When you're planning a painting project for your eatery business, one of the safety measures you need to take is to reduce paint fumes in the facility. Strong paint fumes can cause headaches, eye, nose, and throat irritation, dizziness and even nausea. Now, these are symptoms you want to avoid in your customers unless you want to lose business.
Preventing paint fumes during and after a painting project will help keep your clients safe. It also allows you to avoid downtime as you will be forced to close the eatery until it's safe for use. With this in mind, here are the top tips to reduce paint fumes during the project.
Choose Zero or Low-VOC Paint
The fumes emitted by paints result from volatile organic compounds (VOCs) present in the product. These chemicals are responsible for the symptoms mentioned above. According to the Australia State of the Environment (SOE), breathing low levels of VOCs for extended periods can cause severe health problems in individuals.
If you use paints with high levels of VOCs, you have to lock down your eatery business until the indoor air quality is back to normal. However, you can avoid this by using zero or low-VOC paints. These contain negligible or zero amounts of harmful chemicals. As a result, they do not emit hazardous fumes. With these paints, you can paint your eatery and resume business immediately after the paint dries.
What's more, due to the low amount of chemicals, these paint products are considered sustainable. Thus, if one of your social responsibilities is to preserve the environment, using low-VOC paint is an excellent way to do so.
Ventilate the Facility
Even paint products with minimal chemicals emit fumes which can make it difficult for people to enjoy food or drinks at your eatery. Thus, if you wish to open the business immediately, you need to get rid of the fumes fast. One sure way of making this happen is by ventilating the space.
Keep all the windows and doors in the facility open during and after the painting project. Turn on the air conditioning system to facilitate airflow and eliminate the fumes. You can also invest in more fans to help circulate fresh air more efficiently in the facility.
Use DIY Techniques
If the two methods above don't eliminate the paint fumes, you can try DIY ones. There are items available in your commercial kitchen that you can use to remove any odours, including paint fumes. Some techniques include the following:
- Mix equal parts white vinegar and water in open containers and place them in various parts of the room to absorb fumes
- Fill several bowls with baking soda and put them in different parts of your eatery
- Light candles and leave them to burn for long periods
When coupled with proper ventilation, these DIY methods can help eliminate paint fumes effectively.
Proper fume management is an essential step in your commercial painting project. Follow these tips and your eatery will be fume-free and ready to use within a short period.
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