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I am new to the list and am in the process of researching non-toxic beds. I have a lot of questions. I recently learned about how ubiquitous PBDEs are, and about their increased use in mattresses since the increased flammability regulations went into effect a few years ago. I've had a TempurPedic mattress for the past ten years and have loved it, but it is now kind of soft. I realize now that I've been sleeping on a heap of unhealthy chemicals for a long time. I want to purchase a King mattress that has as few potentially dangerous chemicals as possible. I've wondered about Strobel beds, as they have the option of having a doctor's prescription for a flame-retardant-free bed. I've also looked at the Essentia website, and it looks like they have a "natural" latex memory foam bed (I've read on this list some questions about how natural it is, though). Any thoughts about Essentia or Strobel? What latex mattress companies are trustworthy in their claims not to use dangerous flame-retardant (or other) chemicals? Is Savvy Rest genuinely clean and green? I know that many companies that make "green" mattresses claim that their use of wool allows them to meet inflammability requirements, but the Strobel website insists that wool is flammable, and that these companies must be using other hidden materials to pass the blow torch test. I am willing to make an investment in a mattress that will not damage my and my family's health and one that will be comfortable and durable for a long time. I am 5'7" and 125 pounds. I sleep a lot on my side, but also some on my back and stomach. I've had sporadic minor hip, lower back, and neck pain. Thanks for any advice! |
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Budgy, Thanks so much for replying to my post. I am glad to hear that there are many good options out there for a cleaner, healthier bed. Jasmine mentioned that when she pressed some of the companies that make mattresses that purportedly meet the flammability requirements through wool, some of them admitted to using chemicals such as teflon, boric acid, and silica. I know that companies aren't required to disclose the composition of their products due to protection of trade secrets. So I worry that their claims may not be totally honest. How trustworthy do you think the chemical flame retardant-free claims of the companies you mentioned are? Can you particularly recommend one or two that you think are on the high road and make a comfortable, durable product as well? Thanks for the clarification about the CFR 1633 regulations regarding rate of heat release. I thought it required a blow torch test, but that's something I heard second hand. Thanks, too, for the additional information about how wool burns. That is interesting and useful to me. Given what you shared about the wool fire being self-extinguishing, Strobel does seem to use that picture of wool burning a bit manipulatively. I appreciate your expertise and would value any further guidance you could offer. Thanks, Eliza
budgy wrote: There are many certified organic mattress makers that do not use chemical flame retardants....wool is used as the barrier....if someone was allergic to the wool some companies will allow you to buy the bed without wool with a doctors note.
Royal Pedic, Green Sleep, Natura, I believe Savvy Rest, Organic Pedic, and many others do not use these chemicals in their organic mattresses. Strobel seems to be marketing hardcore just as much as the S brands....of course wool burns.....but it has a higher burning point than formaldehyde which is the FR of choice in most foams and polyester fibres. The CFR 1633 regulations that have everyone in an upheaval are simply stating that to pass the fire test that there is a certain rate of heat release...not that a mattress literally be fireproofed. Also the wool they lit on fire in their test is yarn being burned from the bottom...the flame test is applied to the tops of the mattress....so long as most of the heat is being released over the wool it is actually a self extinguishing fire....you can test it yourself...try to burn that same wool yarn from the top like a candle wick...it will burn for a few seconds and then go out, hence lower heat release. |
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The fire laws are the same for organic or regular mattresses. Please correct me if i am wrong, but I think organic only means that cotton, for instance, is grown organically. Or wool is raised organically. It doesn't mean that a bed made with these materials is free of fire retardants. Organic cotton batting used in a mattress is great and is an improvement over regular cotton, as it should not contain pesticide residues. But cotton, whether organic or not, burns. So the mattress still would have to have undergone some kind of other fiber flame retardant or chemical flame retardant treatment to meet regulations. Manufacturers can be fined otherwise. It is my impression that the only way to get a mattress without fr's is with a prescription, but even then, one has to make sure that if one wants a fr free bed, that the fr's are eliminated throughout the mattress, not just on the surface. It is all quite exhausting to figure all this out........I can only encourage anyone concerned about their mattress to ask in-depth questions of the manufacturer you are considering buying from and assess their answers. I haven't been able to come to any absolute conclusions. The more i have researched, the more confusing it becomes. There are so many conficting and contradictory answers given to the same questions. Also, businesses are not required to disclose much of this information, so they don't. Wool burns, and is flame retardant, but not flame resistant. I asked someone at the agency that oversees 16 1633 fr law what amount/densification of wool would naturally meet the fr laws, but they would not give a specific answer. I had been hoping to get an absolute formula with which I could make an informed purchase. Lightning asked what I am leaning toward now and I am still trying to figure that out. I am trying to weight toxicity with comfort and am still undecided. Anything that is a mattress in this country has to meet fr code, but toppers, blankets, etc do not. I am considering piling up some toppers and sleeping on that at this point! Sad that it has come to that! :-( When I bought a bed 20 years ago, it took me 5 minutes, $350, and it was a wonderful bed for 20 years. Those were the good old days! This message was modified Jul 22, 2010 by jasmine
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If a cotton cover or the wool batting that is used is certified organic this requires testing. Some companies like Eco Institut actually test the entire mattress for chemical content and will list specific amounts of VOC's detected if any at all. One thing to keep in mind is that there is no such thing as organic foam as foaming agents always have to be added. However in a actual organic mattress by definition these covers and the fibre layers underneath cannot be treated with anything else. There was one company out of the pack that admitted to using silica content...I cannot remember their name unfortunately however most companies would be happy to provide a sample of their wool for self inspection...the presence of silica would be immediately detectable by hand. There are no Organic mattresses I know of that actually use cotton batting, just cotton covers with usually pure wool underneath. One of the companies I listed being Natura for instance has a very large range of product....only the Organic line of beds is free of chemical flame retardants...in the non-organic series they contain a small layer of cotton batting which is treated with boric acid for additional fire retardant properties. Out of the ones I mentioned I only have experience with a couple...however I would say Green Sleep is overall the top of the list for quality and purity....bit pricey though. In reality they are all good and the best thing to do is try out what you can find within close proximity to yourself. This message was modified Jul 22, 2010 by budgy
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budgy appreciate your expertise on this. in reading the text of 16 1633, there is no mention that organic mattresses are exempt from the fire laws. therefore, they must be using something to be in compliance. the only exemption under the law is for a purchaser to obtain a dr's prescription for a mattress free of fr's and toxic chemicals. if wool alone was enough to pass, that would be fantastic and i want to believe that..... This message was modified Jul 22, 2010 by jasmine
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If you want a completely organic mattress, you might also check out the OrganicPedic mattress made by OMI. I looked at these at Custom Comfort Mattress when I was shopping for my latex mattress. The salesman there described to me some of their organic practices, which include things like, employees can't wear any fragrance or personal products to the facility, can't wear shoes with leather, etc., and says the factory floor is spotless enough to eat off of. He said they were the most stringent organic mattress manufacturer in the US. I can't verify that statement, I'm just offering some information about a possible choice. The website also has some nice links you might want to check out. I tried the beds, and they were nice, but all that organic precision comes at a steep price. I got mine at Flobeds and it's not organic, simply because my latex is blended talalay. But I'm pretty sure the cover is organic cotton and wool. This message was modified Jul 22, 2010 by KimberlyH
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jasmine wrote: budgy appreciate your expertise on this. in reading the text of 16 1633, there is no mention that organic mattresses are exempt from the fire laws. therefore, they must be using something to be in compliance. the only exemption under the law is for a purchaser to obtain a dr's prescription for a mattress free of fr's and toxic chemicals. if wool alone was enough to pass, that would be fantastic and i want to believe that..... |
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budgy, that still begs the question as to why the sellers of some of the cotton wool covers for latex slabs, for example, feel the need to add silica or other substances, and some don't. all other things being equal...the latex is the same type, thickness, etc. yet some of the sellers admit that their covers have fire retardant additives and some sellers say they don't. but for what appears to be a very similar product, if one had to add fr to be 1633 compliant, why not the other? this is where i am stumped. This message was modified Jul 23, 2010 by jasmine
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| there is only one company I have seen/heard of that is using some silica content inside their wool. this may or may not be for compliance...it could be poor quality wool...it could be that they do not use enough wool to meet the requirement and it was a lot cheaper to add a small amount of silica rather than increase the amount of wool. |
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We just got the OrganicPedic Lago and are pretty happy so far (week 2). I believe that OMI uses some silica in its organic wool as a flame retardant. I've heard that OMI has an online shop that is cheaper and comes with a 90-day comfort guarantee that lets you swap out layers if you're not comfy. I wish we'd gone that route as we would like a little more softness on the top of our mattress, but we're investigating a topper. When I can remember what their online shop is called... (dang brain) I will post it...
(Googled and still can't remember... I think I learned about it on this forum, so perhaps someone else can remember...) Good luck! JB Edited to add: The silica doesn't bother us--it's a natural substance. But we mostly bought the mattress b/c it was made in the USA of materials made in the USA, rather than b/c of allergy/toxin concerns. This message was modified Jul 24, 2010 by topperquest
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JB,
Are you sure that the "Lago" model contains silica? This site: www.greencradle.com/organic-mattress-furniture-los-angeles-p/omi-organic-lago-mattress.htm, if you scroll down the page, states that there is NO silica in this mattress. Philip This message was modified Jul 24, 2010 by Philip
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