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Solvent High VOC Glue Accidentally Used For Skirting Board

callalea | Posted in General Questions on

Hi, 

Looking for a bit of advice please – we’re renovating a victorian terrace and going to great length to source no or minimum low VOC products and however due to a miscommunication a high solvent VOC glue was used to adhere skirting board. 

The product is ‘pink grip adhesive’ and a whole tube was used in the kitchen. The product has VOC g/l: 30% on the data sheet.

Its only 2 days in and the smell is still really strong and gave me a headache this morning when I went down and it wasn’t ventilated overnight. 

I’m thinking about removing and starting again but obviously this will have an impact on getting new materials. We also have tanking underneath the board that will need to be removed and redone. 

Any advise please? Will the VOCs dissipate soon or will they continue for years and best to remove?

Thanks in advance!

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Replies

  1. JC72 | | #1

    Typically it will dissipate but if you must know then contact the manufacturer of the glue. Just ventilate.

  2. Expert Member
    BILL WICHERS | | #2

    Most all of these adhesives will stop their smelly offgassing after the glue fully cures. This time for a full cure is usually 24 hours to a week or so. The problem is that in a closed space, the smell can linger longer. I would recommend you ventilate the space, which means let air in at one end of the space and blow it out the other end. The usual way to do this is to put a box fan in a window at one end of the space, and open a window at the other end. Run the fan for several days, or however long it takes to clear the smell.

    If you ventliate for a week, stop and find it to be OK, and then the smell comes back a few days later, that's when you might have cause for concern, but I doubt you'll get to that point.

    Bill

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