We recently made a window seat in our bedroom, and after we finished installing it, my husband had an asthma attack. We first thought it might be sawdust triggering it, but even after deep cleaning the room, his asthma persisted. We decided to remove the window seat—thankfully it came out easily—and moved it to the garage. Once we did that, his asthma symptoms cleared up, which led us to believe something about the seat was causing the issue.
To resolve it, I made sure to clean the window seat thoroughly, primed the entire piece (the bottom and back were previously unprimed), and sealed any gaps with caulking. However, my husband still seems to have an asthma reaction when we're near the wood. Has anyone gone through something similar? Any tips on how to fix this? The window seat is made of Douglas fir and pine.
2 Answers
You didn't mention what type of finish you used, but many finishes can off-gas for up to 30 days after application. That could definitely be the culprit for your husband's symptoms!
It might be worth having your husband tested for allergies. Sometimes, it’s not just the wood but also the finish or paint used that can cause reactions. Just a thought!
The exterior wood was primed and painted, so that might be something to consider!