Flame Retardants in Furniture

Our Institute led changes to flammability standards that prevented the unnecessary use of tens of millions of pounds of flame retardants in furniture. This protects people and ecosystems from serious harm.

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Why are flame retardants in furniture?

A California furniture flammability standard called Technical Bulletin 117 (TB 117) led to the use of harmful and ineffective flame retardant chemicals in furniture and children&#;s product foam. This California regulation was followed across all of North America.

TB 117 required the foam inside furniture to withstand a small open flame for 12 seconds. However, in a real fire the cover fabric will ignite first, leading to a large flame which will quickly ignite the foam, even if it contains flame retardants. In fact, furniture with and without flame retardants burns similarly. Read the peer-reviewed study, published in Fire Safety Science.

And the flame retardants weren&#;t just ineffective&#;their use was widespread. In collaboration with Dr. Heather Stapleton at Duke University, we tested the foam of 101 American couches bought between -. We found that 85% of the couches contained harmful or inadequately tested flame retardant chemicals in the foam.

Why does it matter?

Flame retardants continually migrate out of furniture and into indoor dust which is ingested by people and pets. Some of these chemicals are associated with lowered IQ in children, cancer, hormone disruption, and other health problems. Learn more about common flame retardants and their health harm on our flame retardants page.

How are we exposed?

How have we reduced flame retardants in furniture?

In we helped to draft the San Antonio Statement on Brominated and Chlorinated Flame Retardants. This consensus statement, signed by over 200 experts from 30 countries, details research documenting the health harm and lack of fire safety benefit from flame retardants.

After further science and advocacy by the Institute and our colleagues, California&#;s governor directed the state to revise TB 117 to a new standard, TB 117-, which became mandatory for new furniture manufactured after January 1, . The new standard provides for better fire safety in furniture and children&#;s products without the need for flame retardant chemicals.

In the Institute and our colleagues petitioned the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to ban products, including furniture, containing any organohalogen flame retardant. The petition asked the CPSC to adopt rules under the Federal Hazardous Substances Act to protect consumers from all organohalogen flame retardants in furniture, children&#;s products, electronics casings, and mattresses.

In a landmark decision, the CPSC granted our petition. However, the ban of this toxic class of flame retardants will take years to implement. There is also concern that manufacturers will move from organohalogens to organophosphates and other types of toxic flame retardants. You can learn more about the petition here.

How can I tell if there are flame retardants in my furniture?

A California law called SB requires upholstered furniture to have a label stating whether or not the item contains flame retardants. More information on how to easily identify safer furniture can be found in this fact sheet.

Your couch should have a tag stating if flame retardants are present.

If you have upholstered furniture manufactured before it is likely to contain flame retardants. However, you might be able to replace the foam with healthier flame retardant-free material and keep the furniture. Find out more about furniture foam replacement here.

Starting in a California law bans the sale of new upholstered furniture, juvenile products, and mattresses containing most flame retardant chemicals.

To learn if there are flame retardants in your furniture foam, you can send a small foam sample for analysis to the Duke University Foam Project.

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Flame resistant (formerly known as flame retardant) clothing is a piece of specialized personal protective clothing required in many workplaces.

FR clothing is used in occupations that involve inherent risks of fire or explosion or contact with energized electrical equipment. Industries and occupations that use FR clothing as a final method of control these hazards include:

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• Electricians
• Electric utility repair and maintenance
• Refineries
• Pharmaceutical and chemical work
• Paper and pulp manufacturing
• Food processing

If you or your employees require FR clothing to carry out work safely, here are some key things that are worth knowing.

#1. Flame Resistant Clothing Works by Being Self-Extinguishing

Flame resistant material is, by definition, self-extinguishing material. Unlike conventional fabrics, it will not fuel a fire. Rather, it will starve a fire by preventing the entrance of oxygen through the material.

#2. Some Materials Are Naturally Flame Resistant

Some manufacturers make products that are naturally flame resistant and do not need to be chemically treated to be classified under the FR standard.

Typically, natural fibers like wool and silk do not melt and are difficult to ignite, which makes them good candidates for FR gear. The tighter and heavier the wool, the more fire resistant it is.

Some synthetic fibers, like polyester and nylon, are also more difficult to ignite. However, once they catch on fire, they tend to melt. As with wool, the tighter the weave, the more flame resistant the fabric.

One advantage to inherently flame resistant fabrics is that they are engineered to be flame resistant for eternity. Since their FR properties are incorporated at the molecular level, they offer fire protection that doesn&#;t wash out or wear out. The clothing remains flame resistant regardless of its length of use.

#3. Other Fabrics Can Be Made Flame Resistant

Other natural fabrics, like linen and cotton, can ignite easily and result in a rapid spread of flame. But they can be treated with chemicals that will extinguish the flame.

Alternative manufacturers make clothing that is treated with a compound at the final stage of production. This compound will chemically extinguish fire or flame by depriving it of the oxygen it requires to keep burning.

One downside to these treated fabrics is that their FR properties will degrade over time and offer less and less protection as UV exposure, abrasions, and washing erode their performance.

Another concern is that the chemical FR treatments applied to fabrics like cotton can have negative environmental effects. For example, the effluents produced in the process could find their way into and contaminate the natural environment.

#4. Flame Resistant Material Can Be Toxic

A common question about flame resistant clothing is &#;Is it toxic?&#;

The answer isn&#;t always straightforward, but chemical FR treatments applied to fabrics such as cotton regularly present serious environmental concerns.

Currently, the largest marketed FR group is brominated flame retardants (BFR). BFRs are the largest distributed products worldwide due to their combination of high effectiveness and low cost.

Approximately 75 BFRs are presently recognized; however, some of these have been removed from the marketplace since the s following incidental poisoning due to ingestion, which demonstrates the toxicity of those specific BFR classes. Tris-BP, for instance, was originally included in the manufacturing of children&#;s clothing but was quickly removed following discovery of its mutagenic and nephrotoxic effects.

Today, you can still find diphenyl ethers, cyclooctane&#;s, and brominated bisphenols representing the largest major BFR classes. In day-to-day living, these classes are also widely used as additives or reactive components in polymers such as epoxy resins and foam, as well as products like electrical equipment, computers, and electronics.

#5. Lots of Considerations Go into Picking the Right Flame Resistant Clothing

There are several considerations that come into play when purchasing or using FR clothing. After assessing the risks and becoming familiar with the job tasks the user will be performing, start by considering the following:

• Which style and weight of FR garment is more suitable and practical for the worker?
• What arc thermal performance value (ATPV) is required? This value outlines the performance of FR material when it is exposed to electrical discharged. It is expressed in cal/cm2, with a larger number representing a greater degree of protection.
• Does the FR product meet safety standards and regulatory requirements?
• What is the life expectancy of the garment? How soon will it have to be replaced?

Conclusion

This information will help you make an educated choice when it comes to FR clothing, but it&#;s not the end of your search. Investing the time and money required to do the research and select the right products will ensure durability, comfort, and (most importantly) confidence that you&#;re getting the protection needed.

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