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Fading From FormaldehydeThis report was done for a consumer after reconstruction of the his house. The contractor was as fault.THE CARPET MANUFACTURER: Not Available FIBER/ ID METHOD: Acrylic Burn COLOR: Peach CONSTRUCTION: Tufted Cut Loop STYLE: Saxony Plush BACK SYSTEM: Conventional Tufted PRIMARY BACKING: Jute SECONDARY BACKING: Jute THE INSTALLATION DEALER/INSTALLER: Not Available TYPE OF INSTALLATION: Residential METHOD: Stretch-In CUSHION: 1/2 Inch Rebond DENSITY: 7.5 SUBFLOOR: Concrete AREA INSTALLED: Livingroom./Dining-room And Two Bedrooms. USE & MAINTENANCE INFORMATION AT THE TIME OF INSPECTION LITERATURE RECEIVED WITH PURCHASE: Not Available ADULTS: 2 CHILDREN: ––– PETS: 0 TEMPERATURE 76.8°F 24.8° C RELATIVE HUMIDITY: 55% VACUUM TYPE: Not Determined DO THEY SMOKE? No FREQUENCY: Weekly ENTRY MATS: Yes CONDITION of TEXTILE: Poor SOIL: None Noticeable HEATING TYPE: Central Force Air Gas COOLING TYPE: Central Electric CLEANING: Professional PROBLEM REPORTED The carpet in question has reportedly lost color. THE REPORT Geographical Background Information This townhouse/condominium is located in a residential neighborhood just south of Santa Monica Boulevard, north of the Interstate 10 and east of the interstate 405 Freeways. This unit is on a single level on the third floor of this multiunit building. The residence is in the final stages of reconstruction. The maintenance in the neighborhood is very good. THE CLAIM HISTORY The claimant’s home under went reconstruction as a result of the Northridge Earthquake. The sliding glass doors and the windows above the doors were broken. The tan carpet in the living room was rolled and stored in this dwelling. The area was under reconstruction for several months. In the large walk in closet the carpet was reportedly covered with plastic during reconstruction. After the plastic was removed the claimant noticed a severe color loss. The original color was peach. The resulting color loss was tan. The claimant has expressed displeasure in the way the contractors cared for their carpet. They feel that there is a general loss of color throughout the installation. DETAILED PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION The seam in the Livingroom. as seen in picture one is peaked slightly. The carpet going into the kitchen from the dining area was found not tacked as seen in photograph number two. At this same spot only one roll of tackless strip was found as seen in photograph number three. The carpet was pulled back in the same proximity and at this time, the cushion and subfloor were inspected. The floor was confirmed to be concrete and the carpet backing was confirmed to be jute. Also noted was that some of the face yarns were stuck to the molding as seen in photograph number four. The peach carpet is located in the master-bed room. A sharp contrast of color was confirmed going into the large walk-in closet as seen in photograph number five. Going into the master’s bedroom a small stain was seen as noted in photograph number six. The hue of this stain is similar to the stain from the door. Nearly all seams were quite noticeable as seen in the photograph number seven between the master bedroom and the den. In this same area a small light spot, approximately three inches in length was photographed, as noted in picture number eight. TESTING An ultraviolet light was shone throughout the installation. This tool draws a yellow reflection from most urine stains and a blue or lavender reflection from detergents with optical brightening agents. Seam sealers are used to tightly bond carpet edges together and to seal the trimmed edge from fraying. The result of this test revealed that there was no foreign substance in the carpet. The carpet’s edge reflected seaming adhesive. Numerous moisture tests were performed using a Delmhorst Moisture Sensor. This test would indicate the presence of moisture in the area that was being tested. It is possible for water to be lock-up in salts compounds from residue from urine and other compounds long after the affected area has dried. Any recent/ previous overwetting of the carpet could also be found in the latex backing of a carpet with this device. The results of these tests revealed that there was no moisture reading. Numerous pH tests were taken using a pHep + Pen by Hannaź. This device is accurate to ± 0.1 and was calibrated with a laboratory testing solution immediately before these tests were made. All tests were made using distilled water with a pH of 7.0. The test results were as follows: 6.7 7.0 7.1 7.3 7.3 Ave. 7.08 THE ISSUE The question that I have been asked to address is: what has caused the loss of color in this carpet? CONDITIONS THAT CAN CAUSE THE PROBLEM Color loss problems can occur when: 1. sun light or in particular ultraviolet rays from the sun affect the dye. 2. oxide of nitrogen and sulfur in the air common to the Southern California atmosphere, high efficient force air heating systems and other gas appliances react with carpet dye. 3. bleaches, oxidizing agents or strong alkalinize have reacted with the face yarn. 4. formaldehyde trapped in dead air space in the carpet THE RULES Acrylic is made from a long chain of synthetic polymer composed of at least 85 percent by weight of acrylonitrile a liquid derivative of natural gas and air. The fiber appeared in the market in 1949, went into full-scale production in 1952 and made its first appearance in carpets at the 1957 Winter Markets (introduced by Chemstand, now Monsanto). Acrylic fibers disappeared from the market in 1988 due to superior performance from other synthetics. It was reintroduced in 1990 in Berber styling to take advantage of their wool-like appearance. A blended nylon/acrylic cut pole yarn has also been introduced. From the very beginning, this fiber has been considered the most wool-like in appearance and texture. Acrylics are known for their dyeablility, wearability, resistance to staining, color retention and resistance to abrasion. They are non-allergic, mildew proof and moth proof. Modacrylic is a modified acrylic, composed of 35 to 85 % by weight of acrylonitrile. While used alone in bath or scatter rugs, in carpeting it’s usually blended with an acrylic, except for 100% Modacrylic fabrics using solution-dyed fiber. The advantage of acrylic are as follows: · Wool-like appearance · Nonabsorbent · Stain resistant The disadvantages of acrylic are as follows: · Less abrasion resistant · Not as resilient · Hand coarsens with age. According to the IICRC FIELD REFERENCE GUIDE for on site investigations it says this in its glossary of terms: fading Gradual loss of color, usually due to exposure to light (actinic radiation, especially direct sunlight); or from contact between dyes and various soils or oxidizing gases (ozone); or fumes from certain liquids (hydrogen peroxide, sodium hypochlorite), etc. fastness The property of a dye which allows it to retain its color when the dyed textile is exposed to light, abrasion, atmospheric gases, cleaning or other color destroying agents. Dyestuff, fiber type and dyeing method all influence the ability of colored textiles to withstand the effects of color destroying agents. formaldehyde A pungent, colorless, irritating gas (CH2O) that is used as a preservative, sterilizing and disinfecting agent produced in liquid or gaseous form. Formaldehyde is used in synthesizing several compounds and resins. According to the FLOOR COVERING DICTIONARY it says this about Formaldehyde Fading: FORMALDEHYDE Particle board flooring is held together with phenol-formaldehyde resin glue. Most furniture is held together by this glue. There is a good chance a tiny bit of formaldehyde gas will collect on the carpet in dead air spaces, corners, under furniture and in closets. Formaldehyde will vary in color since it is usually a loss of peach dye, i.e.: brown to green and green to yellow. Here peach dye is the best option. It is a deadly poison. FORMALDEHYDE FADING This type of fading is characterized by loss of the red dye component and occurs mainly underneath certain types of furniture. The fading is most obvious in tertiary shades containing, significant amounts of peach in the dye formula. Loss of the peach component in such shades causes a very pronounced shift in hue from beige or brown to green. The type of furniture involved in these complaints is typically inexpensively constructed of particle board or chip board and die design restricted air circulation underneath, next to the carpet. This circumstantial evidence led to the hypothesis that some volatile component from either the furniture or the subfloor of carpet padding, was being trapped next to the carpet causing a fading reaction. DISCUSSION There are few scenarios that would lead to this type of fading. Although no test was done to determine if formaldehyde is present, the circumstantial evidence is strong. The facts supporting formaldehyde being part of the fading are these: 1. The color that is lost is clearly one of the red hue. 2. It took place in an area of ‘dead air", namely underneath the protective plastic sheet. 3. There was reconstruction that was taking place with various products like varnish, that could have contained formaldehyde. The source of the formaldehyde would have been the varnish or the paint. Many other sources could have been present too. CONCLUSION The carpet in question has faded and lost color due to special atmospheric conditions including the condition of being covered with plastic. This conclusion is based upon picture five and the definitions given above, along with the background information. RECOMMENDATIONS Acrylic carpet cannot be re-dyed after the fiber has been made. Replacement is the best remedy for this problem. |