Question: A common question I receive from families is what to do about a child who smears feces, spit, vomit, and food on the walls and ceilings?
- From Scott Kouri
Answer:
A few months ago, our staff presented this question to our followers to see what steps they have taken to keep their child's room clean from wall smears and ceiling globs. It was very interesting to see the response which turns out to be a much more common issue that seems to never come up in discussions.
Responses included repainting walls, covering drywall with tiles or fiberglass, and using visual communication cards discouraging the behavior.
The behavior itself is negative behavior aimed at either getting attention or through anger, and needs to be addressed or it will persist. While a behavior modification is put into place, the issue will still exist on how to maintain a safe and clean space for the child.
Recently, I applied a Sherwin Williams paint from their industrial and commercial finishes, the Pro Industrialâ„¢ Pre-Catalyzed Water Based Epoxy. This paint is designed for special needs applications in commercial settings especially healthcare facilities, schools, clinics, and institutions. While there are a few different grades available, this particular paint is pre-mixed eliminating the need to add the catalyst to the paint.
We decided to put this paint to the test and recently painted my son's ceiling and walls to see if it can withstand the abuse. His behavior of choice? He likes to get reactions out of us by vomiting (particularly more colorful foods) and throwing the mess against the walls and ceiling to see what sticks. He also likes to do the same thing with peanut butter.
With the standard paint we had been using, the vomit would clean up but this repeated behavior would stain the ceiling and walls and if it happened overnight, it would be challenging to clean up the next morning. Over time, there would be stains everywhere. This can become unsanitary and require cleaning, sanding and new coat of paint.
I should point out that the paint is only available in a egg shell or semi-gloss finish which is not ideal for walls and ceiling in a bedroom. The Pro Industrial Pre-Catalyzed Water Based Epoxy was applied over a freshly primed ceiling and walls (to hide the stains). It applies with a roller like a standard latex paint and covers about 350 to 400 square feet per gallon. We applied about three coats to his room and used just one gallon.
The paint dries to the touch quickly and you can apply a second coat after an hour. A couple of days later, my son decided to put it to the test and threw a glob of noodles infused with soy sauce and chili sauce on the ceiling, producing a colorful mosaic.
So how did the paint stand up? The mess wiped right off with one stroke of a wet cloth. The paint completely cures after 30 days but so far it has performed beyond our expectations. While my son's negative behavior has calmed down substantially over the last year, I am also hoping that the inability his flinging to leave an "impression" on his room will further discourage this type of behavior.
We have a client who also uses the same product in their child's room who flings feces against the walls and ceiling and it also performs just as well during cleanup. So we have effective covered by ends of the issue.
Now with any great product, there is always a downside. The paint costs about $60 a gallon. While that is expensive if you consider the amount of time and costs you put into cleaning their room and purchasing new paint, it actually may costs less in the long term.
While eSpecial Needs does not sell this product, we thought this would be an effective product for our fans to research further to see if it may work for their own application. For more information on this product:
Sherwin Williams Pro Industrialâ„¢ Pre-Catalyzed Water Based Epoxy - http://www.sherwin-williams.com/home-builders/products/catalog/pro-industrial-precatalyzed-waterbased-epoxy/
Click here for more information, http://www.especialneeds.com/files/sherwinwilliams11301epoxy.pdf
