Never painted mine, Corey.

But wait - a cursory search reveals the main hazards of cinder blocks  
are mold, and lifting heavy blocks. I don't find a lye hazard... Hope  
you are passing on an urban myth! Got references? (offlist if  
desired). I have never heard of this. Lye is in soap, after all, and  
my grandma didn't die from it!

There are some gruesome uses of it listed here <http:// 
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_hydroxide> but it doesn't seem to be an  
air pollutant...

<L>

On Mar 16, 2010, at 4:27 PM, Corey Bailey wrote:

> Now I find out that the lye used to make the darn things can become  
> airborne and
>  is a health hazard if all of the surfaces aren't painted.
>
> How many actually painted your cinder blocks?