Recent comments in /f/BuyItForLife

Mountain_Man_88 t1_iza397q wrote

Reply to comment by chrstphrbmlr in Not the best picture but I hope you all enjoy my 1955 Belgian army trench coat, it's warm, waterproof and really durable. bought it for only €20 too! by zoefkris

True dusters are pretty rare actually. A duster is a lightweight coat intended to be worn over clothing in dusty area to keep your clothes clean. Many coats advertised as dusters today would be either "slickers" or rain coats which are waterproof, or trenchcoats and great coats, which are designed to be warm. Dusters are neither waterproof nor warm.

17

regaphysics t1_iz9tojd wrote

Reply to comment by javaavril in BIFL Request: Side sleeper pillows that will last at least 5 years by [deleted]

>You're not doing something correctly if you're only getting five years on a down fold compression test. It should be longer.

(1) Have any evidence to support that? Using what testing procedures? How many compressions? With how much loss in resilience?

​

>If you don't think people have to worry about offgassing you are the same sort of person who said leaded gas and paint are fine. You don't know. It's okay to not know things. Also it's okay for me to only put organic products next to my families breathing holes, as people have done for thousands of years, and ignore petroleum byproduct foams that have existed for, like, a minute.

(2) Some chemicals are of concern, especially during and immediately after manufacture. Luckily these products have not been around a minute, and the problematic ones are tested and certified to not be used. And generally, offgassing is overwhelmingly in the first days to weeks of a products lifetime. Usually that is before it is even sold. I worked in automotive safety where vehicle foams sit in the hottest harshest environments for hours and hours. They are required to be tested for offgassing in accelerated aging tests and when they come out of the factory. They are stable after a few weeks.

​

>You also said that you are sleeping on goosedown. If you believe in foam so much, why aren't you sleeping on it?

I've had both. Currently I sleep on a Co-op shredded memory foam pillow, which is greengaurd gold certified. I don't worry about it at all. Ultimately, I wouldn't buy another down pillow because ultimately - even if I wanted a natural product - it is just about the worst option. Not only does it sleep hot and provide little support - it also lasts less long than other options. Latex would be my first choice, then buckwheat / millet, then an easily replaceable fiber like Kapok or wool. Down is right down at the bottom - it simply is not a good pillow material.

​

>To end, why do you think chemicals are on any cotton in my home?

Funny you would say this: VOCs are more easily removed than the things they use on cotton. Studies on pesticides show that they are not all removed by washing. Furthermore, the chemical finishes manufacturers put on many fibers (to make them shine, make them soft, make them wrinkle less, etc etc) are specifically designed not to wash out.

Don't fool yourself - there is nothing safe about uncertified cotton. You are 100% reliant on certifications to avoid those chemicals. And they are more persistent than the VOCs you'd find in foams.

Edit: I bring up the other things because you seem not to appreciate how ubiquitous they are. Industrial solvents and petrochemicals are in your house. They are in your room - even if they were simply there when the house was built (or if you live in an apartment - they are constantly blown in from the rest of the building). You are not avoiding them just mitigating them - which is fine. But the notion that you avoid petro (and industrial) chemicals is just not accurate at all. If you look at blood testing - its in us all in relatively similar (elevated) amounts.

1