Is painting the walls of the room with the aquarium in it safe for the fish?

[fishdude25]

My mom has decided that she wants to paint the walls in the living room, and thats where my 75 gallon is. I have 10 Harlequin rasboras, and 4 panda corydoras in there, so I was wondering if painting in the same room as the aquarium is safe? The paint fumes or whatever, will it harm them? Will I have to move my aquarium to another room?

 

[mfdrookie516]

I wouldn't use regular paint. If you use low DOC (I believe that's what it's called), or paint that's safe for babies, it shouldn't be an issue. There's hardly any smell.

 

[fishdude25]

OK, thanks! She is going to use this, Dura Clean: Dura Clean® - Products - Dutch Boy
Would this be safe? She is going to do the painting today.

 

[skiweeangel]

Make sure there is good ventilation in the room and things should be ok. If you are worried do a water change after everything is done. We just repainted our bed room where we have a 55gal with primer paint in one and it stunk! but I watch the little guy that was in there and we had good cross ventilation and everything was fine. I hope all goes well.

 

[mfdrookie516]

After looking around, it's VOC (volatile organic compounds), not DOC. I looked on their website and some of their paint advertises "ZeroVOC / Greenguard® Indoor Air Quality Certified"... but not the Dura Clean. Have you already purchased it? It might not be an issue, but I wouldn't want to take the risk.

 

[fishdude25]

Yes, we have already purchased it, I really hope it's not a problem. The entire back of my aquarium top is open for cables and such, should I cover that area with a towel or something? Also, should I turn off my filter? I really hope that everything works out.
Thanks again!

 

[OasisKeeper]

You should cover it to keep any accidents from falling into the tank. But it won't keep the air out and wouldn't be good if it did. You need some air turnover at the top of the tank.

Use fans and open windows as much as the weather will allow to keep the air turning over in the room. This will speed the drying process (if it isn't too cold) and carry off the VOCs as quickly as possible.

The paints VOCs are much less toxic today then the used to be, mostly alcohols. I doubt it will cause any issues.

 

[fishdude25]

How long should I leave the towels on the top for? Until the smell is completely gone? Thanks for anwering all the questions!

 

[OasisKeeper]

For as long as you can smell 'paint' and then a bit more. Your nose is one of the most sensitive test instruments we have at our disposal.

 

[fishdude25]

OK, thanks again! Later I will post how everything went.

 

[fishdude25]

Update:
We are done painting now, and I did a 75% pwc, and trimmed the plants a little. The fish are all doing well. Thanks for all the amazing help!