The Facts about Furniture Flame Retardants Chemical Free Sofas

Green Sanchez Sofa with Floral Arm Chairs

The Facts about Furniture Flame Retardants Chemical Free Sofas

As many of our customers know, over the years we have expanded our inventory to include custom sofas and mattress lines.  We spent many years researching the best products in order to provide local, affordable, and efficient choices that meet the ethical requirements of both our customers and the State of California. Chemical off gases and recycling are some of the key issues that are now at the forefront of consumer concerns and are now under legal supervision. We are aware of the many legal changes made in regards to fire retardants and recycling and we are hoping to break this information down into some facts and rules that we need to follow and advise in our store.

California Makes it Law- Label Toxic Flame Retardants in Furniture

In the media, there have been quite a few stories on the off-gases created by fire retardants in upholstered furniture.  We have seen this in the Huffington Post, The New York Times, and the HBO Documentary Toxic Hot Seat.  The question is whether fire retardants can help save lives or are a toxic red flag. Due to consumer demand, in 2014, Gov. Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill 1019 to require labeling on upholstered furniture to inform consumers whether the upholstery and foam contain toxic flame retardant chemicals. This means that all products sold in California must have labels indicating whether the product has been treated with a fire retardant.  Our response to this has been to ensure that our vendors accurately label the products we carry, so our customers can make their choices securely. For a more detailed explanation of the policy changes, check out Arlene Blume’s TedX talk about Plastic Pollution in our Homes

 

Sofa Fire Retardant Regulations and Labels

As seen in our Mission Sofa and Corbett Convertible Sofa with Chaise,  we are proud to sell sofas that are free of flame retardants and can provide the required labels necessary to ensure that the foam is also chemical fee. Because our sofas are manufactured in California we can directly follow the chain of manufacturing through to delivery and are committed to providing a customized chemical-free sofa in under three weeks! We have many of our models on our website with many options of fabric and styles in our retail location

We all know that used mattresses’ on the sidewalk are a blight and take up valuable space in landfills.  Because the mattress set is composed of 80% recyclable material, the State has passed The Used Mattress Recovery and Recycling Act and the retailer is required to pick up and dispose of the replaced bed set. Our customer can rest at ease on the new mattress you purchase from Harrington Galleries knowing your old set will be properly recycled by DR3. DR3 is a wholly owned subsidiary of the St. Vincent de Paul Society and is an internationally recognized leader in developing economic development opportunities from waste stream diversion.  As per the Mattress Recycling Council

 

Any retailer (or third-party working on behalf of a retailer) that delivers a mattress to a consumer in California must also offer to pick up the used mattress free of charge. The law, however, does not restrict the retailer’s ability to charge for the delivery and/or set up of a new mattress. Note that even though the Program will not formally begin until 2016, the free pickup obligation is in effect now. 

 

Restonic Comfort Care & Evergreen Lines

We choose to partner with Restonic as every customer will receive a custom mattress in a one-week turnaround with eco-friendly foam manufactured down the highway in Burlingame. We currently carry their affordable Dazzle ComfortCare Select mattress and are introducing the Evergreen. The Dazzle mattress contains high-density eco-friendly polyurethane foam and individually wrapped coils. The Earth Line consists of 100 % organic materials at affordable prices. The Evergreen mattress uses primarily natural materials and double wrapped in Joma wool which acts as a natural fire retardant. ComfortCare Select mattress is available as a  Pillow-Top, Plush, or Firms density  in Twin, Double/Full, Queen, or California/Eastern King Sizes

Our partners at Restonic will be available at Sunday Streets on May 10 to highlight the latest Evergreen organic line and answer any questions.