Can You Hand Wash a Comforter? 

Keeping your bedding clean is key to enjoying a good night’s sleep. Dust mites and allergens can quickly accumulate if you don’t wash your comforter as frequently as you wash your other bedding. Luckily, there are many ways to clean your comforter, but the method you choose should be appropriate for the specific material. Remember that some fabrics are fragile and may not withstand rigorous washing. So can you hand wash a comforter?

You can hand wash a comforter at home using your bathtub. Fill the tub with warm water and add a small mild detergent. Swirl the mixture and fully immerse the fabric for five minutes. Drain the tub and then wash the comforter with clean, cool water before hanging it to dry.

Some people will prefer to use a washing machine or another method, such as dry cleaning, but hand washing is usually a fine choice. Let’s take a look at how exactly to proceed, how often you should wash a comforter, and how best to dry it when you’re done.

Can You Wash Your Comforter at Home?

Woman loading blanket into washing machine

Most comforters can be washed at home, despite some being labeled as dry-clean only. Comforters can usually be machine washed and dried. If you don’t have access to a washing machine, you can wash your clothes by hand in your bathtub and hang them to dry.

Almost any style of comforter can be machine-washed using fabric-specific detergent and an appropriate water temperature.  

The same doesn’t necessarily apply to drying — double-check the fabric composition on the label before putting anything in the dryer. Comforters made of silk, wool, cashmere, or velvet should not be put in the dryer and should instead be air-dried.

If the comforter is made of down, linen, cotton, polyester, or pretty much anything else, it can be washed by hand or machine-washed and dried. Regardless, if you have a washing machine, that’s probably the easiest option.

Can You Hand Wash a Comforter?

If your comforter is too large for your machine or is composed of delicate textiles, hand-wash it and hang it to dry instead. Your comforter will be clean in no time. A few steps on how to hand wash a comforter are detailed below.

First, make sure your bathtub is clean before you begin. To seal the drain, use a bathtub stopper and fill your tub with warm water about two-thirds full.

Then, fill the cap of your detergent with some detergent and pour it in. A negligible quantity of detergent can get your comforter clean. You might consider trying Nikwax Down Wash Direct (on Amazon).

Submerge the comforter for at least five minutes in water. Place your comforter in the sudsy water and push it down to cover it completely. To get a thorough clean, soak your comforter in soapy water for a few minutes. After that, scrub the bedspread with a soft-bristled scrub brush if desired. This isn’t always necessary, though.

Lift the comforter to the back of the tub after draining the soapy water. After your comforter has soaked for a while, take it away from the drain and remove the drain stopper. Allow the soapy water to drain so that you can use fresh water.

Replace the drain stopper and fill the tub halfway with cool water once the soapy water is gone. Soak the comforter in cold water for 3-5 minutes. This removes any soap residue.

Remove the drain stopper to empty the tub and wring the comforter to get rid of excess water. Let the cool water drain away when your comforter is completely cleaned. Then, to remove excess water from your comforter, wring it out with your hands, place it in the tub, and wring it out again with your hands.

Hang your comforter outside or on a rail to dry. Your comforter is ready to dry once you’ve wrung it out. Your comforter will dry in a few hours, depending on the fabric. Drape the comforter over the stairway if you don’t have access to a clothesline or a banister. During the drying process, turn the comforter over midway.

How Do You Wash a Comforter in a Washing Machine?

It takes a long time to clean your bedding. We probably don’t do it often enough because it’s the most time-consuming and intricate laundry chore. When we do it, though, the results are indisputable.

Here are a few steps on washing a comforter with a washing machine, along with some useful hints to make washing the comforter a lot less stressful.

Examine the tag’s care instructions for relevant information on how to wash your comforter. It will state the temperature range your comforter needs to be laundered or if it has to be hand-washed. Depending on the instructions, you can easily wash your comforter in your washing machine.

If you load a comforter in by itself, most washing machines can easily fit it. In the washing machine, but three clean tennis balls with your comforter. Tennis balls help fluff up your comforter while it is being washed and keep the load balanced. You can also use dryer balls, like the XIEHE Reusable Dryer Balls (on Amazon).

Pour a small quantity of your preferred detergent into the detergent slot. You can find the detergent slot towards the top left or middle of most washing machines. Locate your slot, fill the provided cap with all-purpose detergent, and pour the detergent from the cap into the slot.

Press “Start” after selecting the gentle wash setting. When washing your comforter, always use the “gentle” option to avoid harming the fabric. On the right side of the machine, you can usually find the wash settings.

A delicate wash cycle in most machines takes 45-60 minutes to complete. When the cycle is complete, open the machine’s top, remove your comforter, and place the moist comforter into your dryer. As long as you don’t add any other items to the dryer, most king-size comforters will fit.

To keep the shape of the comforter, place the tennis balls inside. The tennis balls help keep your comforter in good condition. You can wash your comforter with the same tennis balls you used to clean it.

Use a low heat setting to dry your comforter. Adjust the heat setting to the lowest choice before pressing “Start.” A typical dry cycle takes 60-80 minutes on a low heat setting. Using your comforter on a high heat setting can damage the fabric or cause it to distort.

How Often Should You Wash a Comforter? 

Warm and gray blanket on a light background

While most of us clean our bed linens regularly, one of the most-used objects on our beds is frequently overlooked — the comforter. It keeps us comfortable and warm at night.

However, you wouldn’t be so relaxed if you knew how filthy it could get. Dust mites and pet fur are two examples of contaminants that can make your comforter unclean. Even the body can cause the comforter to become dirty.

You won’t need to wash the comforter more than once or twice a year unless anything spills. The cover will need to be cleaned once a week.

You should clean your comforters twice every year. Do this around the changing of the seasons to help you remember and stay consistent. Doctors also advise that when someone has been sick, you clean all of your bedding.

People sleep for about a third of their lives and shed hundreds of dead skin cells each night. It’s critical to understand how often you should wash your comforter and other bedding to live a healthy lifestyle and manage allergies.

Dirt, bacteria, pet dander, and other irritants can quickly accumulate in your bedding! If your comforter doesn’t have a protective duvet cover and it hasn’t been stained or has excess dirt on it, then it is advisable to wash it every one or two months. If the comforter has a cover, you can launder it a few times a year.

As previously said, variables such as the number of people sleeping in the bed, the existence of pets, and sensitivity to irritants should all be considered; washing your comforter often is advised in cases like this.

Is It Better to Wash or Dry-Clean a Comforter? 

Dry cleaning may sometimes be preferable to machine or hand washing.

Some comforters easily lose their shape and can’t withstand a regular wash cycle because of the delicate material or setting. With dry cleaning, stains are removed gently without causing harm to the fabrics.

Most comforters can be washed in the washing machine and dried in the dryer. And in situations where your comforter is too big for your machine, or it’s made of delicate materials, it’s better to hand wash and air dry instead of using the machine. Your comforter will be spotless and fresh in no time.

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