Formaldahyde poisoning????

[SheBantam]

Hi Jill,,I researched that and there are special filters for this. I run Ionic pro type filters at home and at work and have a small one that also works on 9 volt, but it is not a specialized hepa, so I am not sure how effective it would be...it is more like a dust magnet.  Quiet yes, effective ? for this. But thanks for the suggestion.  It was something I had thought about also.

[SheBantam]

Slicer's service manager also told me that Formaldahyde, perfumes and even powdered carpet freshners have been known to set off CO detectors in trailers...so that may be my problem with the detector going off.  Perfumes (most) have carriers like Toluene a toxic chemical (not labeled as toxic, of course, because it is part of the trade secret products used in each individual scent), and I am not sure what the carpet freshners have in them...

[SheBantam]

My fantaisc Vent is in, sitting in a chair inthe living room, waiting to be moved to the camper. Surgery is scheduled for May 23rd, the surgey on the camper to install the fantasic vent...minor operation, about an hour. I had conduit (the sticky type that sticks to floors, walls and hopefully ceilings) left over from my remove the nightstand-turn it into a bed mod.

There is no real framework to one of these trailers, so they will have to run the wire along the ceiling and no ceiling light (again, no real framework to mount a light, so the wire will have to be run to the galley, about 3 feet., have 2 lights there, one over the sink and one in the stove hood, so I will be good to go relatively easily.

[dee106]

we just put a fant. fan in our unit, works great!

[SheBantam]

Thanks Dee, that is what I wanted/needed to hear.

[dee106]

Thanks Dee, that is what I wanted/needed to hear.

it will be easier in yours, because we had to convert it from 12vlts to 110 in ours, you  have a light near by to take power from?

[SheBantam]

They will have to run it to the stove hood about 2 feet, but I have conduit.  No lights on the ceiling.

[PattieAM]

Do you mostly camp with hookups?  If so, you might consider buying one of those plug in air filters - I've got one in my home kitchen as well as my bedroom and they make a big difference.  

I'd like to say 'I used to have asthma' - went a few years without any aggravations, but this spring has hit me hard - so I know where you are coming from.

When I first bought my Fleetwood, and again when I purchased the Memory Foam topper - I was told to open the windows and 'allow it to air out' the various fumes - including the Formaldahyde.  Opened the PUP and windows for 2-3 days (thankfully no rain) and haven't had any issues.

[SheBantam]

Do you mostly camp with hookups?  If so, you might consider buying one of those plug in air filters - I've got one in my home kitchen as well as my bedroom and they make a big difference.  

I'd like to say 'I used to have asthma' - went a few years without any aggravations, but this spring has hit me hard - so I know where you are coming from.

When I first bought my Fleetwood, and again when I purchased the Memory Foam topper - I was told to open the windows and 'allow it to air out' the various fumes - including the Formaldahyde.  Opened the PUP and windows for 2-3 days (thankfully no rain) and haven't had any issues.

HI Pattie, welcome.

The Jayco was old when we bought it and I had no issues.  The Bantam, like a popup can be aired out well, but the Cabin A is a TT with 2 small windows (the light is good, but they are sliders so the opening for air is small and 2 bubble windows.

Friday the camper gets the fantastic Vent.
My memory foam came from the house after being used for about 3 years, though I did put a new mattress in the camper.  But I was getting sick before I put the mattress in.

The radio said that April was the worst pollen counts in recorded history up here in Northen DE. May was only slighter better (than April). I am not sure where Charles County is, but you probably have just as high of counts.

I have one of those filters in each room of the house, some are the ones that you wipe clean, the others have filter. they help some.  The Cabin A is so small (11' box, 15 end to end) that when we camped for a week in Myrtle beach (where I got so sick we had to spend our last night there in a motel AND leave a day early) I had to get a small flat screen TV, our regular 13" would have taken up the whole counter.  There is not much room for a filter, though I do have one that would fit under the bed AND it had a cigarette lighter connection and electric adapter. There is a cigarette lighter connection also under the bed...way under the bed.

[SheBantam]

I posted elsewhere here that I e-mailed Aliner with the numbers from the formadahyde test.  My trailer is .21 PPM and the EPA says .1 is safe.  A division of the CDC says that for people with breathing problems the maximun should be .04 . THat means that my trailer has 5 X the FOrmaldahyde as suggested by CDC, and 2 X as much as what the EPA and American Lung Association Say.

So yes, with my history of chemical sensitivity even before buying this trailer, I was slowly being poisoned and did not realize that it might be the trailer.

Well instead of dissing me this time a very nice man called me at work.  I told him that I had pretty much solved the problem that I had spent ling weekends in the trailer 2 weekends in a row and had kept the Fantastic vent on most of the time, and the air on the when the vent was not on.  I did not get sick.

He re-imbursed me half (actually a little better than half) for the vent and the installation. he understood that the construction of the Cabin a (very thin plywood with fiberglass or some other plastic sprayed on, with no studs) there was no light to hook the vent up to and they ahd to add wire and go through the wet bath...he even threw in a spare tire holder that mounts to the back bumper.  

The check is in my hand today, the call was made on MOnday.  The spare tire holder also arrived.

The money will be re-invested...a fantastic vent for the Bantam, which I am taking to Keen Lake.   I have thought back and when I turtle with the Bantam, I get sick (that is in cooler weather).  So I got enough for another delux (thermostat, in/out) Fantastc vent.  I guess this is a project for the rally in a couple/three weeks.

[Hargus]

Congradulations Paula.
You can litigate with my vendors anytime. I'm glad you have the camper resolved and can camp in good health. Look forward to seeing you at the rally.
Mike

[SheBantam]

I made a pre-rally appointment with Slicers, I looked at the pictures on how to install, "fishing" for the electric is not my thing...I will pay...so it will be about $45.00 out of pocket as I bought the "suprise me" 5000rbt. It is made for "standard" roofs but I have no choice in the vent cover color (I chose clear for the Cabin A as the windows are small and the bubbles are brown blocking a lot of light). ANd white on the inside.  Hey In save almost $25.00 doing it that way.

[Hargus]

Paula, that's great I'm looking forward to seeing it. So I understand, you just replaced one of the windows for the vent in the cabin A. But you'll have it custom installed in the roof of the Bantam. Electric is not my thing either.
Looking forward to the rally. Cheryl's doing a nice job putting everything together.
Mike

[SheBantam]

No to replace the windows in the Cabin A would have been over $800 plus the trip to the plant in Mt. Pleasant PA.

The Fantastic Vent goes into the roof where the hand crank vent is. because I have a maxx air cover, I cannot get a vent with a remote.  I would have to invest in a differnt vent cover. So mine is a habd crank, but has a themostat speed control and in/out switches.  5000rtb

http://members.aol.com/fantasticvent/

Got this link from the aliner/chalet yahoo group.  

Dee, they sell a Fantastic vent that uses 110 instead of 12 volt.