Tog Ratings, Warmth and Quality What's a Tog Rating?
Does it tell you how warm a quilt will be, how good the quality of a quilt is? Not really. It helps, but it is far from a complete answer.
A Tog is a unit of measurement for the warmth of a quilt. The trouble is tog ratings are calculated in a laboratory, using a new quilt on a flat surface. Now you are not a flat surface, and how the quilt drapes round you is also very important.
After you've slept under it a few times your quilt isn't new, and poor quality quilts lose their Tog Ratings fast, particularly if they're washed. So a Tog Rating is at best only a rough guide to how warm you'll be.
It is true that a very cheap quilt will have a low tog rating, and will be made of poor quality materials. But of itself the tog rating tells you nothing about a quilt's quality.
So, when you're choosing a quilt, by all means take a note of the tog rating. But if you want a good buy, don't stop there.
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Filling: Natural or Synthetic? You may think that a quilt with a synthetic filling will be better than a naturally filled, prefer the modern to the traditional. But would you feel that way if you got the chance to make a proper comparison?
Probably not. User trials conducted by an independent market research company over a two month period showed that, given the chance to try sleeping under both natural and synthetic quilts, an amazing 75% of users said they preferred the natural quilts.
There are three reasons for this - plus some others that a two month period couldn't show.
First, naturally filled quilts breathe in a way a synthetic quilt can't. So the moisture lost by your body while you sleep - around 1½ pints a night - is absorbed overnight, then gradually lost in the morning when the quilt is aired. You won't get that sticky feeling that can result when you sleep under a synthetic quilt.
Second, natural quilts drape better round the lumps and bumps of your body that synthetics, which are relatively stiff. Because you can snuggle into it better, a natural quilt will usually feel warmer on a chilly night than a synthetic quilt of the same tog rating, even if both are new!
What's more, tog rating for tog rating, a natural quilt will almost always be lighter than a synthetic one. Natural fillings bring warmth without weight, for a really comfortable, natural night's sleep.
But do they last as long as synthetics? How washable are they?
Well, since natural fillings are made from duck and goose down and feather, washability isn't much of a problem. After all, ducks and geese are designed to spend most of their life in the water. Just follow the washing instructions, as you would with anything important, and all should be well. The important thing is to dry it thoroughly. |
The Longer-lasting Filling And - this may surprise you - natural fillings last much longer than synthetics. Most synthetic quilts have a life expectancy of about five years. After that the filling is thin and matted.
Natural fillings stay plump and cosy for longer. Best of all are Goose Down quilts, which should last 40 years, but whatever the filling, any Nimbus Quilt should last you at least 15 years.
That's one reason why all Nimbus Duvets carry a 10-year guarantee - one of the very few affordable everyday household items that does. |
Care and WashabilityMany people believe that while synthetic quilts and pillows are washable, natural ones are not. Frankly, they're just plain wrong. Think about it; ducks and geese spend their lives on and in water.
Natural quilts and pillows can be washed - but they must be properly dried afterwards.
The most important part of caring for a natural quilt is giving it regular and thorough airing.
Local spillages can easily be sponged clean. You'll probably find that if you keep your quilt in a duvet cover, it won't really get dirty in the first place.
However having the quilt professionally washed every few years is a good way to eliminate any build up of house dust mites, the main cause of allergic reactions.
&Because ducks and geese spend their lives getting wet, washing is no problem for goose or duck down and feathers. So long as they are dried properly they can be washed over and over again without ill effect.
Ironically this isn't true for synthetic quilts. Synthetic fillings matt anyway during the course of their life (becoming less warm) and washing accelerates this. So if you wash a synthetic quilt, it will quickly lose thickness and warmth.
Most dry cleaners offer a quilt cleaning service. In fact they will wash your quilt at a commercial laundry!
The alternative is to wash the quilt yourself at a launderette. Chose a large machine, and use a non-biological washing powder. Then dry the quilt thoroughly in a really large tumble drier. Shake the quilt between drying cycles to help the separation of the filling as it dries, and to let the warm air penetrate it.
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