Women's Bottom Turn Racerback Bikini Top vs Men's Mercury Gravity 21" Boardshorts: which is safer?
Patagonia Women's Bottom Turn Racerback Bikini Top is the clear pick. Quiksilver Men's Mercury Gravity 21" Boardshorts carries a failing PFAS grade, and we never recommend buying a failing product.
Our pick
Patagonia
Women's Bottom Turn Racerback Bikini Top
PFAS grade
Overall grade
Verdict
Hazard flags
Material
Confidence
PossibleElastane (spandex) degradation under heat or chlorine
Quiksilver
Men's Mercury Gravity 21" Boardshorts
PFAS grade
Overall grade
Verdict
Hazard flags
Material
Confidence
PossibleAzo dyes (textile colorants)
PossibleFormaldehyde in textile finishing resins
PossibleMicroplastics from wear and washing
Where these two actually differ
- We flag Elastane (spandex) degradation under heat or chlorine on the Patagonia and not on the Quiksilver.
- We flag Azo dyes (textile colorants), Formaldehyde in textile finishing resins, Microplastics from wear and washing and Degradation of DWR coating over time on the Quiksilver and not on the Patagonia.
- The Patagonia is Nylon/polyester blend with elastane (standard swimwear) where the Quiksilver is Polyester with DWR (durable water-repellent) finish, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
- The gap is 70 points, wide enough that this is not a close call, and the Patagonia is the one to buy.
- We are less certain about the Quiksilver grade, at 45% confidence against 72%, because it discloses less.
Both products run through the same public rubric, which covers materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →
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