What is the deal with 'flame retardant' jammies??? - Page 2

[Everrgreen]

When I first read this thread, I thought "Hmm, I've never seen that before!", well guess what DS got for Christmas! There is a tag on them that says 'Flame Resistant Sleepwear' and goes on to say something about meeting the US Consumer Product Safety Commission sleepwear reqs. I'm in Canada though, so apparently the inlaws must have imported these specially for me - yay!

[Artichokie]

by law, in the US, kid's pajamas must either be flame retardant or tight fitting. We always either use wool longies or soaker (when dd was in [cloth] diapers) and a plain tee shirt or tight fitting pajamas from Old Navy, Gymboree, Hanna Anderson, etc.

[lastrid]

We usually go for the tight-fitting ones, but apparently, if you wash them in really hot water with borax five or so times, most of the chemicals will be gone. I think all of the ones we have say to not wash in hot water, so there you go.

[texaspeach]

btw hanna anderson pjs are not flame retardant (they are supposed to be tight fitting) and are on sale right now

[Sleepyheaded_Mama]

Originally Posted by activistamamacita

On a side note, look out for a grey Circo (target brand) onesie that says green baby on the front with a recycle sign. The tagless label has been tested and has been found to have high levels of lead. It may (should) be recaled. Hang onto it in case they offer money back or a new different onesie. (Apparently, all Circo onesies are made in China and that particular one was manufactured in Bengladesh, so your other Circo brand clothes should be okay )

OMG B has that onesie and has worn it TWICE for a long time each time - once when he was less than a week old!!!

[JMJ]

Originally Posted by Sleepyheaded_Mama

OMG B has that onesie and has worn it TWICE for a long time each time - once when he was less than a week old!!!

Don't beat yourself up over it too badly. I'm guessing that it won't be releasing too much lead until the label starts deteriorating.

I'm still having a hard time understanding why there is such a need for children to have fireproof sleepwear (and why we all have to have fireproof beds for that matter). Aren't children more likely to catch fire on the stove or the fireplace during the day, or are they expecting us to keep our stoves on at night? Are the mattresses for people who smoke in bed? I really wouldn't expect my fireproof bed or pajammas to save me or my kids if the rest of the bedroom is on fire.

[emmaegbert]

Originally Posted by JMJ

I really wouldn't expect my fireproof bed or pajammas to save me or my kids if the rest of the bedroom is on fire.

As a friend who happens to be an international expert on fabric told me, by the time the fire is close enough to be igniting clothing, you already have a bigger problem. And that by then the smoke inhalation will have done a lot of damage. Not to mention, the fleece will melt and adhere to skin, rather than burning. Which is worse?

My kids sleep in plain cotton (yeah- the baby in regular clothes anyway) and we have working smoke detectors, we bed/room share, and we certainly don't have any open flames in the apartment. If it was colder I'd go for woolies, but we live in southern california so that seems to be overkill.

If you have a fireplace or use candles or something, or if you are a smoker and you smoke around your kids, maybe the calculus is different, but I've always avoided that flame retardant clothing- both b/c of the chemicals and b/c I can't stand that nasty fleece. Though DS did get some as gifts which he LOVED, I washed them well and let him wear them.

[Sleepyheaded_Mama]

Originally Posted by emmaegbert

As a friend who happens to be an international expert on fabric told me, by the time the fire is close enough to be igniting clothing, you already have a bigger problem. And that by then the smoke inhalation will have done a lot of damage.

This was my thinking, isn't it true that usually in the case of a house fire the smoke inhalation will kill you before the heat or flames ever get to you? Especially if you are a small child or baby. I guess maybe if the fire started in your bed somehow, but if you don't smoke, don't sleep with electric blankets or heating pads running, and don't overload outlets near your bed, is it really necessary to douse your PJs in chemicals??

[askew]

Originally Posted by texaspeach

btw hanna anderson pjs are not flame retardant (they are supposed to be tight fitting) and are on sale right now

Check carefully, some of theirs are flame retardant. I learned the hard way when I asked for these for DS bday. The ones with feet are and the ones without feet are organic cotton.

[GreenGranolaMama]

So I ended up bringing all of the flame retardant jammies that DS got to the childrens consignment shop as I didn't want to ask my family for receipts. I got talking to the women who owns the shop (mom of 2) and she was telling me that the insurance company didn't want to cover her business when she first opened because she carries used goods. They were worried that some of the flame retardant jammies she may have in her store may no longer be flame retardant due to washing/wear and tear

She was telling me that another Mom told her Walmart was carrying organic cotton jammies now... and while I think thats a step in the right direction for Walmart, I told her that DH and I don't shop there and I would rather support her local business (and just steer clear of flame retardants) than feed the Walmart machine

[mamadebug]

As a new mom, I tried washing the flame retardant out of the jammies. The tag said something about using detergent instead of soap, or something along those lines, to wash the pjs in to preserve the flame retardant. Sooo, I did the opposite in hopes of washing it out. The next time I was at Target, I noticed a bunch of kids sweats on sale for super cheap, and bought a bunch of pants and sweatshirts to use as pjs instead. The don't have feet and the sweatshirt sometimes rides up, but it seems better, to me, than the risk of the chemicals. And, I don't have to spend my time trying to figure out how to wash the flame retardant out! DS is 5 now, and it's still what we use for pjs.

[carmel23]

Originally Posted by pixiekisses

No, no, no. Fleece is an artifical fiber, it will catch fire very quickly, and melt to the skin. Like all other synthetic fibres.

Untreated, organic wool is one of the most flame retardant materials we have. Our kids have to sleep in wool in the winter anyway (or actually like 3/4 of the year), 'coz it's freezing here, so you know, I can add that as a bonus.
They sleep in 100% organic cotton those few summer months when it's warmer.

from the link provided in a previous post:

"Polyester was a common fabric for baby pajamas at this time and met the requirements for flame resistance due to its inherent qualities"
http://www.essortment.com/family/fla...stant_sknw.htm
So sure it will melt, but it won't flame... and fleece is polyester, so perhaps "naturally" isn't the best word, but it *is* inherently flame retardant (enough to meet the standards) ...

So at least there are not additional chemicals added, and polyester is fairly stable...