Safer leather sectional?

[atlo888]

Have a 1 yr old at home and am looking to purchase a leather sectional -- looking for safer, low chemical options. (ie no leather from china, hardwood frame, non-flame retardant treated foam, low VOC glue) Son has lots of allergies.

Interested in a transitional/more modern style, RAF L shaped sectional that will be floating in the room. Medium to light colored leather- taupe color.

Some larger manufacturers such as crate& barrel are starting to be more cognizant of the harmful chemicals used in couches and are trying to minimize. Was wondering if higher quality manufacturers such as Hancock & Moore are doing/have done the same?


Thanks for anyone's advice & suggestions!

[drcollie]

Crate & Barrel furniture won't last long enough to worry about exposure, it will be in the landfill a few years after purchase so I'd not put too much faith in their marketing hype.

http://iconceptsllc.com/potterybarnUNSTUFFED.html

While I can appreciate parental concern about chemicals (I have kids myself, now grown) the fact of the matter is that all upholstery is made of wood, steel, foam and either a textile or leather cover. Pottery barn is made of plywood, and plywood is a series of cheap layers of wood held together with glues that are often made of urea formaldehyde glues which can and do give off noxious odors. Who knows what glue is used in a particular plywood? That's not something you or I will ever be able to determine from a maker. Now, go solid wood and you eliminate that outgassing but now you are into a premium product.

All foam is made of petroleum based products, and today every maker out there uses cushions that are California Proposition 65 (?) compliant. This does not mean they have no fire retardant, but its less chemically aggressive than in years past. You need some level of fire retardants to cut down on flammability exposures, its dangerous to have any kind of upholstery or bedding in a home with no fire retardants in it whatsoever and no maker I know of will build that way for liability reasons alone.

Tanning leather is a nasty business, and the chemicals used are carcinogenic - hazardous to the tannery workers but not the retail consumer on a finished product. There is only so much 'green' you can do with leather. If the tannery is clean and follows good practices it protects its workers, but I've not heard of any leather incidents where chemicals were dangerous to the end users since they got rid of China Cow Brand in the 1960's. FYI the cleanest and greenest tannery in the world is located in Belgium and produces the GR 5 leather for Hancock and Moore called "ENVY".

[atlo888]

Thanks for the reply Duane. I am being told that there are some manufacturers who have removed flame retardants completely from their foam cushions. If this is possible in a high quality leather sectional manufacturer, I would take my risks of fire rather than known carcinogen.

However, I am not sure if I am being fed misinformation. Is there at least a possibility of knowing the foam wasn't manufactured in China from some high quality makers such as H&M?

[drcollie]

OK, I have the definitive answer for you on this from Hancock & Moore - just had to get to the right person. I learned something on this as well.

As of July 2014, Hancock and Moore has removed all fire retardant from their cushion cores and all chemicals. This is pretty much the industry standard at this time. California keeps changing the spec on Proposition 65, and the 2013 Tech Bulletin 117 is the current standard, in which manufacturers can use fire retardant, but it has to be disclosed. H&M, and many other makers elected to just eliminate it entirely - so that's where we are at on it. Leather is a very effective fire retardant in and of itself, and in fabrics versions of the upholstery it will have a fiber barrier layer as many fabrics are flammable. Apparently this is one of those 'moving target' issues where the laws and regulations in California are in a constant state of flux and the industry has to try to keep up.

However, there will still be disclosure warning labels on all H&M products shipping into California, and that is due to the nail trim. There is some lead used in the brass nails and though it will not leech, and no one is going to digest the nails, they must put the warnings on due to that. If that is a concern then you can always order a piece with a nail delete.

Hope that helps.