Let me begin by thanking you for this very insightful forum!
I have just recently wallpapered my grandchildren’s bedrooms in a vinyl PVC wallpaper, which unbeknownst to me may be emitting VOC’s! I personally haven’t had any reactions when installing it and there was no odor to the paper
I have since purchased the Temtop LKC10005+2nd air quality detector. Which also was accompanied by this certificate of calibration as seen in this image below
I subsequently closed the doors to the bedrooms and after one hour placed the detector in the room in various spots for 10 mins each. The VOC readings were apparently low ranging from 0.18-0.24 and detector stated that the air was “healthy”
Would you please be able to tell me if I can trust these readings to be accurate?
Thank you so very much for your response and time regarding my concerns!
Best Regards
Rachelle
Thanks for joining and it’s great to hear that you’re investigating your air quality!
Firstly, I just want to say that I don’t have much experience with Temtop’s more ‘professional’ air quality monitors, but it’s great to see they come with a test certificate. While I’ll have to do more digging into the reference equipment they use, it’s a nice touch.
Since I’ve never used this monitor, and since Temtop tends to not give too much information about its devices, it’s hard to tell exactly how good the VOC sensor is. However, I assume that it is like other low-cost VOC sensors, meaning that outputs given should only be considered relatively (even if the output is shown as an absolute value). In other words, these sensors good for showing trends, but they can’t pick up absolute concentrations.
Based on this first warning in the user manual, I think it’s the same case here and I wouldn’t rely on any absolute readings from the device. That said, we can still get some useful information from it!
It sounds like you’ve used the device correctly, and if it’s only shown a relatively small jump in VOCs, then I would guess it’s likely correct and there’s not too much to worry about. If you take the device outside for a while (or place it near an open window) and then put it in a room that wasn’t recently wallpapered, how does it react? I would guess the concentration increases, but not as high as 0.18-0.24. If this is the case, I don’t think you have much to worry about, but it would be great to air the room out as much as possible for a week or two.
If you continue to be worried, I would recommend a VOC lab test. You can order these online, and a company will send you some sheets to collect samples on. After a week or so, you then send the sheet back and they will run it through the lab.
Hi again Ethan!
Thank you so very much for your quick and detailed response!
I have done what you suggested and the readings outdoors drop significantly to 0.02 for VOC and 0.01 for HCHO detections as compared to the values, as stated in my last communication, of 0.18-0.24 when in wallpapered rooms. Also, when I open the windows in those rooms, the values drop lower as well….
I took it one step further and placed a 4”x10” piece of the wallpaper and placed it in a closed jar overnight. The next morning, I placed the detector into the jar, and it registered 0.24, which was the highest reading I ever got and was deemed “healthy” on the detector.
In your knowledgeable opinion, does this mean that these rooms are not emitting unhealthy amounts of VOC’s?
Could you suggest a reputable VOC lab in case I decide to test this a step further?
My continued appreciation for all your efforts and help!
Best regards
Rachelle
Apologies for the delayed response, I’ve been a bit too busy!
This is a very good sign! At least this confirms that the sensor should be accurate enough for identifying and picking up relatively trends.
Running this test was a fantastic idea and it shows that the initial readings you got from the rooms were probably correct.
Since the increase in VOCs is still relatively low, I don’t think you need to be too concerened about this. With that said, I can totally understand wanting to lower the VOC levels as much as possible, and I believe this is a wise idea. I’m not sure how feasible this is at the moment (I’m not sure if it’s summer or winter for you), but I would recommend airing the room(s) as much as possible over the next few weeks. This should hopefully drop the VOC levels even further.
Based on this, I don’t think further testing is needed, but it can be good for peace of mind. If you find yourself still worrying about these levels, such a test is always the best way to put your mind at ease. However, I think it’s not essential in this situation.
