ALLERGY TO BUILDING AND DECORATING MATERIALS: PARTICLE AND OTHER BOARDS
Particle boards, of which the most common is called chipboard, are made of chips of wood bonded together by adhesive resins, usually formaldehyde resins. They are used in many applications in building and fumiture-making, often as a base for wood veneer, and as a base for plastic or melamine decorative finishes. They provide the structure for most fitted kitchen and bedroom cupboards, the core for work surfaces and can be used for partitions, wall and ceiling linings, and for flooring.
These boards have a high resin content relative to other building boards, and can give out significant amounts of free formaldehyde, especially when new, or when being cut or installed. If you have relatively small amounts of chipboard in your home, say only in the kitchen, and if it is not new, then it will probably not bother you too much. But chipboard can be a problem if you are exceptionally sensitive to formaldehyde, if you have large amounts in your home, or if you have newly installed chipboard – say in a new floor or fitted kitchen, for instance.
Unless chipboard bothers you a great deal, it may be better to leave it in place, and allow it to gas out over time, rather than to go to the expense and risk of replacement. If chipboard is exposed anywhere, or if it is used as flooring, sealing it with varnish will reduce the level of fumes escaping. Fit an impervious floor covering such as linoleum, rather than carpets, to reduce vapours.
If you decide to replace chipboard, or have to have work done, then wherever possible use alternatives without formaldehyde resins, or with lower resin contents.
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