Do non-woven vinyl wallpapers cause harm to humans?

When choosing wallpaper, it is necessary to take into account a variety of factors, from its combination with the interior to its physical properties. Another point that is often taken into account is the environmental friendliness of wallpaper.

Famous German wallpaper collection with geometric patterns

This is especially important when they are chosen for a child’s room. Then I would definitely like them not to be dangerous to his health. For adults, however, this is also true, and while there are usually no complaints about paper-based wallpaper in this regard, vinyl wallpaper, in the opinion of many, can cause quite serious harm. But is this true?

Origin of opinion

Why do people think that vinyl wallpaper is dangerous? The point is in their composition. They have two layers. The first is the bottom, there are wallpapers on a paper basis or, as an option, on a non-woven basis. There are usually no complaints about him.

But the top one, which is made from polyvinyl chloride, worries many, as it is of purely chemical origin. Are people right who believe that such wallpaper is dangerous? Partially. It's all about the properties of this layer. It is waterproof and also steamproof.

Typical use of two types of wallpaper: plain and patterned

On the one hand, this is an extremely positive quality, which allows the coating to be very easy to clean. It can be easily washed and can be cleaned without any particular difficulty. But this property also turns out to be a disadvantage. After all, if there is no air exchange, then condensation begins to accumulate under the wallpaper.

It is this that becomes the source for the development of quite dangerous pathogenic fungi. They usually cause the main harm and cause health hazards, which even doctors warn about. An allergy may occur to these fungi, then the health consequences may be different, but definitely only negative.

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What you need to know about glue

Do not forget about the correct selection of glue for non-woven wallpaper. Sometimes it can cause a more severe allergic reaction than untested wallpaper.

Attention! Usually the wallpaper roll will give a recommendation on the type of adhesive to use. When purchasing high-quality material for gluing, you must also purchase appropriate glue, without skimping on your health. You need to choose based on the safe composition, and not the price level.

The instructions for gluing wallpaper usually specify the method of application and the drying time of the glue. The longer it dries, the more harmful substances are released into the environment. People prone to allergic reactions should not stay in such a room for a long time.

Poor quality material

Another reason why there may be a danger to human health is insufficiently high-quality wallpaper. Often these are just Chinese counterfeits of popular brands that use not very good materials. Sometimes it's just wallpaper that was produced using outdated technologies. In this case, they may emit formaldehyde fumes, which are a source of toxic materials.

There is an opinion that if the wallpaper is silk-screened, then there is no need to be afraid that it will be harmful. But this is not so, because silk-screen printing is the same vinyl with the addition of silk threads, natural or artificial.

Silk-screen wallpaper is easy to recognize by its characteristic shine

There are generally many different types of vinyl wallpaper, for example, chemically embossed, compact vinyl, heavy vinyl and much more. Sometimes you don’t even know that you are purchasing this material, so you should be interested in this in advance when choosing the most suitable wallpaper.

Structure and properties

The basis of the types of wallpaper called non-woven wallpaper is the material of the same name, from which the name comes. This is a non-woven fabric that consists of a mixture of thin textile and cellulose fibers, which are held together by a binder polymer. This base gives the canvas special properties:

Strength. Non-woven fabric is much stronger than paper, which is used in cheaper paper varieties of wall decoration materials.
No deformation when gluing. A strong base prevents all possible deformations of the coating not only during gluing, but also after finishing is done. That is why such materials are often chosen for finishing new buildings, where shrinkage of load-bearing structures is possible.
Easy to stick. Coverings based on non-woven fabric do not require applying glue directly to the glued panel. It is enough to coat only the wall with glue and apply a dry cloth to it - everything will stick perfectly.

New wallpapers

It was previously mentioned that outdated types of wallpaper are harmful. But are the new generation vinyl wallpapers, which are made taking into account all the latest achievements, harmful? After all, it is not so difficult to ensure that such wallpaper is not dangerous; it is enough to use environmentally friendly materials, and also make the surface breathable and microporous.

This can be done with modern technologies, but it is important to understand that this is unlikely to be realistically attributed to cheap products from little-known companies. You need to focus only on large brands from countries that have been successfully producing such wallpaper for a long time, using modern approaches to their production. This could be, for example, Finland, Germany, Sweden and so on; usually the level of quality in these countries is more than high.

Up close, the pattern of the wallpaper seems complex, but from a distance it resembles a monochromatic version

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You can also understand that this wallpaper is not particularly hazardous to health by the indication on the label that the vinyl is microporous. The composition may also contain various antifungal components, which is also very important, because then the likelihood of the appearance of all kinds of negative formations decreases significantly.

Structure and properties

Strength. Non-woven fabric is much stronger than paper, which is used in cheaper paper varieties of wall decoration materials.
No deformation when gluing. A strong base prevents all possible deformations of the coating not only during gluing, but also after finishing is done. That is why such materials are often chosen for finishing new buildings, where shrinkage of load-bearing structures is possible.
Easy to stick. Coverings based on non-woven fabric do not require applying glue directly to the glued panel. It is enough to coat only the wall with glue and apply a dry cloth to it - everything will stick perfectly.

The outer decorative layer can be different: made of vinyl, textile or other materials. This provides a wide range of such products in different colors and with different surface textures. Such non-woven wallpaper can be harmful to health only in one case - if the outer layer is made in violation of production technology or low-grade, low-quality materials were used for production.

If you purchase products from a well-known manufacturer who values its reputation, then the risk of purchasing a product dangerous to humans is minimized. Any company that supplies its products to the market legally provides sellers with all the necessary certificates of compliance of its products with sanitary standards and, if desired, you can ask to see these documents to ensure the safety of the purchased materials.

However, the types of coatings considered are not fully non-woven. It is a combination of a base and an outer layer made of a different material. Real coverings, made only from non-woven fabric with a pattern, are not so common and are significantly more expensive. However, these non-woven wallpapers are not at all harmful to health, since they contain only two environmentally friendly materials and a binding polymer.

Other selection criteria

If you are selecting vinyl wallpaper, then the selection criteria that will help you choose the best option may be much more than just the name of the country of origin and the inscriptions on the labels.

Modern design involves a mixture of different materials

The first important step when choosing is to personally familiarize yourself with a sample of the wallpaper that you intend to purchase. Be sure to buy the wallpaper in person, and when you do, smell it. This is a simple and even primitive method, but it is very effective.

If the wallpaper is of poor quality, if its material is harmful to humans and contains negative fumes, then such products will immediately smell sharp and extremely unpleasant.

Many people are skeptical about this method, but in fact, you can verify its objectivity using a very simple method - smell the most expensive European vinyl wallpaper that is available in the store, and then, for contrast, the cheapest. The difference will be noticeable immediately, unless, of course, you have a runny nose. If the smell is already present, then it’s easy to imagine how it will spread throughout the apartment after purchasing the wallpaper and leaving it on the walls for a long time.

One type of vinyl allows you to perfectly imitate natural finishing materials

If you have strong doubts that you can choose the wallpaper correctly and still want to take it, you can do it this way. After all, the house already contains a lot of PVC, for example, in chipboards, plastic windows and other elements.

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But then try to glue such wallpaper in those rooms where you traditionally spend minimal time, or where there is good ventilation (for example, in the kitchen, where there is an exhaust hood), but it’s best not to experiment with the children’s room, only environmentally friendly ones are needed there wallpaper that is not dangerous.

Production of non-woven wallpaper

To understand whether non-woven wallpaper is harmful to the body, it is worth looking at its production and what components manufacturers use.
The composition of the wallpaper has a unique production technology. People preparing for renovations want to make the decoration of their apartment more beautiful and practical, which is why they choose non-woven wallpaper, even if they are harmful to health. If ordinary paper wallpapers are less practical and are made of cellulose, arranged in a chaotic manner, then non-woven wallpapers consist of carefully laid and then pressed fibers. Outwardly, you might think that there is some kind of fabric on the wall, but in fact this is a cunning idea of the manufacturers. To create a visually more luxurious and rich interior effect, polymer and viscose fibers are added during the manufacturing process; in addition, they can be impregnated with glue or a special strengthening composition. In fact, non-woven fabric was not intended for creating paper sheets, since it was originally used in shoe workshops. The main advantage of the material is that it has a reinforcing, non-deformable base, which is what attracted wallpaper manufacturers. And shoe manufacturers used the material as a lining in clothing and textile production.

Nonwoven

As previously mentioned, vinyl wallpaper can be paper-based or non-woven. Real non-woven wallpaper is not harmful, but the problem is that manufacturers are trying in every possible way to reduce the cost of production, and therefore it is far from a fact that it will contain real non-woven wallpaper.

Funny, somewhat space-like pictures on the wallpaper

There is a possibility that instead of a non-woven base there will also be some relatively cheap and low-quality form of vinyl, which will release the same negative substances. So the basic principle of choice is the same - do not buy cheap wallpaper from little-known manufacturers. You will only save once, but you will pay a much greater price later when your health is harmed.

To be on the safe side, you should ask the seller for a certificate of conformity that comes with the product, as well as a sanitary and epidemiological report. If the product is good, then these documents will certainly be available.

High-quality German wallpaper from the Rush brand

Structure and properties

Strength. Non-woven fabric is much stronger than paper, which is used in cheaper paper varieties of wall decoration materials.
No deformation when gluing. A strong base prevents all possible deformations of the coating not only during gluing, but also after finishing is done. That is why such materials are often chosen for finishing new buildings, where shrinkage of load-bearing structures is possible.
Easy to stick. Coverings based on non-woven fabric do not require applying glue directly to the glued panel. It is enough to coat only the wall with glue and apply a dry cloth to it - everything will stick perfectly.

Is there an alternative

Manufacturers of finishing materials have not yet found an alternative to non-woven wallpaper, since the latter are wear-resistant and easy to care for. Even with changes in temperature, they clearly do not react, belonging to the class of non-woven materials. Due to the unique composition of non-woven fabric, it is used in the manufacture of packaging and medical material. The strength is much higher than that of paper, thus it does not shrink when clearly wet. Such wallpaper can perfectly hide wall imperfections and visible cracks; in addition, they are durable and wear-resistant. The structure was developed by manufacturers so that they can be colored to suit any taste, but this does not reduce the number of pores.

Cons for consumers

Despite the advantages of non-woven wallpaper, consumer reviews also speak of its disadvantages. Disadvantages of using non-woven wallpaper:

High cost in the total cost of finishing the rooms;
Easily damaged;
Not moisture resistant material;
When a fire occurs, the substance formaldehyde is released, which is harmful to the general condition of the body;
Dust can accumulate in the pores of decorative wallpaper options.

Main components that can cause harm

The source of danger is not the finishing materials, but the chemical components included in the fabric or glue for fixing to the surface.

Polyvinyl chloride or PVC. This substance is known to everyone and, according to many experts, surrounds us in everyday life all the time. If the production technology is followed, materials with PVC impurities do not pose a threat.
Formaldehyde is a very toxic component found in some washable coatings. It is recommended to use this finish only in well-ventilated areas.
Benzene. A powerful carcinogen, practically never found in high-quality products, but present in low-quality materials. The best way to avoid poisoning is to purchase high-quality products that are completely safe.
Lead and other heavy metals. They may be part of the paint used to apply designs to low-quality canvases. This is the most dangerous wallpaper for health, since heavy metals are extremely difficult to remove from the body and can cause problems with the liver and kidneys.

Otherwise, you can decide whether a particular wallpaper is harmful to health by carefully studying the label and product certificate. This method will not provide a 100% guarantee, but well-known manufacturers are concerned about their reputation and produce safe coatings.