About down feathers.

 　There are various types of filling for futons, but when it comes to comforters, I have not found anything more filling than feathers. Here, I would like to talk about the development and types of feathers.

1. What kind of feathers are they?

Waterfowl hair is used for futons. Mainly goose and duck feathers. A goose is a wild goose, and a duck is a poultry version of a duck. Geese and ducks are raised for meat, foie gras, and eggs, and feathers are a by-product. In addition, a small amount of feathers from the wild eider, a wild duck that lives in polar regions, will also be collected.

There are two types of feathers; one is called feathers and the other is called cotton feathers . In English, feathers are called feathers , and cotton feathers are called down . Down is often mistaken for feathers, but down is a general term for down and feathers.

There is a core - like shaft in the center of the feather, and soft fibers called barbs are attached to both sides. Down does not have a rachis, and its soft, thin barbs spread out from the original rachis, resembling the ears of a dandelion. The amount of down that can be obtained from one waterfowl is only about 10 to 20 grams. Some people think that down is the chest hair of waterfowl, but this is not the case. Down grows all over the body of a waterfowl, and the large pieces of down that can hold a lot of air are often found on the sides and front of the body.

2. How do I remove attached impurities?

Feathers that have just been collected from geese and ducks are contaminated with body fluids and sand, and have a high oil and fat content, so they must be purified before being used for futons. First, remove any large debris, then wash with detergent and water. After rinsing thoroughly and draining the water in a dehydrator, remove even more moisture in the dryer. The feathers are cooled in a cooling dust remover to remove fine dirt and dust, and finally they are sorted into down and feathers using wind power.

The JIS ( Japanese Industrial Standards ) for feathers has six test methods, including washing condition (cleanliness), component ratio (compositional mixing ratio), and bulkiness. Cleanliness is determined by extracting dirt into distilled water using a testing machine and checking the visibility of the dirty water. Composition ratio measures the mixture of down, feathers, foreign substances, etc. contained in feathers by weight ratio. Bulkness is measured by placing a certain amount of feathers in a cylindrical testing machine, applying weight with a specified disk, and then measuring the height of the disk in millimeters.

3. Which is better, goose or duck?

It is difficult to say whether goose or duck down is better as a material for futons. Geese are larger than ducks, so if you compare the down balls of grown birds, geese are larger and have better properties such as heat retention. However, down from mature geese is less harvested and is rare. Cheap goose products often have small, immature down, so purchasing a mature duck at a reasonable price may be more comfortable.

Related article: How to choose bedding and mattresses. Two basics.

The comforter should be neither too warm nor too cold, nor stuffy.