http://www.naturaworld.com/products/washable-wool-mattress-topper/
i wonder what exactly makes this one “washable” espically since they also have one that’s not washable.
is it just marketing ? construction technique ( for example less wool with more stitching to hold it in place ) or did they treat the wool somehow, by pre-shrinking it or otherwise ?
Not sure but it might be a treated wool. I’m a knitter and there is a wool yarn that is called super wash. You CAN wash and dry it. I could go into a long explanation of why you can’t wash wool with out it felting, suffice it to say the treatment makes the wool fibers behave in a way that it won’t felt/shrink
Natura used to have a page on the site explaining the different types of wool they used but its been removed since their change of ownership.
Basically the washable wools are descaled using various processes so that they are less itchy and the scales don’t hook on each other in the washing process and shrink or felt the fiber.
Phoenix
intresting !
it seems like in the process of this descaling they make the wool toxic, cover it with plastic and then on top of it all it probably loses a good deal of its resilience as batting due to the fibers’ ability to slide around freely.
sort of makes you wonder - why even bother when you can just use cotton ?
i guess the wool still has the advantage of absorbing moisture - unless that plastic coating destroyed that ability too ?
Hi g1981c,
I think it may be helpful if you were to take more “nuanced” positions and think in terms of the pros and cons and the tradeoffs involved in each choice of material or component rather than looking for more “black and white” or “best and worst” answers that don’t lead to meaningful answers.
Wool and cotton (and the many variations of each) are different … and one is not better than another. They each have strengths and weaknesses depending on the application you are considering using them for and the combination of materials they are used with.
Wool is a much more resilient fiber (horsehair is even more so) than cotton and anyone that has slept on a cotton futon for a number of years will know how firm it can get over time because the cotton is not as resilient and packs down much more than wool. Wool is also more temperature and moisture regulating than cotton but cotton wicks better than wool and feels better against the skin for most people (again depending on the specifics of each). These different properties can be combined to take advantage of the benefits of both.
In other words … these different properties lead to different strengths and weaknesses depending on the feel, performance, and goals of the product or design you are looking for.
If you read the article you will also have read that there are also other ways to descale wool and even wool that is not descaled can also often be washed carefully once in a while with care and using the correct instructions if necessary.
Simple more “absolute” answers that only look for “good and bad” or “absolute answers” don’t usually lead to the kind of meaningful knowledge that can be effectively used in “real life” in the design, application, and construction of any product or material.
Phoenix
EDIT - the audience was not amused at my joke 
Your post is bordering on the edge (and has probably crossed it) of a personal attack and I have to warn you that these types of posts won’t be tolerated here. There is no humor, value, or relevance in posting these types of links.
I’ll leave it up just to show its ignorance (now removed in the quote as well as the original post) but if you go further in this direction and continue to break the rules of this forum then you will be banned.
Clear?
Phoenix
i’m sorry you took it the wrong way Phoenix - i wasn’t attacking you - maybe poking a little fun - but i certainly didn’t want to offend you. if you were offended i apologize.
you can delete it if you want - i thought you would like it.
Not close to being funny ON ANY LEVEL! Were you trying to imply that having a nuanced view of wool vs. cotton was equivalent to looking for the good and bad in Hitler? I don’t get your sense of humor. As for wool vs. cotton, check my post on the downside of non-organic cotton. I appreciate your letting us know the downside of some types of treated wool and will read the whole article you linked to. Lew
Hi g1981c,
I would completely agree with this.
It’s not a matter of “being offended” (I have learned over time not to personalize these things) … but a matter of the content of your link “being offensive” (not just to me) and not relevant to the discussion. I would hope that members here would use better judgement than to post these types of links … under the guise of humor or anything else.
It’s also not a matter of what I want. I am more interested in seeing what you choose to do.
You aren’t able to delete a post once a reply has been posted but you are able to edit it and remove the offensive links out of it. Should you choose to do so I will do the same with my quote.
Phoenix
it’s edited out.
i did weigh it - it was 5 pounds IN THE PACKAGE. i also weighed my two latex toppers - the 19 ILD without packaging is 22 lbs and 36 ILD in the vacuum plastic wrap is 28 pounds. now remember all these three pieces are supposed to be the same exact 2 x 60 x 80 dimension …
and my 3" thick 50 ILD HD PU foam was 25 pounds shipping weight as per UPS ( i did not weigh it ).
so we have 28 LBS, 25 LBS, 22 LBS … 5 LBS !
and if you don’t believe that i’m having this issue you can always call foamonline and they will tell you that what i’m saying here is what i told them - just tell them it’s a guy from brooklyn that has been tormenting you for the past 2 weeks about his firm HR foam order.
compared to the service i get from Amazon this is not even in the same universe. one time i ordered a book from Amazon and 2 day after its scheduled delivery date it was not delivered - so i called Amazon and they overnight shipped me a second one for free - i ended up with two book copies arriving on pretty much the same day. now that’s service !
the other time on Amazon i ordered a 60" Samsung LED TV and after trying it for a few days i decided i liked the picture on my Vizio better, so i called Amazon and said take it back - they came to my house and took it and i didn’t pay a dime for return shipping, and the box was about 70 inches long ! now that’s service !
but these people - they just grab my money and they don’t seem to particularly care about satisfying me at all - at no point did i feel as if they cared about anything at all except holding on to my money.
to their credit they did say they will refund if they determine they shipped me a completely wrong foam - but come on ! they could have determined this in 30 seconds - instead they said we will look into it monday … on Amazon i can call at 3AM and say i want a refund and in 5 minutes i will have it even if it wasn’t Amazon’s fault.
look i never said they were crooks - all i ever said is that it is a terribly run business - so bad that i decided to order inferior foam ( HD grade versus HR grade ) from somebody else simply so i would never have to deal with them again - but now despite my best efforts i am dragged into dealing with them anyway !
i think other people have the right to know about my experience, and if somebody else had a positive experience they can share it too, and the people can decide who they want to believe.
i write reviews on Amazon all the time. one time i wrote an honest review and the next day i was contacted by seller and they offered me a refund just for removing my review ( they previously didn’t want to take the product back ). and guess what, i was never banned from Amazon, i was never warned, and i am still a valued customer and i buy just about everything there because their service never let me down.
on the other hand with these foamonline people if you ban me i will just make a youtube video about my experience with them - and it will get more views than than my posts here. i have done 3 reviews on my youtube so far and they averaged 3,000 views each. my posts here get about 20 - 30 views.
and you can be sure when i do the video it’s not going to be polite like my posts here - it’s going to be Fs and MFs every other word and it will have a lot more detail that i spared here in order not to sound bitter or biased and will have so much color it will make your head spin.
i’m not threatening anybody - i’m just saying my steam has to go somewhere - if you block me here it will go on YouTube
in fact why don’t i go ahead and start filming the video now while i still have this 5 pound package - then i can include the footage in my video and nobody will be able to doubt for a second that what i am saying is true. i have their packing slip and shipping label and they don’t match each other and i can get both on video and i can weigh the package on video too.