Eiderdown duvets and pillows ensure a healthy sleep. In the guide you will find out everything you need to know about production, advantages, care and convincing models.
Eiderdown is special down from the eider, which is only there to warm its nest.
So it’s no wonder that eiderdown duvets and pillows like to find a place in the bedroom.
In this post you will learn:
- What exactly is eiderdown & how it is made.
- Why they have many advantages for a good night’s sleep.
- Recommendable duvets & pillows that convinced me during the research.
So read on carefully and find out how you too can benefit from the warmth of the nest. I will give you information about the advantages and disadvantages, the care and alternatives.
The finest of the eiderdown duvets that you can use all year round is this model:
You can now read everything you need to know about pillows and duvets made of eiderdown in the following chapters:
Index
Advantages & disadvantages of eiderdown
The eiderdown is a very fine filling material and has unique properties. The disadvantages, on the other hand, are very clear.
Benefits of eiderdown
Here is a long list of the advantages of an eiderdown duvet or pillow:
- Extremely high heat capacity
- Very soft as there is no quill
- Strongly breathable
- Good temperature compensation
- Up to 40 years shelf life, refillable
Compared to goose down, only half the amount of eiderdown is necessary to achieve the same thermal output. Eiderdown duvets are therefore lighter.
Their good insulation properties reinforce the effect.
The air chambers, which are located between the individual downs, not only provide good heat insulation, but also pleasant ventilation.
In this way, the moisture created by sweating can be transported to the outside.
Eiderdown has tiny hairs that put on in warm temperatures and stand up again in cold weather.
As a result, the heat regulation adapts to the seasons, which is why eiderdown is also ideal as a year-round blanket .
Note: Eiderdown is four times as durable as other down duvets and down pillows and can be refilled when worn.
So you have something of your eiderdown duvet for a long time – you should remember this when you look at the exclusive prices, which are understandable due to the elaborate production.
Disadvantages of the eiderdown
With so many positive properties, it’s no wonder what the (almost) only disadvantage of eiderdown duvets and pillows is:
- High price (from 1500 EUR, depending on size and quality up to 5000 EUR)
But this is mainly due to their exclusivity:
- Because the eider is threatened with extinction.
- The production depends heavily on the weather conditions.
- The prices for the manufacturers therefore fluctuate.
Worth knowing: Only about 4 – 5 tons of eiderdown are produced worldwide every year.
In addition, the extraction of the eiderdown is particularly complex. You can read more about this in the following chapter.
Alternatively, you can jump directly to the chapter on the various eiderdown duvets and pillows.
Where does the eiderdown come from?
Most eiderdown comes from Scotland, North America, Siberia and Scandinavia – but especially from Iceland, where collecting has been a tradition for 11 centuries.
The eiderdown is very popular as a pillow and duvet filling, as it has a very high thermal output for its light weight.
- This is because the eider duck uses the down to warm its eggs and fry with it.
- For this she throws off her soft breast feathers during the breeding season and equips her nest with them.
The eiderdown has small barbs so that it is not blown away in the windy breeding grounds.
So they stick to each other, with air being trapped inside – hence the increased warming effect from which you benefit.
Extraction of the eiderdown
The endangered eider is not kept in a cage, but is allowed to move freely.
However, they like to nest near farms as the farmers protect them from martens, mink and other nest robbers.
So the farmers are entering into a kind of mutual benefit trade with the wild animals.
When the duck does not settle near farms, its rare nests can be found on cliffs and impassable, rocky places that few predators can get to.
So you can imagine how laborious the search and harvest of the valuable feathers must be.
Info: The eider down is only collected after the breeding season, when the nest is empty and the eider no longer needs the down.
This is the only way to guarantee the protection and conservation of the rare species.
Processing of the eider down
A farmer collects around 20 grams of eiderdown of various quality per nest. Only about 1.5 grams of this has the highest filling quality.
- The down is first hot-dried and sterilized at approx. 110 ° C, i.e., germs are removed.
- They are separated from grass, hay and other impurities in a special vibrating machine.
- They are then washed gently.
Now the fine down can be processed into pillows, down comforters and the like.
Info: Most eiderdown duvets are handcrafted in Germany. Cotton batiste is usually used as a reference material. The down is put into cassettes so that it is not squashed.
Eiderdown duvets
Would you like to take advantage of the many advantages of an eiderdown duvet? In the following I will introduce you to a few great variants.
- Due to its strong warming properties, eiderdown is very suitable for winter blankets.
- These are particularly soft and light – and therefore a great alternative to the conventional goose down blanket.
But noble down is also well suited for year-round or summer blankets, as it adapts to the temperatures.
The prices vary depending on the heat level (amount of filled eiderdown). Summer blankets are available from € 1000, although winter blankets can quickly cost four times as much.
Summer / year-round blankets (heat levels 1 – 4)
The blanket presented here is a good choice if you need an eiderdown quilt but do not want to dig deep into your pocket.
The heat level 2 means that it is suitable as a summer and transitional blanket. The blanket is available in different sizes.
The following example is only a little more expensive, but suitable as a year-round blanket:
That this blanket has such a good price-performance ratio could be due to the fact that the down used comes from Canada, where the production conditions and regulations are different from, for example, Iceland.
The eider duck lives here in the wild and is not allowed to be kept in a cage, but the eider down can be collected during the breeding season.
However, the foragers (mostly hunters from indigenous settlements) have to leave at least half of the down in the nest in order to ensure the survival of the species.
By the way : The eiderdown is also a better alternative to goose down because geese are kept on farms.
The so-called agonizing “live plucking” is also prohibited with geese; however, they can be “fought” during the moult, which means stress and pain for the animals.
So if you are concerned about the welfare of the animals, but still don’t want to do without down, eiderdown is a great choice.
Winter blankets (heat level 5)
If you want an eiderdown comforter that will definitely keep you cozy and warm, then you should reach for the highest heat level 5.
Here I would like to introduce you to a blanket that is again relatively cheap for what it offers.
The number of grams that I give here refers to the smallest size: 135cm x 200cm.
The blanket is of course suitable for allergy sufferers and has the “NOMITE seal”.
The noblest variant
May it be something more? If you want to feel like a prince or princess in your down duvet, then I have the right thing for you.
The following blanket is, so to speak, the Ferrari of the down comforters … It is suitable for the whole year and filled with class I eiderdown – so only the “best of the nest”.
It doesn’t get much better – that’s the high-end of sleeping comfort.
But remember: not only the right equipment is crucial for a healthy sleep. There are many other, not necessarily commercially available, factors that can affect sleep.
If you want to read more about it, just take a look at the Better Sleep section .
Eiderdown pillows
Eiderdown is also suitable as a filling for pillows:
The head and neck area are well supported thanks to a chamber system – thanks to the nature of the eiderdown, the pillow remains super soft.
Added to this is the air permeability of the down, which makes the pillow breathable and wicks away moisture.
In order to achieve a better support function, the inner chamber is always filled with a mixture of goose down and feathers. The goose feathers have a higher stability because of their quill.
In the outer chambers, the eiderdown ensures a soft surface.
- You can read more about the three-chamber system in my article on down pillows.
It is also interesting that eiderdown is harmless to people with house dust allergies.
Warning: Unfortunately, pillows with a three-chamber system cannot be washed in the washing machine. Professional cleaning is required here.
The prices for eiderdown products are so different because they are subject to the highly fluctuating availability of the raw material.
Other factors are the cover material, the quality class of the down and the brand.
Care of eiderdown bedding
Do you already own an eiderdown comforter and want to know how to wash it? Or would you like to find out how the care looks before you buy?
Here I have the right information for you.
Important : Moisture affects the insulating properties of the eiderdown, as it causes the delicate hairs to clump together. So wash your blanket as little as possible!
In the first few years after buying a new one, no cleaning is usually necessary. If you only wash your blanket every 2 years after that, that’s perfectly fine.
Here are a few important notes:
- Use a special detergent for feathers or down.
- Sometimes a mild detergent is enough.
- You need a dryer.
Use a gentle program to dry the blanket. Take the blanket out of the machine every now and then and tap it out so that clumps are loosened and the blanket is evenly dry.
Note: Check the care instructions to see whether the blanket can be washed at 60 ° C or only at 40 ° C.
Have you not kept the care instructions? Then, as a precaution, wash the blanket at 40 ° C.
Cheap alternatives
Don’t worry if you get a little dizzy with the steep prices of eiderdown duvets.
Since I admittedly felt the same way, I looked for a few alternatives to eiderdown duvets under which it is (almost) just as easy to spend the night.
Eiderdown comforters are a good investment as they will last up to 40 years.
But if you don’t want to buy one now, I still have good news for you:
Fortunately, the duvet industry has already thought of that and has come up with a few tricks: Voilà, I am presenting the “Eiderdown duvet type”.
Now you’re probably wondering if this isn’t just a marketing gimmick to trick inattentive readers.
My answer to that: maybe. But probably not, because:
If you buy a blanket for a few hundred euros, you will normally read the product name a little more carefully.
Ultimately, in my opinion, the industry simply wants to offer an inexpensive alternative for everyone who would like a quilt with eiderdown, but cannot or do not want to afford high-grade down.
What does “type eiderdown” mean?
The actual filling material in these blankets is the down of the wild duck.
This has similar properties to eiderdown: it is also light and soft and, in comparison, has a warmth of around 80%.
However, the down of the wild duck is unlikely to be laboriously collected from the abandoned nest like the eiderdown.
They are mostly plucked from hunted wild ducks, which are then processed in the meat industry.
Eiderdown & wild duck down in comparison
Here again the advantages and disadvantages of eiderdown and wild duck down at a glance:
- Eiderdown has an approx. 1.25 times heat capacity
- Eiderdown quilts cost 5 to 10 times as much
- The eider is not killed for the production
- Eiderdown duvets last longer (around 4 times as long)
As you can see, both products have their advantages and disadvantages and there are arguments for both variants.
My tip: If the price does not play a major role for you, the purchase of an eiderdown duvet or pillow is definitely worth considering.
Conclusion
Buying an eiderdown duvet is expensive, but the many benefits justify the high price.
- Long durability
- Good thermoregulation
- Soft & light
In addition, there is the elaborate and species-appropriate extraction of the eiderdown, which increases the costs.
I would definitely recommend you to choose a blanket with Icelandic down, as the standards for species protection are stricter than the regulations in North America, for example.
It is also helpful to order the blanket from a manufacturer in Germany, as you can have it refilled or repaired there inexpensively.
For example this model:
I wish you a healthy and restful sleep under your new duvet.
More duvets & pillows alternatives
If you would like to find out more about sleep health , please take a look at this page. Here you will find everything you need to know and important tips and information about sleep.
In the following tests and articles, you will get the best recommendations and quickly find your new duvet or pillow:
- Duvets in the test: insider tips & test winner
- Summer duvet test 2020 – with top recommendations
- 4 seasons duvet – buying guide
- The best down comforters for summer
- Find the right pillow: Expert buying advice
With the right bedding that is tailored to your individual needs, you will sleep more restfully and healthily.
I created Sleep Knowledge to share my interests and experiences on healthy sleeping with others. On this page I am therefore dealing with interesting questions about the optimal night’s sleep & everything else that goes with it.