My friend Bud, who lives in Florida half the year and at his cabin in North Carolina the other half, recently texted me with a puzzling problem. Literally, he was baffled by the confusing nature of several down comforters he had purchased.

Bud knows that substandard bedding is a topic I don’t take on, so he wrote, “I have a possible column topic for you.” You may not find this interesting, but it is to me! » Bud is 80 years old, widowed and thin. He is cold at night. So, as winter approaches, he wants a good down duvet.

He then shares that because he wraps himself in these comforters while watching TV and eating, the white ones are impractical. He bought four colorful duvets online from a retailer we’ll call Company C. He returned all four because most of the sewn squares meant to hold the fluffy down in place were flat, as if empty.

“You’re sleeping.” At night your legs are cold,” he said. “You put a blanket on them and go back to sleep. It happens again the next night. The third night you say, “Wait a minute.” Why are my legs cold and nothing else? I have a brand new down comforter. So you get up in the middle of the night, spread out the (exhaustive) duvet and discover that 30% of the pockets are not filled.

Who knew down bedding was such a sneaky deal?

He ordered two more colorful quilts from Company L. Same problem. Dead spots. He returned them. Determined to figure out what was going on, Bud (a retired product liability attorney) called the L Company quilt manufacturer.

The woman he spoke to fluffed her shorts about “sewn” or “blown” down, saying sewn-in was better because the blown variety used openings in each compartment to accommodate tube-shaped blowers . and these openings later became escape hatches for the down. She insisted that the comforters Bud bought had “the favorite down” sewn into them. So why did they still have empty pockets? “She was wrong,” Bud said.

I respond to Bud. “If I can, instead of a comforter, why not buy a well-made white down insert and a colorful duvet cover that you can remove and wash?” For those in need of a refresh, a comforter is a single piece; a duvet has two, an outer cover and an insert.

“Maybe you’re better than me at putting the down in the duvet cover,” he replies. He’s right. The task can seem like a tug-of-war with an octopus.

Now curious, I decided to take stock and find out why some comforters and duvet inserts have flat spots. Neither Company C nor Company L responded to my call. Next, I called Missy Tannen, founder of Boll & Branch, a leading luxury linen line. Tannen is the only person we know who is more discerning than me when it comes to bedding. The reason she started her business 10 years ago was because she couldn’t find sheets she liked. Go ahead, sister!

A few years later, because customers kept asking her what type of pillows or duvet inserts she recommended, she added inserts, duvets and pillows to her line. But first, she dove deep to understand what made a great product. Here’s what she shared:

• What’s wrong? Down is the light, fluffy down found under the feathers of ducks and geese. Down keeps birds warm and regulates their temperature and does the same for our bedding. Down clusters are three-dimensional spirals, not to be confused with feathers, which are flat, offer no volume and pass through the fabric and the pickaxe.

• It’s what’s inside that counts. For premium comfort, Tannen said, you want 100 percent goose or duck down, with no feathers. Read the label and smell the product. If it’s crispy or looks crispy, it has feathers. Feathers play a role in pillows because they add structure. “We place the feathers in the center and wrap them in layers of down and fabric,” Tannen explained. When purchasing down products, also look for ethical sourcing. An IDFL Down Standard symbol means the product meets international requirements for responsible and traceable sourcing.

• Weigh the stuffed animals. Industry insiders measure it by its fill power, which ranges from 500 to 800. The higher the number, the warmer and bulkier the blankets. Down inserts and comforters come in light, medium, and heavier weights. Depending on where you live, whether you sleep warm or cool, and whether you change your bedding depending on the season, will determine what weight is best for you. For those prone to allergies, alternatives to synthetic down are also available and getting better.

• Concealment. The fabric that covers the padding also matters. It should be tight enough to hold the filling fibers and open enough to allow air to pass through. Look for 100% cotton or linen and avoid synthetic or chemically coated fabrics.

• Stop the migration. Down inserts and duvets hold their down in place with sewn-in square compartments or baffle boxes. Stitched squares directly connect the top and bottom layers. Each square is filled with down. Because there is no padding at the seams and the down peaks in the center of the squares, heat distribution is uneven. Premium down comforters and inserts feature baffles, a grid-like layer of 1-inch-tall fabric walls that slide between the top and bottom layers and are sewn to the top and bottom layers, forming square rooms. Pressure tubes blow into each chamber in precise amounts, distributing it more evenly, eliminating cold spots. Tannen suspects the problem with Bud’s various quilts was due to manufacturer error, failure to place certain squares and poor quality control. (His company places each item on a viewer and scale.) Bud may pay extra for confusing bedding, but at least he won’t lose sleep over it.

Marni Jameson is the author of seven books on home improvement. Contact her at marnijameson.com.