WARNING: Teflon, Non-stick Coatings, PFOA's and other coatings deadly to your Parrots

[Kentuckienne]

Oh, that’s a good reminder about the risks of all things tefloid. But we might needs more evidence, methinks. Be there any videos of the Resident Pirate drying his Fabio-like locks in the ocean breezes? Especially slo-mo, that would be nice.

https://media2.giphy.com/media/g1EJwzB0E1ZAs/200.webp?cid=6c09b952jeyuvbumao6dpkba9z0xv5jppw76pts5znmbv519&ep=v1_internal_gif_by_id&rid=200.webp&ct=g

 

[GaleriaGila]

Bless ya, Wrenchie. I remember back when (I THINK it was) Kentuckienne who posted a pic of a regular aluminum pan she had burned up, accidentally of course. She is one of the most scrupulous and careful parronts I know, yet that happened. She made the point that this was why she never has ANY dangerous teflon around. Because that makes a terrible accident possible, even with the most attentive cook!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for reminding us of the pervasive nature of PFAs, Wrench! It’s an insidious problem. In a side note, the ‘ceramic’ nonstick pans are made using something called ‘Sol-Gel’ which is basically a silicon-based slurry with various other metals, acid or base, sprayed on a pan and heated to form a ceramic-like coating.

It isn’t as durable as Teflon and the pans usually only last a couple of years, vs 10 years for a quality Teflon pan. The most durable pans are stainless steel, cast iron, and carbon steel - or real enameled cast iron. The cast iron and carbon steel pans accumulate a layer of carbon molecules called seasoning which makes them nonstick (think graphite lubricant) and if they get overheated or over cleaned or rusted they can be fully restored. Stainless can be cleaned and scrubbed.

Some sources say that ‘ceramic’ pans release small amounts of silicon oil when heated, and when that’s all gone the pans lose their non-stick quality, but that seems unlikely to me. Here is a well-written article where the author has a different theory which is plausible: the topmost layer of the ceramic coating has special molecules which are eventually abraded away. Here is the link for the science-curious:

How Ceramic Pans Work and How to Restore Their Non-Stick Coating

I really don’t like the time and effort wasted in cleaning crudded-up frying pans, so I appreciate non-stick coatings. I have a small diameter Gotham ceramic pan that works well, and I was thinking…

economistwritingeveryday.com

I bought a toaster oven a couple years back with a stainless interior, not nonstick. I still set it up outside the house and used it several times at the highest setting to burn off whatever, and it seems safe. Same with space heaters and any appliance with a heat element - I keep it out of the house at first. So far so good.

Was this indeed youuuu, Side Chick?

 

[Kimmb615]

Kentuck, PFOA/PFOS coatings on heating elements in everything from crockpots to hair dryers to space heaters are a slippery slope. One might feel confident in using these appliances (after any manufacturing oils are burned off OUTSIDE the house). HOWEVER, should the built in cut-off circuit in the item fail or allow the temperature of the heating element to exceed design specs, they too could release the toxic fumes that are so deadly to our parrots. As I said earlier - I trust the Chinese manufacturers not at all, and if the article was made there...... We always hunt for items that specifically are found to not have any coatings on the heating elements, example Mueller brand toaster ovens. If you must use the CHina made item, make sure to never allow the item to shut off due to temperature issues. Hair dryers come to mind to me, as my thick and luxuriant hair often needs extensive dryer time, if I choose to use one. If I dont take a break in the middle, the hair dryer does shut itself off and needs cooling down time. As a result, I almost never use it.

Do you have a hair dryer you can recommend ?

 

[hiriki]

Do you have a hair dryer you can recommend ?

Personally, I let my hair air dry in a braid, so I won't claim to have personal experience. But, your best bet will be researching with the keywords "PFAS free." PFAS is a generic term that refers to the family of nonstick chemicals that people often refer to as "Teflon." They're also sometimes called "forever chemicals."

Lucky for us... if you can call it luck lol... PFAS "forever chemicals" have now been studied widely enough that health conscious consumers are trying to avoid them, as they aren't particularly safe for people, either! So usually someone out there somewhere has dedicated a blog article to researching PFAS free alternatives.

I found this blog post from someone who contacted multiple manufacturers for hair products: https://thefiltery.com/non-toxic-pfas-free-curling-iron-hair-straightener/

And this site that is dedicated to finding PFAS free products, although they are missing a section on hair care: https://pfascentral.org/pfas-free-products/

Anything you find, you might benefit from some healthy skepticism--unless they're a site you trust, you can use them as a jumping off point and then confirm with the manufacturer after you've found a product you'd like to buy.

 

[Talaya]

I would also like to add that I recently saw a video somewhere of a bird checking out their person proudly making dinner in their teflon free Ninja Air fryer. Thinking it was safe …

so I contacted Ninja to ask them what model was their Teflon free one as I had a “sensitive pet” (I wanted to know) their reply was
ALL of their air fryers contain PTFE which is toxic to birds. .. and I didn’t even tell them I had a bird….

 

[Talaya]

Do you have a hair dryer you can recommend ?

Hi, I just thought I might help, I use a Dyson Airwrap occasionally, it uses coada effect to dry, rather than a harsh heat. Yes it has a heated airstream, but on 3 settings, the lowest is just about Luke warm so shouldn’t overheat up any chemicals. I can’t find anything about if there are coatings inside it. But I did read their AM09 heaters do not contain any. So maybe their wraps may not either.