The Difference Between Live Moss and Preserved Moss

Background on Moss Pure

Moss Pure – The World’s Only Company to Use 100% LIVE Moss With No Watering Needed!

Moss Pure was created at a startup competition at MIT, where it won First Place Startup in its track in June 2020 (MIT Lebanon Challenge). Moss Pure is the world’s only company to use 100% living moss as an air filter and stress relief device without needing any watering. This is due to our patent pending and award-winning science. We are not just adding living moss to a frame or decor piece. There is extensive biology and engineering used in our designs – all while being an aesthetically pleasing focal piece in your business and home. It was important to our design that although Moss Pure has a lot of science involved, it wouldn’t look like a scientific device, but a piece of luxury art used to elevate and transform spaces. This alone was incredibly innovative because scientific devices in the scientific industry are not made to be aesthetically pleasing. But we wanted to be innovative and disruptive – and worked with our customers to come up with our award-winning designs.

Moss Wall Art: Live Moss vs Preserved Moss

If you’ve seen moss decor out and about, it’s most likely preserved moss. Most companies use preserved moss or dried moss, which are no longer living. Preserved moss is treated and processed with toxic chemicals to no longer make the moss living, to soften the moss, and then dyes to make the moss usable as an art piece. Preserved moss is toxic to your air quality as it off-gases and emits chemicals into your air. This is the reason why preserved moss gives off a very strong chemical smell – which can take up any room in a matter of seconds. It’s not normal for a plant to give off a chemical smell. This is not normal because preserved moss is not real and it’s fake.

Furthermore, most preserved moss is “reindeer moss” which isn’t even a type of moss or a type of plant. The “reindeer moss” is a lichen or fungus. It undergoes treatment with toxic chemicals. It’s processed in multiple steps. Therefore, its composition is completely changed to become a material used for art. It now becomes like a piece of carpet on your wall – attracting mold, dust, fading very quickly and needing constant maintenance or replacement.

If you have a preserved moss wall, you’re not only going to make an investment in the initial installation, but because preserved moss only lasts months, you will be investing in replacing it several times a year.

MOSSPURE® LIVING MOSS

• Living, fresh, and vibrant
• Long-lasting and stunning
• Improves air quality
• Fresh scent and fluffy texture
• Therapeutic benefits
• Sustainable and natural

PRESERVED “MOSS”

• Reindeer moss (actually a fungus)
• Not living, treated with chemicals
• Fades and needs to be replaced
• No purifying benefit
• Smells like chemicals
• Dyes come off on hands & furniture

We created Moss Pure during a startup competition at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where it won First Place Startup in 2020. During the MIT competition, we realized that other moss walls and decor out there is made out of preserved moss. Preserved moss is no longer living. During the preservation process, moss is treated with chemicals and then dyed different colors. Because the moss is no longer alive, the moss is brittle and stiff and looks fake. The chemicals used in the preservation process will give off an odor for some time. The dyes and chemicals in the moss can come onto your hands and clothing. The picture below shows how the preserved moss chemicals can stain your hands. Most preserved moss is made out of reindeer moss, which is not a type of moss but a type of fungi.

Reindeer Moss is not a type of moss and doesn’t last without needing constant replacement

As you can see in the picture below, preserved moss, including reindeer moss, is chemically treated so that it is no longer living and can be used as an art material. The material composition is now changed so it is like a piece of carpet. This is why after a few days, preserved moss fades, falls apart easily, has a strong chemical smell, and attracts dust and mold. The picture below is a preserved moss sample from a customer only a month after it was made.

Moss Pure was created with live moss by feedback from customers

During the MIT competition, we spoke with 150 customers in the United States. These customers wanted live moss without needing watering or maintenance. Most existing living wall products out there used a lot of water and electricity. They were bulky and not aesthetically pleasing. No other company was able to keep live moss alive for more than a few days. And no other company was able to create an air filter made out of live moss that worked. That’s when we created Moss Pure – the first and only company to use live moss to improve your air quality and provide therapeutic relief – without needing watering, sunlight, or maintenance. We do this using our patent pending and proprietary science, called The Moss Sauce. The Moss Sauce creates a living environment without our products for the live moss, extending its life from days to years.

Live moss and Moss Pure

Live moss is different from many plants. First off, there are tens of thousands of species of moss – and even more subspecies. There are several misconceptions about moss, especially on the internet. The truth is that moss is a very diverse plant. Many plants that have the word moss in their generic name aren’t actually moss. For example, peat moss, which is used in gardening, is not a plant and is not a type of moss. It’s a fertilizer in soil used to help plants grow. Also, reindeer moss is used in preserved moss wall art and isn’t even a type of moss or a type of plant.

We use our own species of 100% living moss. The moss used in Moss Pure’s patent pending science was carefully selected to work with our science. The secret to making our products work is our patent pending science. That’s why we call our science the Moss Sauce. Because without our science (the Sauce), live moss would not be able to live for a long time and would not be able to purify air. Our science is the reason why our living moss is able to live indefinitely in our product without needing watering, sunlight, or maintenance.

The World’s Only Moss Air Filter That is Certified

Live moss on its own is NOT an air filter. We are not just adding moss to a frame. If you were to add moss to a frame, it wouldn’t last for more than a few days, would need excessive watering, and it wouldn’t be an air filter. What makes Moss Pure work is our award-winning biology and engineering. Using 20 years of expertise in science, our patent pending products were developed.

A product is not an air filter without certified air quality testing. In the United States you cannot say that your product is an air filter without passing certified air quality results from a third-party laboratory. Moss Pure is the world’s only moss based and plant-based company to have certified air quality results from a US laboratory. Each square foot of our live moss air filters capture 30% of carbon dioxide daily and 1.5 million particles of toxic pollutants daily, including dust and allergens. Air quality testing shows that our multi-layered biological air filter improves your air quality in just 2 minutes.

Back in the 1950’s, there were studies that some plants are “natural air purifiers.” What most people don’t know is that plants that are thought of as natural air purifiers take a long time to purify your air and don’t really improve your air quality. For example, it might take these plants 20 years to only purify 0.2% of your space. We didn’t want to use a “natural air purifier.” We wanted to create and design a multi-layered air filter that impacts your space – and we have the certified testing to prove that Moss Pure improves your air quality in just 2 minutes.

Our invention can be used to create any product and in any environment. Indoor and outdoor environments. Massive spanning walls and panels to small unique pieces. Extreme weather conditions (Dubai or Alaska). There is no limit to our design creativity or reach. 

How long does live moss last?

We mentioned previously that before Moss Pure, no other company was able to keep live moss alive and sustainable for more than a few days. If you were to just take live moss and attach it to a frame, it wouldn’t last for more than a few days and it wouldn’t be an air filter. We use our patent pending and award-winning science to keep living moss alive in our products indefinitely, while becoming an air filter and stress relief device. We are the first in the world to use live moss in the way that we do.

Moss Pure is the only company to use live moss and its benefits

Moss Pure’s Live Moss Walls

There are tens of thousands of species of live moss. We aren’t using the moss that you see in your lawn or garden. And we aren’t just adding moss to a wall frame. If you were to take live moss and simply attach it to a wall frame, the moss wouldn’t survive for more than a few days and it wouldn’t be an air filter. Our patent pending and award-winning science works with live moss to become an air filter and stress relief device, benefiting you and your environment.

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Why Preserved Moss Does Not Work

How long does preserved moss last?

Preserved moss does not last for a long time. After a short timeframe, preserved moss will need replacement or maintenance. Also the dyes and chemicals used in the preservation process can react with light and sunlight and fade in color – and change different colors. The brittle moss will fall apart and need replacement.

Preserved moss smell

Because preserved moss is treated with so many chemicals, it gives off a chemical smell. The moss is also no longer alive. Many preserved moss companies refer to this smell as an “earthy” smell. But there’s nothing earthy about the smell. This smell is actually the chemicals from the preservation and chemical addition process being emitted from the moss.

Preserved moss cannot act as an air filter

Preserved moss actually adds pollutants to your surrounding air rather than purifying it. There are a lot of preserved moss companies out there claiming that preserved moss can be used to purify air. This is not scientifically correct. Preserved moss is no longer alive and can’t be used as an air filter. It’s actually not good for the environment as it emits chemicals into the air. Any company that states preserved moss can be used as an air filter is making false claims. In comparison, Moss Pure uses 100% real, living moss that looks and smells like a real plant in nature. Moss Pure uses live moss and patent pending science to create a living air filter. We also have certified air testing results from a lab confirming that Moss Pure does improve your air quality.

Why Preserved Moss Walls Don’t Work

If you’ve seen moss decor out and about, it’s most likely preserved moss. Most companies use preserved moss or dried moss, which are no longer living. Preserved moss and dried moss cannot be used as an air filter because the moss is no longer living. Moss Pure is the only company to use 100% live moss.

• Preserved moss does not last and within a small timeframe will flake, fade in color, and need replacement, Moss Pure’s live moss is long-lasting and high quality with no watering or maintenance needed.

• Reindeer moss, the most commonly used preserved moss, is actually a fungi and not a type of moss.

• Preserved moss is toxic to your air quality. The chemicals in preserved moss add pollutants to your air rather than purifying your air.

• The chemicals in preserved moss give it a strong chemical smell. This is unlike Moss Pure’s live moss, which smells like an evergreen forest or fresh cut grass.

• Preserved moss becomes stiff, brittle, and the dyes will come off onto your hands, furniture, and clothing. The different colors makes the moss appear fake.

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