5 Reasons to consider eco-friendly exterior paint for your home

A good exterior paint job can give life to any home and do wonders for its curb appeal.

Now, there’s a huge variety of paints we can use to pull off a great paint job but there’s one thing about these paints we don’t often consider when we pick them; their eco-friendliness.

Paints can do much for the exteriors of a home, but some could affect not only your health and the health of those around you but even the environment negatively.

Luckily, there are many safe and environmentally-friendly paints available for you to use.

Still not convinced? Here are five reasons why you might want to consider using eco-friendly exterior paint 🙂

1 . Presence of VOCs

Regular house paints have chemicals called volatile organic compounds (VOCs) which include carbon-containing substances that quickly vaporize at room temperature.

These compounds like peroxyacetyl nitrate in VOC paint are given off into the atmosphere and this compound can irritate your eyes and harm the surrounding plant life. Surprisingly, paints used on the exteriors of homes account for 9% of VOC emissions in California.

VOCs are not the only harmful chemicals in paint; some solvents and adhesives used in them are just as bad for your health and the environment.

Despite this, you can find two kinds of paints; no VOC and low VOC paints. Low VOC paints have less than 50 grams of these substances per liter while the latter has none or a negligible amount.

Most natural house paints will have no VOCs or any harmful solvents at all.

2. Natural ingredients

Eco-friendly paints are made from all-natural ingredients like citrus extract and beeswax. These substances are completely harmless and don’t give off any dangerous chemicals.

Thanks to their natural ingredients, they are non-toxic and safe for everyone, like children, the elderly, pregnant women, and people with chemical sensitivities to handle without any problems whatsoever.

These paints are also water-based instead of using turpentine like regular paint, making them dry quicker. They are also less prone to fading or cracking when exposed to sunlight and have a mild odor when compared to regular paint.

Water-based paints also benefit from being very easy to clean and remove.

The natural ingredients used in these paints are biodegradable, which is a win for the environment as they will not leave behind any harmful substances when disposed of.

If you’re allergic to certain natural substances, make sure you check the ingredients of these paints before buying or using them.

3. Microporous in nature

An advantage of natural, eco-friendly paints is that they are microporous, which means they allow water to pass through in vapor form but not in liquid form.

This feature makes eco-friendly paints naturally resistant to moisture while being breathable enough to allow any water forming under the coat of paint to leave; this can help prevent bubbling and other forms of water damage you may have seen on paint.

This prevents the paint from losing its adhesive properties and if the paint is used on wooden exterior surfaces, it can save the wood from rotting due to moisture.

4. Long-lasting

Have you noticed how the painted exteriors of buildings that are centuries old still maintain their color? This is thanks to the natural components of the ancient paints used at the time.

Modern-day eco-friendly paints use color pigments from clay and other natural materials to give their paints their lasting colors. These natural pigments are safe and can maintain their color for generations.

Of course, weather conditions and how well you maintain your home’s exterior walls will come into play but there’s no denying how resilient these natural paints can be.

5. Efficient

When compared to their synthetic counterparts, these eco-friendly paints are considerably superior in terms of quality. They retain their color longer, provide more surface coverage, and their colors are richer in tone.

Give your home an all-natural exterior paint job!

With eco-friendly paints, you won’t just give your home a beautiful new paint job, you’ll also be contributing to creating a safe and healthy environment for you, your loved ones, and the community.

To help keep your new paint job looking great for years to come, carry out some exterior paint maintenance as often as you can 🙂