Everyone knows the importance of washing their sheets, but what about cleaning your mattress? Keeping your bedding fresh isn’t just about hygiene: it can also help prevent allergies, remove stains and improve sleep quality, especially if you share your bed with furry friends. From the lifespan of throw pillows and blankets to the best way to dry your comforter, Carolyn Forté, Executive Director of the Home Care & Cleaning Lab, shares expert tips for keeping everything cozy and spotless.
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00:00Sheets and pillowcases should be washed every week.
00:03You can go two weeks, but it really shouldn't go longer than that.
00:06Hi, I'm Carolyn Forte, Executive Director of the Good Housekeeping Home Care and Cleaning Lab,
00:10where we test all types of cleaning appliances and products
00:13and share our best advice and home cleaning tips.
00:16Today I'm going to be answering some common questions about cleaning your bedding.
00:19This is Good to Know.
00:22So the first question about bedding is, should I be cleaning my mattress?
00:26And the answer is, it's a good idea,
00:28especially if you or someone in your family has allergies.
00:31Mattresses accumulate dead skin cells, dust mites, and all kinds of things.
00:35Certainly if there are visible stains, those need to be removed.
00:38If you've got a garment steamer or a household steamer,
00:41the best thing that you can do is go over the surface of the mattress,
00:44go into all the nooks and crannies, into the welts and the cording
00:47and mattress and box spring, if you have one.
00:50That will kill dust mites lurking near the surface,
00:52and then follow up with a good vacuuming,
00:54because you not only want to kill them, but you want to remove them.
00:56Afterwards, you can sprinkle on some baking soda, rub it in,
00:59let it sit for 15 minutes, 30 minutes, vacuum it out.
01:03That will help remove any odors that might be trapped in the mattress.
01:06And then finally, you can spray with a disinfecting spray
01:09or a fabric sanitizer, anything that's safe to use on fabrics
01:12to kill bacteria and give your mattress an overall fresher feel.
01:17Next, why are my pillows turning yellow, and how do I clean them?
01:21Pillows turn yellow from sweat and body oils,
01:24and it really is important to clean them,
01:26and many pillows today are machine washable.
01:28Regular, synthetic, fiber-filled, down-filled,
01:31or even some shredded foam pillows can go in the washing machine,
01:34but the solid foam pillows should not go in the washing machine.
01:37They are not safe to machine wash.
01:39One way to help keep your pillows from turning yellow
01:41is to put a liner underneath the pillowcase,
01:44so it helps protect the outside of the pillow,
01:46and it's much easier to remove the liner and wash that
01:49than it is to wash the pillow.
01:50Next question, how often should I be washing my bedding?
01:53Sheets and pillowcases should be washed every week.
01:56You can go two weeks, but it really shouldn't go longer than that.
01:59You're sweating, you've got body oils, makeup stains,
02:03so those are the first place where those kinds of soils get trapped.
02:06For your comforter, certainly it depends on if you eat in bed,
02:09if your pets share your bed with you, if you sit on the comforter,
02:12how dirty it is, then that will dictate that they need to be cleaned more often.
02:15Mattress topper is there to keep the mattress clean,
02:18so that will be a spot where that can collect sweat and body soils,
02:22so every two months, three months would be a good idea to take that off.
02:26Wash it in the washing machine and put it back on.
02:28It will help keep your mattress cleaner longer, too.
02:30What temperature should I wash my bedding?
02:32Warm or cold are best, depending on what the care label says,
02:35so always be sure to follow that.
02:37If you've got someone in the household who's sick or particularly allergic,
02:41you might want to up the temperature a little bit warmer
02:43to make sure that it gets super clean,
02:45but detergents work better in cold water today,
02:47so cold water will protect the fabrics and should give you good cleaning.
02:51Next question, what's the best washing machine settings to use for my bedding?
02:55Most sheets and pillowcases and flat bedding can be done on the normal
02:59or the colored cycles.
03:01Some require low or delicate, so always follow the care label,
03:04but comforters, mattress pads, anything that's filled and puffy,
03:08if your machine has a bulky bedding cycle,
03:10it's probably a good option to choose that.
03:12It puts an extra rinse in on some machines that do that
03:15or keeps it tumbling at a certain way so that fibers and the quilting
03:19and everything that's deep in those puffy and bulky bedding items will get clean.
03:23What's the best way to keep my sheets and bedding white or true to color?
03:28Cooler water temperatures will help protect some of the colors.
03:32If you do have stains or things you can't particularly remove,
03:35you can generally add a little oxygen bleach.
03:37That will help keep colors bright.
03:39It will help whiten whites and remove any dinginess or yellowing that can be in there.
03:43Some sheets and pillowcases may be safe for chlorine bleach,
03:47but it's always best to test those in a little hidden spot first to be sure.
03:50Finally, think about how you're drying them.
03:52Use the automatic cycle instead of the time.
03:55Don't just put them in there for an hour and let it go.
03:57The automatic cycles will monitor the moisture level in your sheets
04:01and your pillowcases and your bedding and end the cycle when it senses that they're dry.
04:06And what that helps do is it helps prevent over-drying,
04:09it helps keep fabric soft, and it helps keep colors true.
04:14Do hypoallergenic mattresses hold less bacteria?
04:17Hypoallergenic is not a term that's really regulated by the government,
04:21so every manufacturer takes liberties with what it means for their particular products.
04:26But hypoallergenic doesn't really have to do with bacteria.
04:29It has more to do with allergens, like dust mites or allergens to materials
04:33that can be used in the mattresses.
04:35So if you have a latex allergy or you are particularly allergic to dust and dust mites
04:40or certain fibers or fabrics, those are the types of things that you want to look for
04:44in a mattress that won't expose you to those kinds of things.
04:47Mattress manufacturers can call something hypoallergenic.
04:50You really need to know what they've done to make it hypoallergenic
04:53so it's not irritating to you.
04:56How do I wash delicate bedding materials like silk or linen?
04:59Silk and linen bedding is generally machine washable on the delicate cycle.
05:03Cool, maybe warm temperatures.
05:05You do put it in the dryer. Dry it until it's damp dry.
05:09Maybe about 10 minutes or so.
05:11Then take it out and let it finish air drying.
05:13It'll air dry quickly, but that way you don't risk over drying or damaging the fabrics or the fibers.
05:19Next question, can I put my comforter in the dryer or should I air dry it?
05:23Definitely put it in the dryer.
05:24First of all, air drying the comforter takes up a lot of room and takes a long time.
05:27So it's really annoying to do that.
05:29And in the dryer, what happens is that the filling,
05:31whether it's a synthetic or down filling, down feather filling, gets fluffed up.
05:36So the fluffier the filling, the warmer it's going to keep you.
05:38And that's what you want.
05:39You don't want filling or down that's clumped up, not fluffy, inside the comforter.
05:44So make sure that in the middle of the cycle, several times,
05:47you take it out, turn it around, fluff it up.
05:50Break up any clumps of down that you might feel through the outer fabric.
05:53Toss in a few dryer balls to keep it tumbling.
05:55Once it's completely dry, then you know you're going to get the best warmth from your comforter.
06:00How often should I be replacing my throw pillows?
06:02Throw pillows last forever, honestly.
06:04But the idea is that you can keep them clean.
06:06If you sit on the bed or pets are on the bed,
06:08you're going to want to make sure that fabrics and fibers do trap odors and stains.
06:12Maybe you can wash them. Toss them in the wash.
06:14If that's possible, check the label.
06:16If not, you can use a good garment steamer to help remove odors.
06:19Spot clean them when you can.
06:20If your throw pillows have removable covers, those generally are washable.
06:24So that's an easy way to freshen and remove dust and stains from them.
06:28You can toss them in the dryer on the air fluff cycle to help remove some of the dust
06:32or run a garment steamer over them to help release some of the odors.
06:35Also, throw blankets, especially if your pets are laying on the bed,
06:38can be generally thrown in the washing machine and tumble dried as well.
06:42Thanks for watching. Head to goodhousekeeping.com for more tips.
07:02♪♪♪