Archive for December, 2009
A baffle box makes for an even feather distribution.
A baffle box is a term in bedding referring to three-dimensional boxes of fabric wall that create a maximum thickness that is evenly distributed on the inside of Pacific Coast feather beds. A second attribute from the baffle box design is comfort, as the feathers are kept from shifting and leaving gaps and clumps.
Feather beds should be covered as you would any mattress, preventing direct contact of the body. It is important to protect the feather bed so that washing can be kept to a minimum to extend the life and the cover can be washed often.
Large down clusters make for high fill powers
Fill power describes the quality of the down used in many fabrics from sleeping bags to comforters. Pacific Coast down comforters use a minimum of 550 fill power in products that it produces for better loft and insulation.
Superior insulation is accomplished with large clusters of down, which breathe and last longer than the smaller, fragile down clusters that are used in low quality comforters. The higher the fill power means that the clusters of down are larger and stronger.
What were you doing Christmas Eve?
What an interesting Christmas Eve we experienced here in the upper Midwest in 2009. It was definitely a white Christmas and we spent the evening without electricity and ate cold food and we burned candles for light.
The thing that got us through the evening and into the night was a lot of blankets and throws, including down throws and comforters. We woke up to electricity and opened gifts and read the Christmas story from the Bible.
Learn about standardized temperature rating for bedding
In our discussion about fill power and loft over the past several days we would be remiss if we did not say that calculations are only approximate. A more accurate way to compare goose down comforters is to use European Norm temperature ratings, which are based on realistic independent lab tests.
These tests are the lowest comfortable temperature, and go above a safe but not comfortable temperature. In the United States, sleeping bags have temperature ratings, but manufacturers do not use standardized methods in establishing temperature comfort ratings.
The weight of down can add up significantly
Fill power can be a hard term to understand, so I will try to explain the amount of weight difference that would be associated with two products with the same loft. The down used in a goose down comforter with a 550 fill power would weigh up to 50% more than the down used in one with 800 fill power.
Warmth is provided by layers of air that separate a cold side from a warm side, whether it is down or some other form of insulation. When a thicker layer of air is trapped it will insulate more, which is called loft. The greater the loft the more it will insulate with less weight.
How much fill power is enough to keep me warm?
When considering the purchase of a quality down feather comforter the application should be considered. If you need the bedding for use in your home, it may not be necessary to get more than a 650 fill power.
If you intention is to use comforters for backpacking, where the weight and warmth are both important, you would consider a 700 fill power or more to keep it on the light side. Backpackers try to keep their packs as light as practicable and every ounce of weight saved would add up.
Why can goose down be so expensive?
The higher the fill power means that the down is the rarest and accordingly the most expensive. The geese kept for breeding will molt naturally each spring and the down is collected by hand when it is loose.
This type of down from breeding geese is rare and expensive, but it has greater loft and gets its scarcity from the careful selection by hand. Pacific Coast down comforters are constructed using the better downs of up to 650 fill power.
How do you think about down in terms of fill power?
Fill power can be thought of in terms of cubic inches per ounce, so the bigger the volume of each ounce the higher the fill power number. A fill power of 400-450 is medium quality; 500-550 is good quality; 550-750 is very good quality; and over 750+ fill power is excellent quality.
All of the 750+ fill is from geese that are kept for breeding, while the 400 fills would come from four month old geese that are raised for consumption, with the down being the secondary product of these young birds. A good quality queen size Pacific Coast down comforter with a fill power of 650 and a good cotton cover with a 330 thread count could easily cost over $350.
Comparing high and low fill power for warmth.
Fill power is a measure of the quality of down used as a standard in the industry. A way to tell the difference in high fill power versus low fill power is that to get the same warmth from say a goose down comforter, the high fill power down will weigh less and the low fill power down will weight more.
Conversely, another way to tell would be to take something made of down that both weigh the same and compare how warm it keeps you. The higher fill power would keep you warmer when compared to the lower fill power comforter.
Turn the thermostat down and sleep in warmth.
With fuel prices expected to rise and with the possibility of a cold winter looming, turning the thermostat down lower at night may be necessary. A cold house while we sleep is not as uncomfortable if you cover ourselves properly.
Down is an excellent insulator that is a natural regulator, keeping warmth in and cold out, without causing discomfort from being too heavy. Quality down comforters have a way of keeping the temperature under the covers just right and rarely will the term too warm or cold be a problem.