Which Duvet to Buy?

 

Which Duvet to Buy?

Buying the ideal ‘natural’ duvet needs careful consideration to enable you to have a good night’s sleep.  You need to be able to keep an even body temperature throughout the night whatever the temperature outdoors.   One of the major considerations with buying ‘natural’ products is the ‘allergy’ factor.  This is why the Ringsted Dun and Sirius Collections come with the international creditations of Nomite®, Downafresh® and Oeko-Tex to give you the confidence that you can buy these products and be safe from the problems of asthma and dustmite allergies, for example  This is due to the sterilization and deep cleansing that takes place before the fillings are put into their tightly woven quality shells.

The collection of luxurious natural duvets comprises pure down fillings, all of the highest quality, from Denmark and Europe.  The duvets are manufactured without the use of harmful substances and chemicals, ensuring that they are of the highest quality with regard to health (see 'Nomite' Label and Allergies in the General Information section).  These premium products are made from the finest fillings and cotton shells.

The ideal down duvet offers ‘warmth without weight’ and superb drape ability, so that the entire duvet drapes naturally around the body.  It should give adequate insulation and be neither too hot nor too cold.  A high quality natural down duvet is extremely light, with a high 'Fill Power'.  The Fill Power measures the 'strength' of down - the better the duvet, the higher the ' Fill Power'.  A duvet with down of a high Fill Power gives more 'warmth' and 'loft' than a duvet with a lower Fill Power. (See 'What is Fill Power?' in the General Information.

  

	Temperature           Comfort Rating	Approx Tog Rating	Season
‘Summer’ Duvet	15-23 degrees C	4	Summer months
‘Alps’ Duvet  (3 Season)	10-19 degrees C	10	Spring and Autumn months
‘Odin’ Duvet  (3 Season)	8-17 degrees C	13.5	Winter months

 

‘Combination’:  combine the ‘Summer’ and ‘Alps’ duvets to create a ‘Winter’ duvet so that you can ‘adjust’ your warmth throughout the year.

‘Comfort Rating’ along with the approximate ‘Tog Rating’ helps you to choose a duvet that will suit your individual needs during the different seasons of the year.

What is ‘Temperature Comfort Rating’?

There has been much controversy around the world, throughout the years, as to methods of how to accurately calculate a reliable and suitable ‘Temperature Comfort Rating’ for bedding.. TOG was introduced in an effort to satisfy this need.  However, when dealing with the various types of down and feather fills, the TOG-meter assessment is confusing and lacks accuracy.  A person’s ultimate comfort is achieved by providing a thermal balance that will allow the body to rest comfortably for an 8-hour period. Today, after multiple studies from around the world, the key factors that are taken into consideration when calculating this ‘Comfort Rating’ include: environmental conditions, metabolism, sex, age, fitness and lifestyle.  Although these are factors that often vary from individual to individual, the Temperature Control Rating has been calculated with the ‘average person’ in mind and is therefore intended for use as a guideline in selecting a duvet that is more suitable for your personal comfort.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS:  The bedroom temperature is a fundamental factor in evaluating your primary needs.  If the room’s humidity levels are high, the thermal capacities of down will dwindle.

METABOLISM:  The higher the metabolic rate, the greater the heat output.  Down traps and reflects this heat depending on the construction and design of the duvet.

SEX:  On average, women are generally colder than men by approximately 5 degrees centrigrade.

AGE:  The older a person, the colder they are.  This is due to the slowing down of metabolism due to age.

FITNESS:  A heavier person has more natural insulation than a thin person.

LIFESTYLE:  A person leading a busy lifestyle will burn more calories than the average person.  Their metabolism is usually higher than the less active person.  As a direct result of this, the more active person can tolerate cooler temperatures more comfortably.

What is ‘Tog’?

The Tog value that appears on feather and down filled product labels is an indication as to the measure of warmth or insulating value, technically called ‘thermal resistance’.  The term is in common usage in the textile industry as the unit of thermal resistance of all fabrics and clothing, not just duvets.  It is derived from the metric unity commonly used internationally for all types of insulating materials.  The Tog value of quilts is, of course, measured on a tog-meter. 

WHICH TOG IS RIGHT FOR ME?

Down quilts are warm because they trap heat radiating from the body.  The higher your metabolic rate the more heat your body generates.  Tog is simply an indication of how efficiently the duvet retains body-generated heat.  Generally the higher the Tog, the more heat is retained.  When choosing a quilt, many people think the higher the Tog, the higher the quality of the quilt.  This is not true.  Also, many people think that the higher the Tog, the heavier the quilt.  Nor is this true.  A high quality natural down quilt will be much lighter than a synthetic one of the same Tog value.  

Your choice of Tog should be governed by bedroom temperature, how warm you like to be and how much heat your body generates in a typical centrally heated house.  Other factors such as sex, age and physical condition, will also help you to 

determine your needs.  Since good quality down traps and reflects the heat that your body generates, it is important to know that everyone is unique when it comes to selecting an appropriate Tog rated product

TIP:  

Tog is an indication of thermal insulation.  The more precise Comfort Rating will help to guide you towards a more informed and suitable duvet selection.

Please note:

Tog is being superseded by new European regulations, for natural filled quilts only.  Under the new European Norms (EN12934), quilts will be labeled according to the % content of down and feather.  A more precise indication of the heat value is identified by Temperature Comfort Ratings.  Tog values will be dropped from sewn on labels in the near future and replaced by the EN 12934 ‘comfort temperature range’

What is ‘Fill Power’?

Fill Power is an expression of the down’s insulating ability and quality.   A high fill power means that the filling is light and airy and insulates well.  It is the air between the down that keeps you warm underneath the duvet.  Down with a high fill power generally also has a longer life.

Did you know that there are different methods for measuring the fill power?  And that the manufacturer is not obligated to state on the label which standard has been used to measure the fill power?

The fill power is one of the factors that has the largest influence on the price.  So this is where you have to make sure you get the proper guidance.

DYKON regularly checks the fill power of their different filling qualities at their own laboratory in accordance with EN12130 – measured at 20g., which is your guarantee for a correct fill power specification.  By using other measuring methods a higher fill power can be achieved for the same filling quality.

Fill Power defines the amount of loft a specific down or blend of down has, and may be calculated differently around the globe.  Based in Europe Dykon A/S has adopted the EN-12131 method of measuring fill power (Height in cm3 per 20 grams).

Measuring 'Fill Power' determines how 'fluffy' or 'lofty' the down is.  The higher the fill power, the more efficiently is traps air.  The trapped air is warmed by body heat and keeps the sleeper comfortable.   The actual test that is used to measure the down's loft involves filling and weighing a cylinder with 20 grams of down.  A specifically calibrated weight is then placed on top of the cylinder and is slowly allowed to fall onto the down for 60 seconds.  The tester will observe the markings on the side of the cylinder where the weight stops and is solely supported by the down.  The higher the fill power the loftier the down.  The loft the down has, the better the insulating power.  The test is performed again 24 hours later and the results are compared and averaged.  Typical quality fill power is approximately 7 and can reach as high as 15 or more in premium down bedding.  As fill power increases, the value of the down goes up significantly.

Fill power can be influenced by a variety of factors, including:  sitting in transit, humidity, temperature, static electricity and timing issues.

FILL POWER RATINGS:

The EN 12131 calculation is based on 20 grams of fill and is the norm that Dykon A/S use in rating their fills.  The majority of Scandinavian feather and down companies has adopted this standard in measuring and reporting fill power.

The I.D.B.F rating is based on 30 grams of fill (approximately 1 ounce) and identifies closely with non-metric measures.  It is commonly used throughout English speaking Europe to assist with the calculating of TOG values.

The I.D.B.F. - CUIN rating is the imperial equivalent to the I.D.B.F. - 30g measures.  These ratings are used to quote fill power in North America and are also commonly used in rating down filled sports gear