A New Miracle Insulation

Just when I thought there would not be any more miracle fabrics for the moment a miracle fabric of fibers or insulations is entering the market place. The company is Outlast makers of the non-functioning phase change materials. There new product is named “Universe”, and it is a blend of their micro encapsulated beads of paraffin applied to viscose fiber. According to the press release I printed off of the internet they are applying the beads of paraffin to the surface of the viscose fiber which is 10 mm long (0.39 inches) and approximately 7 denier. The reason for this fiber which they state is “a thick fiber” versus the fiber denier I use which is 5.50 is because they probably need the thickness for the micro encapsulated beads of paraffin to adhere too. This is done in Europe since we do not make viscose in the USA.

The use for this viscose product is to blend it with down. When I spoke with one of the representative from Outlast I was told the blend should be 30 percent “Universe” with 70 percent down that is no more than 550 down quality.

What is the reason that they are doing this; simply to have a presence in the insulation business? They know that down costs are extremely high and Primaloft has started blending their polyester fiberfill with down and 3-M has come out with their featherless down so why not make a new product that can be blended with down to offset the cost of the down which as far as I know is in the $80.00 price range and higher. The result of blending this material with down would reduce the cost of the down used in a product to $56.00 if it is &80.00 per pound. The cost of the “Universe” has to be much less than $24.00 so the savings will be significant.

Now that we know why they have entered the market place we have to understand what the potential benefits might be.It is at this point that we enter into the miracle stage of this insulation. Outlast claims and I quote;

• ABSORBS EXCESS BODY HEAT: (what is excess body heat? See reduces over heating explanation below)
• MAMAGES MOISTURE: (it is impossible to manage the moisture that comes out of the human body)
• REDUCES OVER HEATING: (actually because this so called insulation is so bad you will not have to worry about over heating since all of the heat you generate will escape through it quite easily)
• REDUCES CHILLING: (actually the chilling effect will be very noticeable, it will increase significantly)
• REDUCES PERSPIRATION: (see moisture management above)
• CONTINUALLY ADAPTS TO THERMAL CHANGES: (the only thermal change that one will experience will be of getting colder and colder)

The claims are in capitals and my comments are in brackets.

When I spoke with the representative I was told about laboratory testing that was done, I was not told that they ever did any field testing with human subjects which is standard in the outdoor industry. They only rely on laboratory testing.

We know that down absorbs moisture and we also know that viscose absorbs moisture. What is used in my shoe drier product is viscose because it absorbs moisture. To refresh you about viscose; it is made from tree pulp. Wood absorbs moisture, and once the moisture is absorbed by the two entities that make up the insulation, down and viscose then they in concert will absorb the heat that the body is producing ultimately causing the chilling effect. So much for this miracle insulation having any value.

If this product does get into the marketplace, all who buy products specifically outerwear garments made with it as the insulation will have wasted their money. Once more a company that already produces bogus products is producing one more.

I personally find companies that market bogus products reprehensible.