We are in ther process of purchasing a new organic latex mattress.
I have profound multiple chemical sensitivities and Fibromyalgia.
We will either be doing a DIY situation thru a website, or going with
Botanical Bliss 9" from Plushbeds. We wanted a Sleeptek from Canada
but the dealer has no return or exchange program.
Until such time that the new bed arrives, has anyone experience with the
polyethelene mattress wraps that supposedly contain not only the smell
but the noxious fumes from the flame retardants and chemicals of regular beds
I would like to sleep on my recently purchased expensive pillowtop queen
but the fumes literally made me black out/pass out. Then I removed it and am sleeping
on a coleman air mattress, but the PVC is making my eyes swell up.
These mattress wraps are used on baby mattresses and there is a site that
sells the adult versions. Do they really work???
Hi badbedgirl,
Have you read the tutorial post here? There may be other online options available to you as well (that are linked in the tutorial post) which use similar materials that may also be well worth considering as well as some local options that you can test in person. If you let me know of your city or zip code I’d be happy to let you know of any local options I’m aware of.
Post #2 here and the other posts and sources of information it links to may also be useful to help you answer the question of “how safe is safe enough for me?” which may have a very different answer for different people.
I don’t have any personal experience in using this but the first part of post #2 here along with posts #3 - #5 here has some information that may be helpful. While it will probably sleep much warmer because it would be completely impermeable … if you use clear polyethelyne that is 5 mils or more it should block all the VOC’s from escaping the mattress.
If they are food grade polyethylene or a similar non toxic material and are thick enough to completely prevent the escape of VOC’s then they would work yes … at the tradeoff of temperature regulation and “comfort”.
Phoenix
Hi BadBedGirl. As a former EI/MCS sufferer, my heart goes out to you! I know just how narrow your world can be where everything effects you to the point that you can hardly go in public and be around people. Now you are facing the daunting bed challenge. I think the safest direction for you to consider would be an organic cotton futon. I have briefly looked into them, just make sure that they have a wool covering in the construction so that they legally don’t have to use brominated flame retardants.
I am in the midst of my latex mattress trial period right now and let me tell you there is a chemical smell associated with this. I aired my pieces out for 2 weeks before I used them and it was OK once I got it in the cotton/wool zippered case. In my search to find the right layer combination Phoenix suggested that I remove the mattress pad and cover and sleep directly on the latex. Let me tell you, the smell is still very much there and if that’s what it comes down to, it’s going back.
Hi JannyGoats,
Just for clarity … Brominated fire retardants are not normally used in mattresses and most of them were phased out long ago. Most mattresses use either an inherent fire retardant fabric (viscose /silica is one example), boric acid which is added to fibers such as cotton, or wool to pass the fire regulations. I would also be aware that the presence of wool doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s the only material used to pass the fire regulations. The other issue with cotton futons is that they are quite firm and many people with fibromyalgia may find them too firm to sleep on.
I’m not sure which of your layers you are sensitive to (Talalay and Dunlop have a different smell … see post #2 here) but at least both of them are Oeko-Tex certified so you have some assurance that the smell isn’t harmful. The smell of latex will gradually dissipate over the course of a few weeks to levels that most people don’t notice although some people who are more sensitive may still smell it at very low levels, especially if they are close to it (such as if it’s uncovered) for much longer.
Phoenix
I too have Multiple Chemical Sensitivity and significant allergies which are what prompted me to buy a natural latex mattress. Within 3 days of delivery my eyelids were red and very swollen. There were no other symptoms. I have never had this reaction to anything before and do not have wool or latex allergies. Because the bed was Oeko-Tex and GOTS certified I believed the eye issue must have another source so I continued to sleep on the bed for several months. The smell from the latex persisted, but research told me it would eventually dissipate. I recently replaced the top layer with a different brand of 100% natural Dunlop and noticed that it had virtually no smell from day one while the old latex that has been in the mattress for 5 months can still be smelled from down the hallway when the cover is unzipped and the latex is exposed.
I’m wondering if any forum members have had this kind of eye reaction to 100% natural latex as badbedgirl is having to PVC in her air mattress?
Phoenix, could the difference in the odor have something to due with different manufacturing processes (i.e. molded versus continuous pour method) or different curing agents used by different manufacturers? Is it normal for latex to still have such a strong smell after 5 months? Would the food grade polyethylene cover be suitable for use on a latex mattress or would it cause the latex to degrade?
Thanks very much for the input!
Phoenix, thank you for the clarification on the phase out of PBDEs. It is my understanding that now they use boric acid and antimony. And you are so right about the futon being a poor recommendation for a person with MCS/EI. When you have that your world becomes very narrow/limited and you kind of get desperate in your quest to find a safe haven and often have to settle for less than ideal.
I was very interested to hear of your experience. Are you saying that both the 5 month old latex and the one you just got were both natural latex, just from different distributors? Could you please tell me where you got the most recent smell free one from?
Thanks much~
Janny
Hi Bluebutterfly,
Yes … each manufacturer uses a different compounding formula (that is proprietary) for their latex whether it is poured on a belt or in a mold and it’s certainly possible that someone could be sensitive or reacts to something that a particular manufacturer is using. Most manufacturers that have worked with latex for years will also tell you that some batches of latex (or any natural material) can have a stronger smell than others and this is particularly true with natural latex (or any natural material). It’s also true that some people are more sensitive than others to certain smells than others and the odor itself can be offensive or even cause some reaction even if it’s not harmful to most people. The smell of certain foods for example (cooked cabbage is an example for me) can make me sick to my stomach while for others it can be appetizing. I’ve seen examples where one person can react to a smell that others don’t even smell at all because for some reason they are more sensitive to that particular type of smell.
My own guideline is that personal experience “trumps” everything else no matter how may others may be sensitive to the same thing. Some people will still be able to smell the smell of the latex after many months even though it has diminished to levels that others won’t notice. If you put your nose close to a bare latex layer and inhale it can still have some smell remaining even a year or more after it was manufactured.
It would work for containing the smell IMO yes but it may not be comfortable for most people because the polyethylene would not be breathable and would tend to retain heat and would interfere with the feel and performance of the latex. I don’t think it would have any significant effect on the durability of the latex except perhaps to some small degree related to more rapid heat aging of the latex (this is an educated guess and not based on any testing I know of).
I should also mention for the sake of completeness that when latex is shipped on untreated wooden pallets that it would need to be fumigated before entering the country (because of the wood) and while this would be very rare and I can’t imagine a manufacturer that would do this, it’s possible that some latex shipments would be subject to fumigation (see post #2 here).
Phoenix
Hi JannyGoats,
Boric acid and antimony would only be present in some types of fire retardant systems. Boric acid wouldn’t be part of an inherent fire barrier (it’s added typically to cotton as part of the garnetting proces) and antimony is only used with some types of inherent fibers (such as modacrylic). If the fire barrier is a viscose/silica type then it wouldn’t contain antimony.
Like you … my heart goes out to those who have the very difficult challenge of dealing with MCS or other medical conditions that make their choices (in everything they do) much more difficult.
The fact that there is so much misinformation out there or that accurate information about so many of these issues is often so hard to come by is sad … and frustrating.
Phoenix
So the bulk of toxic elements in a mattress would be in the foam component? You are so right about there being so much conflicting/ mis-information out there, you get to the point you don’t know who or what to believe. That’s why your site has been a real God send, Phoenix.
JannyGoats,
Yes, both the 5 month old latex and the new latex are 100% natural Dunlop. The new latex is manufactured by Mountain Top Foam in Mountain Top, PA.
Best of luck to you in finding something that works. It is indeed a long, taxing road!
Was your initial mattress a DIY? I’m wondering why you got a new layer, and so happy you found something that works for you!!!
From their website: " Latex Formulations range from blends of 85% natural, 51% Natural, 20% Natural to 100% SBR Latex. Slow Release Latex and Gel Infused Latex cores available." Which did you get? I don’t even understand the Slow Release or Gel Infused parts.
Hi JannyGoats,
In general the most “risky” materials would be any memory foam or polyfoam (depending on the specific type because some of these are fairly “safe” by most people’s standards if they are made in North America or are CertiPur certified) which are made primarily from petrochemicals, the glues in the mattress (water based glues are generally safer than solvent based glues), or some types of fire retardant materials. Even though inherent fabrics are chemically bonded in their manufacturing and don’t have free chemicals added to them or that are used to coat them (which is often the case with furniture) … some types do have some ingredients that would be more “risky” such as formaldehyde or antimony and others that are added to the plastic dope before it is spun into a fiber. Many inherent fabrics are actually blends of different types of material to form the char, to keep the char together so the fire can’t penetrate into the fuel underneath, and often other fibers that are used to make the fire barrier more “comfortable” and lofted. There are even some inherent fire barriers that are Oeko-Tex 100 certified such as here.
Mattress manufacturers don’t generally use fire retardant foams (unlike furniture manufacturers that often use polyfoam that has added fire retardant chemicals to the foam) and rely mostly on barrier methods that surround the fuel inside the mattress (such as the foams) to pass the fire regulations.
I wish the information about all the different types of fire barriers that are in use and their exact composition was easier to obtain but the specifics of the materials that most manufacturers use are mostly proprietary and “secret”. After probably hundreds of hours of reading and research I still don’t have anywhere near all the information or knowledge I would want.
With a doctors or health professional’s prescription a manufacturer can make a mattress for a customer that doesn’t use a fire barrier at all and there is an added bonus that there is no tax on the mattress.
In general terms … I would be most “comfortable” in terms of safety with fire barriers that use needle punched or densified wool or with viscose/silica fire barriers (sometimes blended with polyester to create loft). Aramid or Para Aramid fibers (such as Nomex or Kevlar) would also be safe IMO but they are more costly and have a stiffer “feel”. Kevlar thread is used in most fire barriers so the flames can’t go through the needle holes. There is a little more about fire barriers in post #2 here. IMO … the “safest” or perhaps “least harmful” of the chemicals is Boric Acid.
Phoenix
JannyGoats,
My initial mattress was not a DIY. The top layer of it was too firm for me so I decided to try the zoned latex by Mountain Top Foam. A Mattress Underground member, Spindle Mattress, sells complete mattresses as well as a 3" topper made with either synthetic or 100% natural Mountain Top Foam. I’m not aware of why Mountain Top doesn’t list 100% natural as an option, but I did contact them with questions and they responded quickly as did Spindle Mattress. Also, Spindle will send out samples of the foam to test for sensitivity.
Hope this helps!
Bluebutterfly