the polyurethanes are odorless when wet, though they are when dried or cured). Some water-based floor finishes …
You may have heard that there is no natural non-toxic sealer for real stone countertops. I found that natural sealers outperformed synthetic sealers without the VOCs or PFAS. I tested all of the natural (as well as synthetic sealers here) stone sealers on many different stone types. The testing went on for many months! Summary: …
Updated in 2026 The only leather I can personally fully endorse as eco-friendly and non-toxic is chrome-free, vegetable-dyed leather. This is made without the toxic metals and other harmful chemicals used in conventional leather. The second best option is leather that is at least chrome-free. Only a few brands in North America meet these standards. …
These are the techniques used to remove cleaning product, air freshener, and fragrance from walls, floors, and furnishing. Some chemical odors can be particularly difficult to remove, especially plug-in fragrance chemicals which contain oils. My article on removing plug-in odor goes into specifics (and my experiment was quite successful) in removing plug-in odors. Any porous …
This is a guest post by Shannon from Natural Baby Mama. I asked Shannon if she would write a guest post because her extensive testing of lead in household products and materials revealed worrisome levels of lead in products that many presumed were safe. Her contributions uncovered what companies were not telling us, have brought …
Usually, vinyl sheet flooring is used in trailers and RVs. Vinyl sheeting has significant offgassing. The post outlines healthier options. Metal and fiberglass homes have unique challenges with thermal bridging and humidity and often require waterproof flooring that can hold up to some moisture. The following list is the flooring I would specify in vans, …
How to Dilute 35%, 34% or 29%, 12%, 10%, and 6% Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2) Down to 3%, 1%, 0.5%, 0.2% and 0.1% This post contains affiliate links. Upon purchase, I earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Personal Safety Equipment Should be Used! Goggles, gloves, and protective clothing. (Source & Source). Dilution Table …
Before getting into the 20 gift options for those with allergies and chemical and mold sensitivities, there are a few important things to know before buying something for a sensitive loved one. IS IT A SAFE SOURCE? Before buying a tangible item be sure to check that both the brand and the store are safe …
This post is for those building or refinishing stairs who want to build with as few toxins as possible. The chemically sensitive will want to consider the pressed wood products, glues, and finishes that are normally used. For all the aspects that need to be considered at the start of a build for the chemically …
There is a very unfortunate certification for faucets which is named “lead-free” but means the faucet can contain 0.25% lead. If you are concerned about lead you want to look for 100% lead-free faucets if you’re getting new faucets. This post contains affiliate links, upon purchase, I earn a small commission at no extra cost …
I have been helping folks create healthy homes for over 8 years now! A certified Building Biologist Practitioner, I began this journey with the build of my own tiny, chemically safe house, the place in which I started to recover from mold illness and severe chemical sensitivity. My main expertise lies in materials available in …
A Guide to Choosing Pressed, Engineered and Laminated Wood Products and their Formaldehyde and VOC Levels. This post will cover pressed wood and laminated wood (engineered wood) products used in construction and in household items like furniture and doors. We will look at which adhesives are used and what chemicals they off-gas. Formaldehyde levels will …
If you are wondering what size or how “strong” or how “big” of an air purifier you need, these two calculators will help. To properly size an air purifier or filter for your home or room, the main value you are looking for on an air purifier’s specs is how much air it moves. This …
This is a complete guide to a non-toxic bathroom – safe for the chemically sensitive. I cover: shower tiles, shower types, bathtubs, shower curtains, bath mats, caulk, grout, and water filtration. I recommend all of the products here, some products have affiliate programs and some do not. Upon purchase, I earn a small commission through …
That new house smell is a mix of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) coming from the building materials. Strategies to mitigate and reduce the VOC levels range from diluting the air, absorbing the VOCs, speeding up the off-gassing, sealing in the off-gassing, and lastly chemical breakdown of VOCs. Of course, you will need different strategies for …
Alex who worked on my house used natural milk paint pigments from Homestead House to stain the poplar floors and stairs in my tiny house. These pigments were extremely difficult to work with and I did not end up liking the result. But I have a few tips on how to get a better result. This …
Some preliminary considerations if building a tiny home with healthy materials: 1. Choosing Plans Because I wanted a more modern style, I bought conventional plans from Leaf House. I wanted to change the layout to make the living room bigger, which entailed changing almost every other aspect of the design. In a tiny house, one …
I used clay plaster throughout my tiny house on wheels, including the kitchen, over MgO walls, with oiled wood on the trim but there are a few things I would have done differently. This post contains affiliate links. Upon purchase, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Should you use Clay …
