Question from pb
hello,
a few months ago, i purchased several japanese style futons online. upon receipt of the futons i noticed a VERY STRONG SMELL. i emailed the etailer, and they said it was “not off-gassing” but was simply the combination of the UNBLEACHED COTTON and a SMALL AMT OF BORIC ACID (flame retardency).
according to the etailer, the smell should dissipate within a week with regular use. unfortunately, it’s been several months, and the SMELL PERSISTS.
recently, my husband purchased some vaccum cleaner bags and a new filter. the smell of those items had the “same smell” as the futon beds! i figured, “this can’t be good!”.
i have been unable to sleep on the futon as of yet (still airing it out) but my 2 boys sleep on their’s. this causes me great concern. i want to be sure they’re not being exposed to harmful toxic fumes etc.
i was wondering if you might be able to tell me if either the unbleached cotton or the boric acid might be problematic in terms of inhalation. the etailer sent me a lengthy report re: boric acid and it’s safety in regards to inhalation. but i’d feel so much better if i heard something from you and your readers.
Debra’s Answer
My experience with boric acid is that it has no odor at all. I’ve used it occasionally in emergencies to kill pests in my kitchen.
My experience with unbleached cotton batting is that it has an natural odor of its own, which generally dissipates, as your etailer said, in about a week or so.
It’s entirely possible that your cotton futon was contaminated along the way with something else, if it smells like a vacuum cleaner bag. Not being able to smell your futon from this distance, I don’t have a clue what it might be. It could have been exposed to something during shipping.
I always take the attitude “It’s better safe than sorry.” Personally, I probably wouldn’t sleep on it. And I would probably go back to where I bought it from and return it, since they didn’t deliver to you a futon that could be slept on. They agree it should have no odor now, yet it does.
I purchased a futon mattress and it has a strong smell, especially when it is humid. It smells like a chemical to me– like pesticide chemicals. The smell has not gone away after 2 months, and now that it is summer, it is really bad. My guess is that they dont wash the ‘raw’ cotton and it is pesticide residue. Would love to find the answer, surprised there is not much online about it.
COMMENT FROM DEBRA:
If it is not organic cotton, it very well may be pesticides.