"Green" Area Rug for kids room???

[berkeleyp]

We are ripping out the nasty old wall-to-wall carpet in dd's room and will have a wood floor. MIL wants to buy dd an area rug and she will be happy to let me pick it out. I don't want a used rug but would like one that isn't going to off-gas too much.

Does anyone know which rug materials are "green"? Can I simply buy a conventional rug and air it outside for a couple days to get the worst of the off-gassing done with?

I'm having trouble finding info on area rugs and indoor air quality online. everything is about installed carpet.

Other option might be another material. Is jute a soft option? Since its for a play area, I don't want anything that's not soft.

[Jojo F.]

Wool. This link is the not the original one I had found a long time ago about the benefits of wool but it says basically the same thing- http://www.naturalhomeproducts.com/1425whywool.htm

Oh, it talks about carpet but the same goes for wool rugs.

[cristeen]

My first choice would be wool. Some jute is soft, some is not. TBH, the same can be said for wool. I wouldn't buy online for that reason, but go somewhere you can feel them. I know Cost Plus carries wool and jute rugs both, but I don't know anything about their offgassing.

[JElaineB]

I've been researching the same thing for DS's room and I've come to the same conclusion - wool. You also need to be aware of what the pad is made of - that can be as bad as the rug itself. I have been looking at this website but their store is close enough to me that I can go look at samples when I am ready to buy:

http://www.greenbuildingsupply.com/

ETA: Looks like you can purchase samples and they will ship them to you as well.

[Raw Vegan Mama]

Ideas For a Better Rug

Rugs at Gaiam

Make your own Rag Rug

[libranbutterfly]

I would do either wool or make your own rag rug. I am making a rag rug right now to put over the nasty carpet in my rental home Hopefully I will be moving somewhere with hardwood floor in the fall.

[littlelessons]

Just a heads up about wool rugs. We have a few large wool area rugs and when we first purchased them they shed A LOT. I was vacuuming and emptying my vacuum canister several times a week depending on the traffic across them. Eventually (we're talking months later) they don't shed anymore, but it's definitely a characteristic of new wool rugs to shed a ton and during the process they look pretty bad.

Once you get past that, though, they're fine. I like the idea of rag or braided rugs,too.

[berkeleyp]

I have wool area rugs in other rooms in my house. Some shed more than others - I'm not sure why.

I am leaning toward either getting a conventional wool rug and just airing it out to let it off-gas outside or going with FLOR which seems to be low but not zero VOC.

[WhaleinGaloshes]

I have a hemp area rug from rawganique: http://www.rawganique.com/BAtsc1.htm

I like it. It's soft enough, not plush but it feels good to sit and walk on and generally does the job. It's machine washable which rules the day for me.

I have it on a pad from the Company Store: http://www.thecompanystore.com/paren...ly/3724/UI32X/

If I was looking for a really cozy, soft rug, I'd look at Flokati rugs like these: http://www.thecompanystore.com/paren...gs/3721/UG78X/

[xekomaya]

I've been talking a lot about these lately -- I promise I don't work for them! -- but I really like my Flor carpet tiles. I have some Fedora tiles in my living room - they feel like craft felt so they don't trap much dirt and I think they'd be fun to play on. If you think your kids could handle not pulling the tiles apart, they do stick together as a unit to work as an area rug

The tiles are recycled & recyclable right back into more Flor tiles, and I didn't notice any odors/ offgassing

[berkeleyp]

I was considering the flokati rugs from company store but they couldn't tell me anything about whether or not they were treated with flame retardant and moth repellent at customer service - plus they have to ship all the way from greece. I am also concerned about the dust/hair build-up that could accumulate in that deep pile.

I think I am going to get one of these: http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/sto...Search&feat=sr

I contacted llbean and they said they are not treated with anything and they are made in USA. Now I'll just need a non-toxic rug pad but that shouldn't be too hard.

I also contacted naturalhomeproducts to learn more about the dangers of rugs. The guy said many conventional rugs, especially those made of natural fibers like cotton and wool are not too bad but because they come from suppliers all over the world, you never know. Some are made in sweatshops with child labor and/or are treated with varying amounts of chems, from very small, mostly benign quantities to more dangerous ones.

[Rebecca]

We don't use any rug pads and we seem fine so far! All our rugs are either braided 100% cotton or 100% wool with a jute backing. The wool rugs annoy me because of all the shedding and dust they create. It's probably because they were cheap, and well, you get what you pay for.

[marlyninla]

Originally Posted by berkeleyp

I was considering the flokati rugs from company store but they couldn't tell me anything about whether or not they were treated with flame retardant and moth repellent at customer service - plus they have to ship all the way from greece. I am also concerned about the dust/hair build-up that could accumulate in that deep pile.

I think I am going to get one of these: http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/sto...Search&feat=sr

I contacted llbean and they said they are not treated with anything and they are made in USA. Now I'll just need a non-toxic rug pad but that shouldn't be too hard.

I also contacted naturalhomeproducts to learn more about the dangers of rugs. The guy said many conventional rugs, especially those made of natural fibers like cotton and wool are not too bad but because they come from suppliers all over the world, you never know. Some are made in sweatshops with child labor and/or are treated with varying amounts of chems, from very small, mostly benign quantities to more dangerous ones.

We had a flokati and it was a mess with pet hair. Awful.