Furniture: The Eco Friendly Alternative

Congratulations on your new green built home. From the walls to the floors, your new green home is environmentally friendly. You have spent many hours and a lot of money to have a home that has floors made from recycled timbers, paint on the walls made with low or non VOC (volatile organic compounds), and your counter-top and cabinetry includes Forest Stewardship Council certified woods and materials made of water-borne urethanes or post-consumer content.

Youre excited, and you should be. Now its time to furnish your new space! You and/or your designer spend many more hours to determine the exact look and feel. But what about the smell? Yes, I said smell. Like many new cars, new furniture also has a smell. The smell is most likely coming from the paint, varnish, wood, textiles, or fillers in and on your new sofa, chair, rug, dresser, or table. What that smell is, is the off gassing from the toxic pollutants your new furniture is giving off, such as the urea-formaldehyde contained in many pressed wood products or polyurethane foam, a petroleum (carbon) product from the cushions on the new couch. The EPA says that off-gassing from these materials and many others can occur over a substantial period of time. Paints and finishes are among the leading causes of indoor air pollution which, according to the EPA is one of the top 5 hazards to human health. Think about how this affects family members with respiratory problems or those who are chemically sensitive. Your indoor air quality just went down. Back to square one.

If your goal is to lessen your environmental footprint or live in a healthier indoor environment, then why stop at the walls, floors, doors and windows. Think about what youre sitting and sleeping on. Does this mean that you have to go all green? Simply put, no. Just consider the alternatives to your indoor air quality and you are well on your way to having the green home you so desire.

Green furniture (or eco-friendly furniture as I like to call it), is beautiful and healthier for you. Healthier because it lessens the pollutants in the air that you breath. In the past five years or so eco friendly products have impacted design trends in the furniture industry. These trends impact everyone, from the private home owner to the industrial world. Whether you are sitting in your private home or in a hotel room in Las Vegas, you are still impacted by the inner space contained between four walls.

Going GREEN: Here are some things to consider as you go shopping for your new furniture:

Look for products made the traditional way (traditional mortice-and-tenon joints, Chinese joinery, no nails or screws, hemp webbing instead of springs). Using the traditional method of building furniture reduces energy consumption and production and provides a path for a healthy carbon footprint.

Products made with recycled materials, such as (glass, paper, plastics, metal, and rubber, tires).

Products made from wood sourced, acquired, purchased from well-managed/sustainable forests, certified, renewable: The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is a good resource. Consider touring a local forest who participates in Forest Legacy Programs so you can learn more about different kinds of sustainable woods and forest preservation.

Products made with wood that was standing dead or fallen due to natural disaster such as beetle kill and products from beetle kill are excellent examples of sustainable materials and resources. FSC offers information on woods to avoid due to deforestation and efforts to improve hardwood and softwoods.

Products made with hypoallergenic materials (wool and natural latex, organic cotton, wool, linen, or hemp). Consider cushioning and beds made with foam from soybean oil and wrapped in 100% recycled fibers. As an example, the average mattress consists of petroleum-based foam covered in a petroleum-based polyester fabric. Even the most expensive mattress needs to be replaced after 10 years, so thousands of these petroleum-based mattresses end up in landfills each year.

Reclaimed, recycled, and refurbished furniture (scrap piles, tag sales, antiques, second hand, unwanted pieces and parts all made beautiful again). Antiques are the ultimate recycled furniture and new furniture is being made with recycled timber.

Products made with eco-friendly and natural materials (dyes, adhesives, bio-synthetic and bio-composite, natural plant fibers, paints and finishes, and eco-resin) to preserve air quality. Consider furniture that uses Green Guard Certified textiles and organic natural fabrics from suppliers who utilize sustainable practices.

Eco Friendly furniture is better for you. Better for the environment. Better for your family. Better for your customer.