Non-woven wallpaper is a modern material that is becoming increasingly popular among consumers. It has excellent characteristics. Provides the surface with a high-quality and beautiful coating. Given such great popularity, many are interested in the question: are non-woven wallpaper harmful to health? In order to form a personal opinion on this issue, you need to study the composition, method of production of wallpaper and its features.
Non-woven wallpaper: what is included
Non-woven wallpaper is widely used for decorative decoration of premises. They have a beautiful appearance and a large selection, which attracts buyers. The characteristics and properties of non-woven wallpaper are determined by its composition.
Composition of non-woven wallpaper:
- Cellulose makes up 70 percent of the composition. During production, they are arranged in a special way, which ensures their high strength and reliability.
- Binders make up 30 percent of the total composition.
Modern wallpaper production technology makes them especially strong, durable, and wear-resistant. Depending on the materials used, wallpapers are divided into several types.
Types of non-woven wallpaper
- Non-woven. They consist exclusively of one component - non-woven fabric. They have many layers. The decorative layer is a relief coating with a characteristic pattern. They last a long time and can be repainted.
- On a non-woven basis. The top layer of such wallpaper consists of vinyl, paper or textile.
The main characteristics of wallpaper are determined by the composition of the components used in their manufacture. When caring for non-woven wallpaper, you can use detergents and cleaning tools.
How to choose?
The basic rule for choosing a safe material is not to save money. You should buy wallpaper, both vinyl and non-woven, in large specialized stores, giving preference to trusted brands - large manufacturers, as a rule, comply with technical quality standards and use environmentally friendly raw materials to produce their products.
It is also important to pay attention to the choice of wallpaper glue. Of course, it must first of all correspond to the type of wallpaper - that is, it must indicate that the glue is intended specifically for this type of wallpaper, however, in addition to this, the glue must meet quality standards. It is the fumes from “bad” glue that often lead to allergic reactions and worsen the health of people who stay indoors for a long time.
Don’t forget also that, despite the density of non-woven and vinyl wallpaper, their base is often transparent, and the yellow glue, when drying, can be visible, spoiling the appearance of the room.
Properties of non-woven wallpaper
Non-woven wallpaper has universal properties that suit consumers. They combine reliability, ease of use and maintenance, and durability.
The versatility of non-woven wallpaper is ensured by the components that make up them. They are the ones who cast many consumers into doubt about the harmful effects on human health.
Before telling you about the harmfulness of non-woven wallpaper, you need to familiarize users with the consumer characteristics of wallpaper.
Properties of non-woven wallpaper:
- Moisture resistance;
- Resistance to mechanical stress;
- Easy to stick and care.
Such characteristics cannot go unnoticed. In addition to its positive properties, non-woven wallpaper has a wide selection of decor, which allows you to choose the ideal style for any interior.
Pros and cons of non-woven wallpaper ↑
Non-woven fabric perfectly holds its original shape, is resistant to abrasion, tearing and tolerates moisture well. Such coatings do not evaporate formaldehyde and other inclusions harmful to health, allow the walls to “breathe” - do not block air access through micropores.
Important! Despite the improved technical characteristics of non-woven wallpaper compared to paper counterparts, for a kitchen or bathroom it is still better to choose a material with a protective vinyl layer that does not allow moisture to pass through and is easy to clean.
There will be no difficulties with installation - gluing such rolls is quite simple even for a non-professional; in addition, their dense base works as a reinforcing material and perfectly masks minor surface defects. But they are especially loved by designers for the opportunity to create a unique interior using original drawings, stencils and various decorating techniques.
To radically update the interior, you can simply repaint the walls
Agree, the advantages of non-woven wallpaper are quite significant; it is not without reason that this material is recommended for covering walls in living rooms and even children’s rooms. But for the sake of fairness, we also note their shortcomings.
Disadvantages of non-woven wallpaper:
- The range of patterns and colors is quite poor compared to vinyl coverings.
- Wallpaper with deep relief quickly accumulates household dust and various bacteria, so it requires special care - it needs to be regularly vacuumed and cleaned with a soft, dry cloth.
- Instability to mechanical damage - although coloring significantly strengthens the strength of the cellulose base, such canvases still quickly become greasy and will be easy prey for active children and pets.
- The price is “biting” - natural wallpapers are significantly more expensive than vinyl ones.
Is non-woven wallpaper harmful to health?
A large amount of information on the Internet can confuse users regarding the safety of non-woven wallpaper for human health. Because of this, many deprive themselves of the opportunity to have a beautiful and high-quality coating that meets all quality standards.
It is important to know that non-woven wallpaper is harmless to human health, provided that it is not exposed to high temperatures.
It's no secret that wallpaper may contain substances that can cause harm. But all of them emit toxic substances only when wallpaper is produced directly in factories. They go on sale ready for gluing and are safe for human health.
You should refuse to buy wallpaper in the following cases:
- Wallpaper does not have a quality certificate;
- Have an unpleasant chemical smell;
- Cost too low.
There is no need to worry about the dangers of non-woven wallpaper. The main thing is to choose a quality product that will meet all international standards.
What kind of wallpaper is this?
Before you get to the bottom of the truth and understand whether non-woven wallpaper really causes damage to our health, you need to know exactly what they are made of. Having started collecting material, you can almost instantly understand that we are making a huge mistake by calling all wallpaper that contains even a drop of non-woven wallpaper non-woven. In fact, this is completely wrong.
Is there any harm from wallpaper?
There are different types of wall coverings on store shelves, and not all of them are actually non-woven. Most are a mixture of interlining and something else, such as paper or vinyl. And this, excuse me, is a completely different tune. Well, let's start in order and dot the i's. Let's lift the veil of secrecy over the new material and find out whether it can be trusted.
Real non-woven wallpaper
Non-woven fabric is a long-known non-woven material. It consists of textile and cellulose fibers interconnected. These fibers are held in place not by weaving, as is the case in textile fabrics or knitwear, but by polymers. Roughly speaking, they took two types of threads, placed them on top of each other randomly, smoothed them into a thin fabric, and then fastened them together by filling them with glue. So the result was non-woven fabric, which is still used in tailoring.
Proper care and operation
To be completely confident in the safety of non-woven surfaces, you must adhere to the rules for using and caring for wallpaper.
An important step is the choice of wallpaper. It is worth paying attention to their appearance and characteristics. For example, find out what materials non-woven fabric can interact with, and which of them can lead to chemical reactions harmful to human health.
When hanging wallpaper, it is important to follow the instructions on the packaging. It is also important to carefully select the glue that will be intended for a specific type of wallpaper. Its quality should not be in doubt.
Features of use:
- Before gluing, you should carefully prepare the walls: clean, putty, level, prime.
- When gluing, you should use only high-quality wallpaper and glue. It is better to choose brands that have won love and have positive consumer reviews.
- Do not expose the wallpaper to too high temperatures, although such temperatures are difficult to achieve at home.
- Keep the surface clean and do regular dry and wet cleaning.
If you follow all the rules, wallpaper will not harm your health. On the contrary, they will delight their owners with long, reliable service and a beautiful appearance, which will add charm and originality to the interior.
Wallpaper on paper basis
Most Popular. The paper base is the most profitable for the manufacturer, because... Almost any coating can be applied to it, for example, another layer of paper, textiles, cork, vinyl, etc. As a result, it is the most popular. The main properties of paper-based wallpaper, including waterproofness, strength and durability, are made up of the characteristics of the materials used (two or more).
Working with paper is not easy
. When covering a room with paper-based wallpaper, the glue is applied directly to the “backing”. Wet roll pieces are difficult to fit together accurately while standing on a stepladder. In addition, it is difficult to deal with bubbles. Not every worker can carefully cover a wall with paper wallpaper. Non-woven wallpaper is much easier to work with - even “amateurs” can handle it.
In the photo: Stages of covering walls with paper-based wallpaper.
Based on this, if we compare vinyl wallpaper on a paper basis and two-layer paper wallpaper, we will get completely different properties, and, accordingly, areas of application. So, vinyl wallpapers are more suitable for the hallway - they can be easily cleaned from splashes and dirt, while paper wallpapers will be hopelessly damaged.
Thus, the properties of the base only partially determine what characteristics the wallpaper as a whole will have.
Advantages of paper-based wallpaper. The main advantage of paper base is its low cost. Also, paper has excellent breathability, but only with an appropriate coating, for example, with a second paper layer.
Disadvantages of paper-based wallpaper. Among the disadvantages, it is important to note the limited scope of application. Paper-based wallpaper cannot be used in the kitchen and bathroom. Due to temperature changes and high humidity, the wallpaper will deform and move away from the walls. In addition, covering a room with paper-based wallpaper is not easy, because... it is necessary to apply the glue directly to the “backing”.
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On the picture:
Examples of wallpaper based on paper with paper or vinyl coating.
Modern non-woven wallpaper, is it harmful: we are looking for safe ones (video)
Many consumers are concerned about the safety of non-woven wallpaper for health. This is due to the growing popularity of this type of decorative finishing. Non-woven wallpaper does not pose a risk to human health. They may contain components that can release toxic substances, but this can only happen at very high temperatures, which can only be achieved in factory conditions. In order for wallpaper to delight you with its beautiful appearance and quality, you need to choose a product from trusted manufacturers who have a good reputation among consumers.
Types of material ↑
If we consider non-woven coatings, without layering vinyl and other additions, then we can distinguish two types of wallpaper:
- For painting (they are also called restoration) - smooth or embossed light canvases, which just need to be glued to the wall, and then painted in any shade you like.
The pattern of the canvases can imitate plaster, modeling, fabric fibers
- Tinted – ready-made colored sheets with embossing, pattern or without decoration, which do not require additional decoration. Is it possible to paint non-woven wallpaper without painting? The answer is yes, if their outer side is not protected by a layer of PVC. But this will be more difficult to do, since you will have to “outdo” the existing factory color. If the base is light, there will be no problems with repainting (however, there is no guarantee that it will be possible to achieve the exact shade, because the original paint may show through, and the new color will have to be applied in several layers). But if the wallpaper is initially dark or intensely bright, the result may be unpredictable.
On a note! It is not recommended to use paint on coatings with a protective layer of vinyl - it applies unevenly and worsens the already poor vapor permeability of the material. But fabric and paper wallpaper on a non-woven basis can be restored and repainted several times, updating the design of the room at your discretion.
