Fiberglass Health Issues? - Fiberglass RV
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Old 03-10-2014, 07:00 AM   #1
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Fiberglass Health Issues?

I probably should have asked before I bought mine, but are there known health issues with living in fiberglass trailers? I mean specific to fiberglass?

After almost a month, my trailer still has a strong chemical smell. Finally having some nice weather, so I will open it up and air it out, but now I'm starting to wonder about fiberglass and any chemicals used on cushions.
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Old 03-10-2014, 07:19 AM   #2
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Huck,
People can be sensitive to anything. Fiberglass trailers and boats have been around for many years. Most people do quite well in them.
If and when you can, crack your windows and vents open a bit. That new trailer smell will soon pass.
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Old 03-10-2014, 08:07 AM   #3
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I don't think that there are any known health issues with "Properly Cured" fiberglass. However I have heard of long lingering odors from fiberglass lay-ups in boats that had curing problems. But maybe it's just because it's very new and has been closed up for a long period of time.

Maybe the other Parkliner owners and other New trailer owners will chime in with any similar experiences.



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Old 03-10-2014, 08:21 AM   #4
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Our 2012 Scamp13 still has that new trailer smell. We've only been able to use it maybe a half dozen times or so but we do at least a 2-3 week trip every summer and 1 week over Spring Break so thought it would have aired out more. My 17 yr old starting having some health issues so we had her tested for food allergies. It turned out to be Dairy and Sugar sensitivities but something else showed up as well. Formaldehyde in extremely high concentrations. Now I know formaldehyde is in just about everything these days (even clothing) and she had been exposed to a concentrated amount when her entire school was painted one day and the kids were back in class the next and the fumes were making them sick. We also had laminate flooring put in our entire house last year and she got a new matress. So she has possibly had more concentrated exposure than your average person but the Dr. doesn't want her in our trailer with it closed up while it's still outgassing. From now on we will be sure and keep a window cracked or the roof vent open no matter what the temps.
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Old 03-10-2014, 09:36 AM   #5
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Is there any special reason to look at the fiberglass and not everything else in the trailer? Other than the glass, there's plenty of adhesives and such to think about.
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Old 03-10-2014, 10:13 AM   #6
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You know that film you get on the inside of the windows in your car-that's outgassing from all the plastics inside the car. Leave your trailer windows and vent open during the warmer days. It helps get rid of the heavy (new) initial outgassing.
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Old 03-10-2014, 10:15 AM   #7
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Mike raises a good point..... it may not be the fiberglass. If there is carpet in the trailer it could be that, as well as the many different adhesives used during construction.
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Old 03-10-2014, 10:26 AM   #8
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I hadn't thought about this in years - but does anybody else remember the HUGE problem that cropped up with all the trailers that FEMA brought in for people displaced by Hurricane Katrina? Lots of folks experiencing problems. It was at least presumed to be from formaldehyde coming out of materials in the trailers (carpets, adhesives, pressboard, darn near everything!). Ended up sparking a big lawsuit. Part of the answer of course is that camping trailers are built for periodic occupancy - not to live in 24/7 for months/years on end.

Any chemical nasty's in a normal trailer will also be in a glass trailer. The fiberglass itself doesn't add formaldehyde though - it adds styrene. Different stuff with different problems.

Of course, with both the answer is to air the thing out. As suggested - open the windows on warm days, maybe turn the vent fan on etc.
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Old 03-10-2014, 10:49 AM   #9
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Foam can outgas badly as well. I added a new memory foam mattress that smelled bad when taken out of the package new. I ended up sticking it outside in the garage for a week or more.

Formaldehyde is also found in a lot of composite wood products.
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Old 03-10-2014, 11:28 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Huck View Post

After almost a month, my trailer still has a strong chemical smell.
Can't help but smile just a bit...remember when we called that "new car smell" and actually missed it once it wore off? Even now, you can actually buy a product that "restores" it. Point is, what you're smelling is a combination of all the new materials inside a closed space that has never known human occupation. As others have said, it'll dissipate with time and use.

The fiberglass itself probably contributes nothing to the smell since outgassing is complete once it's cured. Fiberglass trailers, however, are much less "breathable" than conventionally constructed ones, so are probably more prone to retain such gases as are put out by interior finishes. Sources of those gases are the same as those in any other trailer, no matter how constructed: glues and solvents in the interior materials.

Ventilation is key- even in winter, the trailer should be provided with some means of keeping air circulating.
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Old 03-10-2014, 11:29 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike Watters View Post
I hadn't thought about this in years - but does anybody else remember the HUGE problem that cropped up with all the trailers that FEMA brought in for people displaced by Hurricane Katrina? Lots of folks experiencing problems. It was at least presumed to be from formaldehyde coming out of materials in the trailers (carpets, adhesives, pressboard, darn near everything!). Ended up sparking a big lawsuit. Part of the answer of course is that camping trailers are built for periodic occupancy - not to live in 24/7 for months/years on end.

Any chemical nasty's in a normal trailer will also be in a glass trailer. The fiberglass itself doesn't add formaldehyde though - it adds styrene. Different stuff with different problems.

Of course, with both the answer is to air the thing out. As suggested - open the windows on warm days, maybe turn the vent fan on etc.
The only "HUGE" problem with the Fema trailers in question was the waste of $300,000,000 spent on trailers which were subsequently themselves wasted by an incompetent bureaucracy and a logistics nightmare, not to mention an unprecedented and unfounded sense of entitlement.
A charitable organization offered to ship FEMA trailers to Haiti for free and were denied, citing the health hazards.
Then the excess trailers were auctioned to the public....Go Figger.
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Old 03-10-2014, 12:21 PM   #12
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It probably doesn't help matters that we have the Deluxe model so all the wood in there puts off a smell. Burned my eyes and throat the first time we stepped in and then proceeded to take a 3 week trip in it.
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Old 03-10-2014, 12:28 PM   #13
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We picked up our new Escape 19' in April 2013. For most of last year, there was a relatively strong chemical odour inside the trailer which was most noticeable when the windows and vents had been closed. Seemed to dissipate fairly quickly when the windows or vents were open, and now is hardly noticeable.
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Old 03-10-2014, 02:34 PM   #14
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Vacuum inside the cupboards and under the benches as well as the open areas and the walls, that should speed up the process of eliminating the smell. Personally I don't recall any lasting odor in my Scamp.
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Old 03-10-2014, 06:12 PM   #15
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Personally, I would worry more about mold spores in a leaking trailer... specially the stick built kind. But, what do I know...
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Old 03-16-2014, 08:48 AM   #16
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Originally Posted by Mike Watters View Post
Is there any special reason to look at the fiberglass and not everything else in the trailer? Other than the glass, there's plenty of adhesives and such to think about.
I have been waiting for someone to bring this point to light. I have asked the question of out gassing from one of our venders and he implied that the products used in the fiberglass construction should be fully cured in a short time. The most likely culprit is in the use of wood products, different foams used in insulation and carpets.
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