If you are someone who subscribes to the benefits of buying organic whenever you can it will make perfect sense to adopt this same healthy and ethical approach when you are looking to update your mattress.

You spend a lot of time in your bed so you want it to give you a comfortable night’s sleep, and if you can achieve this aim using natural materials, it is a positive outcome all round.

Here is a look at what it means when a bed is certified as organic, what materials you can expect to find in your mattress and bedding, plus an insight into the sort of toxins that you can eliminate when you go down the organic route.

The real deal

If you are already interested in trying to buy organic products wherever possible you will no doubt understand that certain ethical standards have to be met before a product is allowed to be described as organic.

If you see a mattress described as organic what does this actually mean?

The first point to make is that organic means certified organic every time if the manufacturer is playing by the rules, so in order to stake a claim to be genuinely 100% organic, the product has to be independently certified by a recognized certifying agent.

If you see claims on products such as eco-friendly or environmentally friendly and natural, these are all well well and good by they are just marketing claims and could mean a product is not officially certified as organic.

For example, when you are reading through a detailed review of the 5 top selling mattresses from Zinus, who combine naturally sourced materials to make their product if you see that the product is certified as organic, you will know what you are getting when you decide to buy.

What’s inside?

Typical organic components that you might expect to see listed as used in the manufacture of your mattress include wool, cotton, and latex.

Naturally, you will be expecting that to be organic cotton which has been grown without using synthetic chemicals like pesticides and fertilizers and has not been genetically modified in any way.

Organic cotton should prove to be a healthier and safer option for you and it can be kinder to your skin.

Organic wool is an efficient and natural way of keeping you cool at night, thanks to the natural wax called lanolin that manages to keep the sheep dry and soft even when exposed to the elements.

Check for a list of what organic products have been used to make the mattress, especially if you are someone who is allergic to wool. Although, you should be able to find a viable organic alternative that doesn’t contain wool if that is a particular problem.

You might be wondering about the inclusion of latex in an organic mattress, but that will be fine provided the manufacturer has used organic chemical-free latex.

Organic latex is very useful as it tends to give the right amount of firmness and support that you would normally want from your mattress but without the need for any springs or metal. The other good news about natural latex is that it is resistant to dust mites and mold, which is a positive aspect if you suffer from allergies.

Totally organic option

If you are interested in the idea of upgrading to an organic mattress you will also want to make the move to organic natural bedding products.

One of the primary reasons why many consumers decide to make the switch from their regular bedding to an organic alternative is to remove the threat of being exposed to toxins.

When you consider how many hours each week you spend in your bed that adds up to a lot of time each year spent being potentially exposed to toxins like formaldehyde and boric acid amongst others.

The reason these products are in your bedding in the first place is to provide solutions like keeping your sheets free from wrinkles, but are the possible health issues worth that small inconvenience?

Breathe more easily

As well as removing your exposure to potential toxins by going organic there is the aspect of breathability to consider as well.

If you decide to change to organic bedding to complement your organic mattress the payback will be a bed that feels cool and fresh when you climb into it.

Resting your head on buckwheat pillows and covering yourself with other similarly organic bedding items, will allow you to stay cool and comfortable throughout the night. 

Choosing natural organic materials for your mattress and bedding is not just a healthy choice, it will be comfortable one too.

Joel French works for a furniture company and in his personal life takes a great interest in eco-friendly and natural products wherever possible. He combines his 2 worlds writing about the newer range of eco-friendly bedding and mattresses coming on the market.

 

We all need to drink plenty of water every day to stay hydrated and healthy but it can sometimes put you off from pouring a glass of water from your faucet when you don’t really know what you might be drinking along with your water.

There are contaminants that can find your way from the faucet to your stomach with each drink of water that you have, so it makes sense to find out exactly what you are drinking and how to take steps to make it safer.

Here is a look at what sort of contaminants might be in your water, how to test to see how safe it is and what action to take if you want to enjoy safe drinking water every time.

Would you like some lead with your water?

The fact that all municipal water supplies have to be tested for over 90 different contaminants including bacteria and lead amongst others, will tell you that your simple glass of water could potentially be anything but pure if it becomes contaminated.

Where you live and the age of your house are just some of the factors that can influence the quality of the water supply and the specific contaminants that you could be under threat from.

If you live in an old house and the water pipes that run underneath your property are made of lead these have the potential to corrode and cause small particles to enter the water supply.

Also, the taste of your water will often vary according to where you are getting your supply from, although you can expect your water to tested in accordance with the federal Safe Drinking Water Act to make sure it is safe.

Despite this assurance, it would be a good idea to have your tap water tested if you have any specific concerns about the safety of your drinking water.

Better safe than sorry

Having your water tested can give you an indication on what sort of risks you might be exposing your family to with normal drinking water straight from the faucet.

If the tests reveal that there is lead present in the water and it is above 15 parts per billion (ppb) that should be a cause for concern, and the results might also reveal the presence of parasites, bacteria and even arsenic amongst other things.

If the test results showed that there was a higher level of lead in your water than the maximum ppb it would be a good idea to arrange blood tests for your family. This is because extensive exposure can be particularly damaging to children and can even cause developmental problems.

You don’t want to take these sort of risks with every glass of water straight from your faucet.

If you want to make sure that your drinking water is of the highest quality every time, it would make sense to look at an option like The Berkey Filters so that you can enjoy purified water where bacteria, chlorine, fluoride and other contaminants have been filtered out.

Working together to protect your health 

It is worth saying that the United States does, on the whole, enjoy an enviable reputation for being able to produce one of the most reliable and safest supplies of drinking water to its citizens in comparison to many other countries around the world.

Despite the fact that public water systems are heavily regulated, and standards are rigorously enforced, there are still isolated incidents of health scares. You should expect a certain level of contaminants in your local water supply that comes straight from the faucet, no matter how safe the levels are deemed to be.

Roughly ten percent of the population get their water from private wells. These are not regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act so anyone getting their water from a well will need to take their own precautions to try and ensure their drinking water is safe to consume.

Safer alternatives

 Filtered water is a good way of achieving consistency with your drinking water supply. You could also boil the water that you intend to drink which will be an effective way of killing Cryptosporidium, but that can be a lot of hassle. 

Bottled water is another potential alternative, but that can get expensive to keep buying a regular supply.

The solution is to first find out what exactly is in your local drinking water and then look at a way of getting the purest water for your family drinking needs based on the results and how comfortable you are with the contaminants that might come out of the faucet and into your glass.

Walter J Mcdaniel has worked in importing Home and Garden product business for over 7 years. He has a B.S. in business from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. He has worked in Asia and Europe before he established his own company.

A problem with leaking water in your house can quickly turn into a nightmare scenario if you don’t get it sorted urgently, and this is one example of when you probably need to call a plumber to get you out of a fix.

Some jobs might not seem urgent and you might even be thinking about tackling a bathroom upgrade yourself, but when should you test your DIY skills and when should you definitely leave the task to a professional?

Here is a look at what plumbers actually do, what warning signs you shouldn’t ignore and when it is time to get help with your drains and sewage smells.

More useful than you might think

It is easy to make the assumption that a plumber is mainly the person you call when you have a leaking water issue or your drain is backing up, but the scope of their work is actually a lot wider than that.

As a typical example, Benjamin Franklin Plumbing will do a lot more than fixing a leaky faucet or clear a clogged up drain.

The most common rooms in the house where you are likely to find a plumber at work are in the kitchen or the bathroom but even in those rooms, they can help with a lot of other tasks beyond a leaking water problem.

Take your kitchen, for instance, a plumber can help with Installing water lines to your refrigerator, fitting a garbage disposal system and even suggest a water-saving system that will cut your home bills.

Whether you call a plumber for some of these jobs might depend on how competent and knowledgeable you are with a range of DIY tasks, but there are clearly some issues that require professional help to resolve a problem safely and efficiently.

No water could be a sign of a big problem

If you have no water supply to your home there could be a plausible explanation such as maintenance work in the neighborhood where they have had to shut off supply for a brief time.

But if you are not aware of any valid reason why you have no water coming out of the taps and the houses next door are fine with their water supply, this should be a big red flag warning that something might be going badly wrong.

The water has got to be going somewhere and when you consider how many hundreds of gallons of water that are used in the typical home each day, if you don’t get to the root of the problem leaking water can soon cause some major structural damage to your property.

This is a classic scenario where it would be prudent to call a plumber in, as you have no time to waste trying to identify the problem yourself.

Regular problem with drains

Clogs are a common plumbing problem and on the face of it, fixing a problem like this should be within the reach of many homeowners who have a plunger and some rods to clear the drains.

If it is an isolated incident then you would be absolutely fine giving it a go yourself and you are likely to be successful in clearing the blockage.

If clogs are a regular occurrence this could be a clue that something is not right with your drains and pipework, which you may not be able to see or identify on your own. A plumber will have cameras and other specialist tools that can not only clear the blockage but also identify what is causing the problem.

A repeat drain problem is something that is worth asking a plumber to investigate so that you can get it fixed rather than keep reaching for the plunger.

Something doesn’t smell right

The smell of sewage is unpleasant but it is particularly disturbing when that pungent aroma is permeating throughout your home.

A strong sewage smell needs to be tackled urgently as it could be potentially damaging to your health but it could also be a warning sign that there is an underlying plumbing problem in your home, such as a lack of proper ventilation. 

It isn’t always that easy to pinpoint what is calling the strong sewage smell but this is another of those plumbing problems that most likely needs professional intervention to solve successfully.

Know your DIY limits and when it comes to water problems in your home, is it really worth taking any chances?

Simon Harrison runs his own plumbing business but is off work at the moment with an injury. He enjoys sharing his insights online almost as much as he likes sharing his expertise to his apprentices.