Environmental mattress issues?

Personally, I am not entirely convinced global warming is man made, however I do believe that it’s important to make a sincere effort to preserve the Earth and it’s atmosphere. For as many years as I can count the mattress industry which supports my lively hood has not respected or supported the planet I live on that sustains my life.

I find it interesting how everyone points fingers including myself, when we are all to blame. Some believe being Eco friendly makes a difference while others do not. In the retail mattress industry I have had this question asked of me many times and people often giggle at the mention of an Eco friendly or organic mattress.

If history teaches anything is that we can learn a lot from past civilizations that knew the repercussions of being wasteful and for that very reason made use anything and everything. Those lessons are just as important today and somehow we have forgotten that in our throwaway society. I’m not talking about “go green” t-shirts you can by at a department stores, but rather real changes that can affect our personal health and our environments health.

Doug’s 5 reasons an environmentally responsible mattress is important

1. When my father started his water bed business I can remember coming home and my mom telling us that we smelled like a swimming pool store. Today I cringe at the thought of my exposure to the chemicals that was endured throughout those years of selling vinyl waterbed mattresses. I am pretty convinced that those chemicals from off gassing sometimes called VOC’s had not only permeated my clothing but my body.
2. As of July 2007 most people haven’t a clue that the way mattresses are being built was changed so radically. Today we all need to be very cautious to possible exposure to harmful PBDE’s in order. A mandated law that was designed to save the few people that were injuring or killing them selves by smoking in bed yet know we all live with a possible bigger risk.
3. The average mattress is 12 inches thick or more, half of which is foam that is chemically high in content and petroleum based. Foam the primary ingredient to build a makes us the average mattress buyer a part of the problem yet again by stripping the oil of earth of another luxury. Yet many of us haven’t a clue of how foam it is built or where it comes from.
4. The industry doesn’t want a mattress to last forever and builds mattresses for the consumer that don’t last but a few years for profits which could be made in other ways. The average consumer throws a mattress away with no real understanding of the environmental impact. They are typically unaware that 1 mattress set takes up to 25 cubic feet of landfill space and that in fact can take hundreds of years to break down.
5. Most of us are unaware that mattresses don’t compost well while even more is not aware that nation wide only a handful of mattress recycling programs exists.  This is because it is a very labor-intensive process to tear apart a mattress just like it is to build one.

Today Mattresses can be built with:

• Replaceable parts
• Biodegradable and sustainable materials
• Recycled materials
• Without or with minimal chemicals
• Eco friendly but human friendly too

Are Eco friendly mattresses important?

It may not seem essential to the average person and some people will go so far as to say why make changes in the way mattresses are made, it will only make them more expensive and won’t make a difference.

The idea that it is to late to change or make a new start is not a ridiculous one. For example people stop smoking, eat healthier; they even start exercising all in the name of a better healthier lifestyle because they know it is better than the alternative.

I’ll just say this, while everyone is fighting over green house gases, global warming or cooling what ever the heck it is this decade, there are real controllable health and environmental issues each of us can control in our little corner of this world. This decision affects every one of us, 1/3 of our life, and is every bit as important if not more than diet and exercise. What is it? The mattress you choose to sleep on.

I always respect people’s opinions and even opposition to green mattresses as long as they have based their decision on educational facts not just some predetermined biased against anything and everything green.

A sustainable mattress industry can make a difference.

· Mattresses can be made from all natural latex rubber.
· It’s sustainable, biodegradable, very durable, and most importantly comfortable.

· Latex rubber can be virtually chemical free.

· As it stands polyurethane foams are the prominent building component of mattresses. It is not durable, petroleum based, and loaded with potentially harmful chemicals.

· Mattress covers and padding can be made using cotton / organic cotton very sustainable and virtually chemical free.

· The fact is today most mattresses are filled with polyester fibers and covers are synthetic blends.

· Beds can be made with zippers so that parts and pieces can be replaced when worn. This will free up space from entire mattresses that are disposed of because of a bad cover or a bad layer of padding. Building a mattress in such a way also allows for customization or the mattresses’ feel.

· Today’s mattresses are not customizable and worse yet are basically considered throw aways and can take up nearly 25 cubic feet of landfill space. They don’t compost well because they are not made from biodegradable materials.

· Today’s beds can be made with natural fire retardants like wool / organic wool

· Mattresses built after July 1, 2007 must meet new federal fire standards for safety. The ironic thing is that they loaded the mattresses with potentially harmful chemicals and some are know to even include carcinogens. To get one without requires a doctor’s prescription stating chemical sensitivity issues.

· Foundations can be built using untreated lumber and fast growing hardwoods.

Most people are going through life without a clue as to what is happening to many of the things we buy everyday. This one in my opinion is worth educating yourself on. You can make a difference in your personal health and the health of the planet we all share. So my answer to the original question, yes through informational blogs like this one Mattress Manufacturers Going Green will work and as people learn the facts and the truths, they will also learn the alternatives ways to buy beds and that a healthy green Eco friendly mattress and mattress industry can one day be the norm.

Can I give you a catalog or pamphlet to take with you?

I wish I had a dime for every time someone asked us for a brochure concerning one of mattresses and or bedroom furniture pieces or sets we sell. Times are changing and handing out brochures on such items are quickly becoming a thing of the past. We are not against furniture and mattress brochures. We understand some people do not want or have the Internet.

Often I’m criticized and teased by my wife Kathy and close friend and sister in-law Kim for living on the computer. Both have pointed out on many occasions that they work on a computer all day and the last thing they want to do when they get home is to be on computer. Such conversations often take place while her husband Bob and I are surfing the web and pecking away on the laptop.

Where to find the information

Like most people I don’t think Kathy or Kim choose the limited information found in a handout brochure to the vast world of information found shopping via Google Search. Often the first thing Kathy says to me each day is “good morning computer” a sign of how much I am on it. Personally I’m in awe and captivated with the amount of information I can gather about people, places, and things. As a salesman I have heard the lines and really don’t need a sale pitch. Just give me the truth with complete information, and the most bang for my buck. Brochures seem to come across as sales pitchy to me very often light on substance and very heavy on feel good fluff information.

I can’t tell you how many times I went to the St. Louis Home and Garden Show or Boat and Sport Show spoke with a salesperson and took their booklet or brochure only to throw it into a bag that would later end up thrown away weeks later when my enthusiasm has faded. The thing is the products I was interested in usually had manufacturer or retail websites that included the same information, actually in most cases a lot more information. Not only that but I could do a search to see how other people like the item or if there is something better or comparable available for less money. They don’t tell you that in a brochure.

Customers can shop our competition too?

I am concerned about the environment and I believe most everyone else is as well. I love trees but I don’t hug them and I save paper when I can, especially when I’m asked for a hand out or brochure on a bed or bedroom set. Because of my passion to not waste and be more Eco friendly when I’m asked for a brochure on a certain bed or bedroom set I look for an earth friendly alternative to the wasted paper and ink. Instead I ask them if they have access to the Internet. If they tell me no, we simply go to computer and print the information off that they are requesting and hand them a brochure. For those having access to the Internet the STL Beds website offers hundreds of pages with very specific and very detailed about the items they are interested in. In addition to that they can visit manufacturers’ websites, forums, chat rooms, and review sites where people just like them give their opinions good, bad, or other. They can even research all in one place competitors and competing products.

Have you heard of Sherwin Williams Harmony® Interior Latex No VOC paint? If you haven’t heard of it, and the smell of paint irritates you, annoys you, gives you a head ache, or even makes you sick I am here to tell you STLBeds has found a solution to your problems that we would like to pass along to our readers.

Recently STLBeds in an effort enhance the look of the store decided to spruce the showroom up with a fresh coat of paint. As you may or may not know the terrible smell of a freshly painted room can expose you to harmful VOC’s Volatile Organic Compounds. For some people the VOCs common in paint smell may be nothing more than a mere annoyance, while others can have severe reactions. Make no bones about it the emissions are not good for anyone. Having sold organic mattresses now for over 2 years we have been awakened to the fact of both minor and severe reactions due to things like chemical sensitivity. We have also learned problems can be as simple as a minor cough or irritation to an all out full blown hospital visit due to severe reactions and repertory issues.

With this in mind if you have been following our previous blogs to keep you informed on our efforts to green up our business STLBeds, we mentioned several things we are doing and are looking to do to make STLBeds more earth friendly. One project we did not mention was how to paint the walls without the obnoxious smell that comes along with painting and takes weeks and even months to fully dissipate. The idea was to not only limit exposure to our shoppers, but the mattresses they would test rest and purchase.

With the average house being well under 2000 square foot I am sure you can only imagine what a 3000 square foot mattress showroom would smell like after umpteen gallons of paint. The truth is the painting project was stretched out over a 2 week period of time because our painter Zack was only working for us on a part time basis. During this period we have had hundreds of visitors through our store through out the painting process. The amazing thing is that not one person commented on the smell. The truth was when we asked them if the store had an odor of paint, nearly everyone didn’t even realize that Zack was painting even though he was often with in just a few feet of them.

The paint we used for our painting project was from Sherwin Williams and is called Harmony® Interior Latex No VOC paint. The Harmony® Interior Latex was a natural choice for us and went along with our efforts to protect the environment. Sherwin Williams claim is that their Harmony Paint is very low-odor which we are happy to vouch for. They say it will allow you to immediately move into your newly painted area. Well as I mentioned we were working in our showroom through out the entire painting process and the smell or should I say the lack of smell did not disrupt our business in any way. Sherwin Williams claims their paint contains less solvents and zero-VOC’s (volatile organic compounds), which is what we really like about it. They also say because of that what is emitted into the air, what we breathe is safer than ever before and is truly more environmentally friendly. Thanks Arnold Sherwin Williams for the help. I hope this blog helps you sell more earth friendly Harmony paint. If any of your customers are looking for an Organic mattress, hope you’ll send them to STLBeds. Thanks SW.

Looking for an organic mattress in Arkansas?

Where can you buy an organic mattress in Arkansas?

Call STLBeds at 1-888-STL-BEDS

STLBeds, your neighbor to the north in Missouri, would like to introduce you to a virtually chemical free non-toxic mattress. It is a healthy alternative to today’s chemically treated fire retardant mattresses.

Click on any of the links below to learn more!

Where can I try an organic mattress?
How about in your home with our 90 day comfort guarantee or take a short drive north and visit our showroom and test rest an all natural organic mattress before you buy it.

Arkansas Organic Mattress Choices Include

All Natural Dunlop Latex (Customize your feel)
Certified Organic Cotton
Certified Organic Wool
Choice or Zippered or Non Zippered (Customize your feel)
Easy to Set Up and to Move.
Take a moment and click to learn more about the organic and natural components of our healthier mattresses from Land and Sky.

We are also Arkansas Choice for Organic Sheets and Organic Mattress Protectors. They not only protect your new mattress but they feel good too.

What Organic Mattresses do we carry?
· Heaven and Earth Organic Mattress
· Rainforest Organic Mattress
· Meadow Organic Mattress
· Mountain View Boxtop
· Mountain View Eurotop
· Mountain View Plush
· Acorn Baby Mattress
· Aurora
· Eco Coil

Please feel free to click on any of the links to learn more about our beds.

All natural and organic mattresses built from Dunlop Latex are some of the most durable and longest lasting mattresses available today. They are also customizable, naturally comply with the federally mandated laws for fire safety using now dangerous or toxic chemicals, and come in a variety of firmnesses and comfort levels.

STLBeds is located on the South side of St. Louis County and offers the best selection of green, all natural, and chemical free mattresses to be found. It’s worth the trip and we look forward to meeting or speaking with you.

Call Dave or Doug at 1-888-STL-BEDS