Understanding UFFI (Urea-Formaldehyde Foam Insulation) Part 1
Urea-Formaldehyde Foam Insulation was first used as a building product in 1970. Formaldehyde is known to cause cancer in animals, as well a number of conditions in humans including rashes, asthma, eye, and nose and throat irritations. It is a colorless gas that in small enough quantities can go undetected.
UFFI was a popular material because its foamy nature made it easy to find hard to reach locations. It was applied by pumping the material into walls. Upon drying the material will harden.
The product was banned by the Consumer Product Safety Commission in 1982. Following a court challenge to the ban in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals of U.S. the ban was removed. The problem for the CPSC was that it had insufficient evidence relating to the adverse effects in conjunction with formaldehyde levels.
To further complicate matters a study by the National Cancer Institute in March of 1986 found that formaldehyde caused no cancer in factory workers that were exposed to it over an extended period of time.
The “jury is still out” regarding the safety of the use of UFFI. If you are purchasing a home that may have the substance it would be a good idea to have levels of formaldehyde monitored over a set time period. This would be especially true if anyone in the family has a history of bronchial or breathing ailments.
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