New Home and Appliances - Safe?

[amandacatherine]

1) I’m moving from my parents’ into a new manufactured home next week. I’m concerned about using a brand new heating system and new appliances, that they may emit toxins that could hurt my budgies. I was planning on keeping the birds at my parents’ for a couple weeks while I use the appliances so anything harmful can burn off. Is that long enough, and is there anything else I can do to mitigate the risk to my birds? I am always so paranoid that something in the air will hurt them! Is there a detector or way to tell if there are toxins in the air?

2) The house isn’t huge; I’m planning to keep them in the bedroom farthest from the kitchen, but there’s still only one room separating them from the kitchen. As long as I use cookware that is PTFE/PFOA free, will they be okay there?

 

[SailBoat]

Manufacturer homes 'now-a-days' are build to the most recent Building Codes of your State. The also are built to the most recent low-energy usage specifications.

I am guessing that your Home has a Natural or Propane heating system. This new technology is IMHO is benign to a point that there is zero air mix between the interior area and the fuel burning chamber. As a result there is zero concern regarding the Furnace.

The only other item of concern would be the Range and since it is rare that Manufacturer Home to have Kitchen Vents to the great outdoors, which requires the extensive use of the bathroom vents. The ovens tend to have a light coating used as part of manufacturing that can cause problems. The normal way of clearing that coating is to preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and leave it at that temperature for a three, plus hours. The bathroom vents can be used to clear the air with a Kitchen window left open.

The Home is commonly delivered with a primer water based paint. There will be a newly painted smell to the Home and with time it will fade.

Welcome Home!

 

[amandacatherine]

Manufacturer homes 'now-a-days' are build to the most recent Building Codes of your State. The also are built to the most recent low-energy usage specifications.

I am guessing that your Home has a Natural or Propane heating system. This new technology is IMHO is benign to a point that there is zero air mix between the interior area and the fuel burning chamber. As a result there is zero concern regarding the Furnace.

The only other item of concern would be the Range and since it is rare that Manufacturer Home to have Kitchen Vents to the great outdoors, which requires the extensive use of the bathroom vents. The ovens tend to have a light coating used as part of manufacturing that can cause problems. The normal way of clearing that coating is to preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and leave it at that temperature for a three, plus hours. The bathroom vents can be used to clear the air with a Kitchen window left open.

The Home is commonly delivered with a primer water based paint. There will be a newly painted smell to the Home and with time it will fade.

Welcome Home!

Thank you so much!! I’ll definitely preheat the oven before I bring the birds in. Hopefully some warmer weather comes soon so I can open the windows without freezing!

 

[psitticine]

Manufacturer homes 'now-a-days' are build to the most recent Building Codes of your State. The also are built to the most recent low-energy usage specifications.

I am guessing that your Home has a Natural or Propane heating system. This new technology is IMHO is benign to a point that there is zero air mix between the interior area and the fuel burning chamber. As a result there is zero concern regarding the Furnace.

The only other item of concern would be the Range and since it is rare that Manufacturer Home to have Kitchen Vents to the great outdoors, which requires the extensive use of the bathroom vents. The ovens tend to have a light coating used as part of manufacturing that can cause problems. The normal way of clearing that coating is to preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and leave it at that temperature for a three, plus hours. The bathroom vents can be used to clear the air with a Kitchen window left open.

The Home is commonly delivered with a primer water based paint. There will be a newly painted smell to the Home and with time it will fade.

Welcome Home!

Do you know anything about recirculating vent hoods? Are they a good measure of safety?

 

[DonnaBudgie]

1) I’m moving from my parents’ into a new manufactured home next week. I’m concerned about using a brand new heating system and new appliances, that they may emit toxins that could hurt my budgies. I was planning on keeping the birds at my parents’ for a couple weeks while I use the appliances so anything harmful can burn off. Is that long enough, and is there anything else I can do to mitigate the risk to my birds? I am always so paranoid that something in the air will hurt them! Is there a detector or way to tell if there are toxins in the air?

2) The house isn’t huge; I’m planning to keep them in the bedroom farthest from the kitchen, but there’s still only one room separating them from the kitchen. As long as I use cookware that is PTFE/PFOA free, will they be okay there?

I hate the smalls off-gassing that comes from new carpeting, vinyl flooring, paint, any glues used in construction (many components are glued in addition to nailed and/screwed), HVAC systems, etc. However I don't know if any of these things are harmful to birds' delicate lungs and air sacs. As for safety regulations, as I commented in the Dyson thread, I wouldn't trust any manufacturers' claims that their materials are "bird safe". Who did a study exposing a pet bird to these substances in a controlled double-blinded manner? I'm not saying such studies should be done- just that if they haven't been done, don't make "bird safe" claims.

 

[SailBoat]

Do you know anything about recirculating vent hoods? Are they a good measure of safety?

Recirculating vent hoots are IMHO a step around the added expense of setting a vent hood the exists to the great outdoors. Have your home installer, a local handyman or a local appliance installer, upgrade your recirculating vent hood to one that pushes air outside.

They are useless in removing stove /oven and general kitchen smells out of your home.

 

[SailBoat]

1) I’m moving from my parents’ into a new manufactured home next week. I’m concerned about using a brand new heating system and new appliances, that they may emit toxins that could hurt my budgies. I was planning on keeping the birds at my parents’ for a couple weeks while I use the appliances so anything harmful can burn off. Is that long enough, and is there anything else I can do to mitigate the risk to my birds? I am always so paranoid that something in the air will hurt them! Is there a detector or way to tell if there are toxins in the air?

2) The house isn’t huge; I’m planning to keep them in the bedroom farthest from the kitchen, but there’s still only one room separating them from the kitchen. As long as I use cookware that is PTFE/PFOA free, will they be okay there?

Manufactured homes are very different from a site-built home as the airing out process is much slow as part of the building of a site-built home. The manufactured home is commonly assembled within ten or less days, sit in their transport lot for a period of time to obtain travel permits and inspections. Travel time tends to be one to two days, which provides a high level of air-exchange. Over the next few days, the installation occurs in which like a site-build home, it is open as the installers and contractors are busy completing final connections. The point of all that is to provide some comfort that what toxins have accumulated have been aired out. Although not fully, you are not walking into a toxic environment.

Modern home layout uses the "open concept" design that limits the effect of one room having high levels, while others have a low level of toxic build-up. Add to that the effect of the full-home air-exchange of your heating /cooling system and the full-home quickly becomes balanced.

Not sure where you live and the local weather, but leaving a couple of windows open an inch will speed-up the balancing /removal of any toxic chemicals that may exist. Consider a bathroom and/or kitchen window(s) that are on the other side of the home from each other.

 

[DonnaBudgie]

Recirculating vent hoots are IMHO a step around the added expense of setting a vent hood the exists to the great outdoors. Have your home installer, a local handyman or a local appliance installer, upgrade your recirculating vent hood to one that pushes air outside.

They are useless in removing stove /oven and general kitchen smells out of your home.

My over the stove fan vents directly outside. There's a huge rock on the ground right below the exit vent and In the winter I often see a squirrel sitting on the rock enjoying the warm indoor air blowing on him.
I can't see what good a vent fan would do if it didn't vent directly outside.

 

[SailBoat]

My over the stove fan vents directly outside. There's a huge rock on the ground right below the exit vent and In the winter I often see a squirrel sitting on the rock enjoying the warm indoor air blowing on him.
I can't see what good a vent fan would do if it didn't vent directly outside.

You are correct, it does nothing what-so-ever except use electricity and collect a build-up!