Cold Foam in IKEA Furniture
August 11, 2015 by Debra Lynn Dadd
Question from Suzanne
Hi Debra,
Thanks again for your wonderful website, books and resources.
I am looking at an office chair at IKEA, the GREGOR swivel chair. The product description says the seat cushion is made of "high Resilient polyurethane foam ( Cold foam)". Do you know what that is and is it safe?
Thank you
Debra's Answer
Polyurethane foams come in a number of different types.
High Resiliency Cold Foaming process is used today in the manufacture of molded flexible foams.
It's still polyurethane foam, which is made from toxic chemicals.
I love to shop at IKEA. Many chairs I would have liked to purchase, but I never purchase anything made from polyurethane foam.
These are archives of Q&A asked by readers and answered by Debra Lynn Dadd (from 2005-2019) or Lisa Powers (from 2019-2020). Answers have been edited and updated as of December, 2020.