Organic/green mattress: thoughts??

[Dollarsandcents]

Talk to me about organic/green mattresses. Are they all hype regarding health? How about the environmental impact vs conventional mattresses? In general, they seem more expensive but not outrageous when compare to tempurpedic or other big brand names.

I can't seem to find any real science supporting the claims as most information is from blogs, articles or the manufacturers.

[matchewed]

What does that even mean?

[Dollarsandcents]

Meaning a mattress made from organic cotton, wool, and/or natural latex.

[matchewed]

What claims are being made about them?

[Dollarsandcents]

Here are some C&P claims:

Conventional - standard bedding or mattresses can be laden with polyurethane foam, toxic flame retardants and water- or stain-resistant chemicals

Various petrochemicals. Indeed, MOST of what makes up a conventional mattress are petroleum-based.
Plastics or vinyls.
Flame retardant chemicals (although there is good news on this front–more on that in a minute).
This chemical cocktail releases VOCs (volatile organic compounds), which are linked to a host of health problems, from respiratory irritation to cancer, and are particularly potent if you purchase a brand new mattress.

Basically, the claim is that organic mattresses are better for the environment because they don't use materials produced with petrochemicals and better for your health because there are no VOCs or toxic off gassing.

[Daley]

I understand buckwheat hull mattresses can be quite comfortable, relatively frugal to assemble, and reasonably durable long term. Been toying with the idea as a future replacement to our current memory foam mattress once it needs to be retired. Of course, the setup needs a sort of old school waterbed frame to properly hold it all, so there'll be the added expense of making/finding "new" furniture.

[matchewed]

Even "organic" products require processing. The processing of cotton, wool, and natural latex are going to take energy and produce waste. So better for the environment would have to be weighed on a waste to waste scale not just on a "is it organic?"

Example: Wool Processing Waste - https://archive.org/stream/woolprocessingin026351mbp/woolprocessingin026351mbp_djvu.txt

As for the health sides you could in theory just literally air out your non-organic mattress out on a deck or porch for a day and voila the VOC's are mostly gone.

In other words I'd take the claims with a grain of salt and work on what you can control. If you buy any mattress, organic or not, ensure that you dispose of it properly and use it as long as you comfortably can. Unless you feel like diving into a bunch of processing papers in order to identify truly what's more or less "bad" wherein the true answer is they both are probably fairly "bad".

I.P.'s recommendation is probably the closer to less "bad".

[Dollarsandcents]

I.P., where have you found affordable buckwheat hulls? I've been looking for some to make floor pillows for my daughter and they seem expensive, at least compared to polyester filling.

[Daley]

I.P., where have you found affordable buckwheat hulls? I've been looking for some to make floor pillows for my daughter and they seem expensive, at least compared to polyester filling.

Look locally, start by asking at places like health food stores who their suppliers are. If you're in the Midwest US, you should be able to find something under $2/lb., but you'll need to deal with sifting out some dust first from what I understand.

I can't remember who, but someone else on these forums had mentioned Open Your Eyes Bedding at one point, and it's where my own research on the subject started...

[MayDay]

I believe my mother has a buckwheat hull pillow.  It is nice. 

I like a futon-type mattress for comfort, so I wouldn't mind a cotton or wool mattress for that reason.  We have also looked at the cheaper Costco memory foam mattresses as an option.  If I knew for sure that an cotton or wool one would last 20+ years, I would spend the money.  Our std. coil mattress doesn't feel as great after 10 yeas, and I can't imagine memory foam lasts 20 years either. 

Its just ahrd to imagine shelling out so much without knowing they will last.

[SeanMC]

I have a latex mattress, and I love it. I ordered it online.

I can't tell you if the materials about the health benefits are accurate. I was interested for some of the reasons given (sustainable, more resistant to allergens/mites, durable). I did a fair amount of reading beforehand, and some aspects seem more verifiable or likely to be true than others. There is also some labeling issues of what can be called natural vs. synthetic, where the latex is sourced from, etc. So it took some time to sort through the options and make sure I was buying what I thought I was.

I can say that it is very comfortable, and I get a great night sleep. It also does pretty well in isolating movement from other people or pets, which I appreciate.

Beyond that - I like that it doesn't need a box spring and can be placed directly on the floor or platform. I like that I bought 'layers' that allowed me to adjust firmness and make it easier to move the whole thing when need.

Be aware that it IS heavy. My biggest complaint is that I've had to move my mattress & will have to move it again (relocation). I don't typically see people selling these mattresses used (people who have them seem to like them and keep them!), and they are somewhat pricey (though durable). So moving now always includes the mattress, which isn't really the most frugal way to be relocating.

[iluvzbeach]

We recently purchased a relaxed firm mattress online by Loom and Leaf and it is, by far, the most comfortable mattress we have ever slept on. Better even than the really cushy ones at some hotels. It's made with organic cotton and, while we didn't buy it specifically for that reason, it is so nice to have something new without noxious odors. Check out their website for more info (and, no, I do not work for them; just a very satisfied customer.)