Organization and Basis of Presentation	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2019
Organization Consolidation And Presentation Of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Organization and Basis of Presentation	Note 1—Organization and basis of presentation: Organization— We are majority owned by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Contran Corporation (“Contran”), which owns approximately 92% of our outstanding common stock at September 30, 2019. A majority of Contran’s outstanding voting stock is held directly by Lisa K. Simmons and Serena Simmons Connelly and various family trusts established for the benefit of Ms. Simmons and Ms. Connelly and their children and for which Ms. Simmons or Ms. Connelly, as applicable, serves as trustee. In addition, each of Ms. Simmons and Ms. Connelly serves as co-chair of the Contran board of directors. The remainder of Contran’s outstanding voting stock is held by another trust (the “Family Trust”), which was established for the benefit of Ms. Simmons and Ms. Connelly and their children and for which a third-party financial institution serves as trustee. Consequently, at September 30, 2019, Ms. Simmons, Ms. Connelly and the Family Trust may be deemed to control Contran, and therefore may be deemed to indirectly control the wholly-owned subsidiary of Contran and us. Basis of Presentation— Consolidated in this Quarterly Report are the results of our majority-owned and wholly-owned subsidiaries, including NL Industries, Inc., Kronos Worldwide, Inc., CompX International Inc., Tremont LLC, Basic Management, Inc. (“BMI”) and The LandWell Company (“LandWell”). Kronos (NYSE: KRO), NL (NYSE: NL), and CompX (NYSE American: CIX) each file periodic reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). In January 2018, we sold Waste Control Specialists LLC (“WCS”). See Note 3. The unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contained in this Quarterly Report have been prepared on the same basis as the audited Consolidated Financial Statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018 that we filed with the SEC on March 11, 2019 (the “2018 Annual Report”). In our opinion, we have made all necessary adjustments (which include only normal recurring adjustments, other than the gain on the sale of WCS recognized in the first quarter of 2018 as discussed in Note 3), in order to state fairly, in all material respects, our consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows as of the dates and for the periods presented. We have condensed the Consolidated Balance Sheet at December 31, 2018 contained in this Quarterly Report as compared to our audited Consolidated Financial Statements at that date, and we have omitted certain information and footnote disclosures (including those related to the Consolidated Balance Sheet at December 31, 2018) normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). Our results of operations for the interim periods ended September 30, 2019 may not be indicative of our operating results for the full year. The Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contained in this Quarterly Report should be read in conjunction with our 2018 Consolidated Financial Statements contained in our 2018 Annual Report. Unless otherwise indicated, references in this report to “we,” “us” or “our” refer to Valhi, Inc. and its subsidiaries (NYSE: VHI), taken as a whole.

Organization and Basis of Presentation

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2019

Organization Consolidation And Presentation Of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Note 1—Organization and basis of presentation:

Organization— We are majority owned by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Contran Corporation (“Contran”), which owns approximately 92% of our outstanding common stock at September 30, 2019. A majority of Contran’s outstanding voting stock is held directly by Lisa K. Simmons and Serena Simmons Connelly and various family trusts established for the benefit of Ms. Simmons and Ms. Connelly and their children and for which Ms. Simmons or Ms. Connelly, as applicable, serves as trustee. In addition, each of Ms. Simmons and Ms. Connelly serves as co-chair of the Contran board of directors. The remainder of Contran’s outstanding voting stock is held by another trust (the “Family Trust”), which was established for the benefit of Ms. Simmons and Ms. Connelly and their children and for which a third-party financial institution serves as trustee. Consequently, at September 30, 2019, Ms. Simmons, Ms. Connelly and the Family Trust may be deemed to control Contran, and therefore may be deemed to indirectly control the wholly-owned subsidiary of Contran and us.

Basis of Presentation— Consolidated in this Quarterly Report are the results of our majority-owned and wholly-owned subsidiaries, including NL Industries, Inc., Kronos Worldwide, Inc., CompX International Inc., Tremont LLC, Basic Management, Inc. (“BMI”) and The LandWell Company (“LandWell”). Kronos (NYSE: KRO), NL (NYSE: NL), and CompX (NYSE American: CIX) each file periodic reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). In January 2018, we sold Waste Control Specialists LLC (“WCS”). See Note 3.

The unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contained in this Quarterly Report have been prepared on the same basis as the audited Consolidated Financial Statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018 that we filed with the SEC on March 11, 2019 (the “2018 Annual Report”). In our opinion, we have made all necessary adjustments (which include only normal recurring adjustments, other than the gain on the sale of WCS recognized in the first quarter of 2018 as discussed in Note 3), in order to state fairly, in all material respects, our consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows as of the dates and for the periods presented. We have condensed the Consolidated Balance Sheet at December 31, 2018 contained in this Quarterly Report as compared to our audited Consolidated Financial Statements at that date, and we have omitted certain information and footnote disclosures (including those related to the Consolidated Balance Sheet at December 31, 2018) normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). Our results of operations for the interim periods ended September 30, 2019 may not be indicative of our operating results for the full year. The Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contained in this Quarterly Report should be read in conjunction with our 2018 Consolidated Financial Statements contained in our 2018 Annual Report.

Unless otherwise indicated, references in this report to “we,” “us” or “our” refer to Valhi, Inc. and its subsidiaries (NYSE: VHI), taken as a whole.