How can children's pajamas be tested in the United States to ensure they meet flammability standards?

What are children's pajamas?

Children's pajamas refer to any clothing from 9 months old to under 14 sizes, such as pajamas, pajamas, robes, or home clothing, primarily used for sleeping or sleep-related activities.

In order to determine whether a piece of clothing belongs to pajamas, the committee considers:

1. The nature of clothing and its suitability for sleeping or activities related to sleeping;

2. How clothing is promoted and distributed; and

3. In most cases, clothing is mainly used by children for sleeping or the possibility of sleeping related activities. Underwear and diapers are not children's pajamas. Clothing for infants aged nine months or smaller does not need to meet the standard in the following situations:

(1) It is a jumpsuit and the length does not exceed 25 ¾ Inches, or two-piece clothing with a length not exceeding 15 ¾ Inches; and

(2) It has a label that states the age of the child it targets in months. Although these types of clothing are not subject to the requirements of this rule, they must still meet the flammability requirements of clothing textiles 16C.FR 1610 and vinyl plastic film 16 CFR 1611.

How to test children's pajamas to ensure they meet flammability standards?

Due to the details in the regulations, we have only provided a general overview of sampling and testing requirements. For more detailed information on testing equipment and procedures, clothing or fabric sampling, sample selection, and other requirements, please refer to regulations or contact the compliance office.

Typically, five 3.5 inch x 10 inch sample samples are used for testing, which are cut from the seams and trims of the fabric or clothing being tested. Each sample is tested separately. Place each sample in a metal bracket and hang each bracket vertically in the testing cabinet.

Apply a gas flame to the bottom edge of the sample for 3 seconds. Measure the carbonization length of each sample.

Flammability testing includes selecting and testing a specified number of samples for three different items - fabric, prototype seams, and decorations, as well as producing clothing seams. Fabric (or clothing) must be tested during production (or after one wash) and after 50 washes. Based on the test results, the project may be accepted, rejected, or require additional sampling and testing. Usually, the average carbonization length of five samples cannot exceed 7.0 inches, or have a single carbonization length of more than a specified number of 10 inches.

Fabric: The finished fabric to be made into pajamas must be grouped into a Fabric Production Unit (FPU) and tested before using the fabric to make the prototype clothing. One FPU can reach up to 5000 linear codes of fabric. If they exhibit similar combustion characteristics, you can include different colors or printed patterns of the same fabric in the same FPU. Test one of the five samples (two samples per FPU) from each end of each FPU.

FPU is accepted or rejected according to fabric sampling plan standards. If 15 consecutive FPUs of a fabric are accepted, the linear code number of the fabric in the FPU can be increased. If the FPU is rejected, the third of the five samples taken from the middle of the FPU must be used for testing subsequent FPUs.

Clothing Prototype: Before you actually produce the clothing that will be sold, you must test the prototype of each clothing design feature. This test helps to ensure that your designed clothing meets standards during mass production. It is necessary to test the actual seam type and trim used in clothing. Most sleeves and collar straps/ribbed cuffs do not require testing. Test three samples, five for each sample, the longest joint type, three samples of 10 inches or longer for each different joint type, and three samples for each type of trimming.