It’s Time for a Duvet Wash Day
Published on the 23rd of May 2019
Warmer weather is on its way and its time to take off some layers and reduce the heavy winter bedding, putting it away for the Summer months.
Duvet washing is a task many of us may not do but nonetheless, it’s an important one to ensure you rid your bedding of all the sweat and skin cells accumulated over the winter months which can migrate through the pyjamas and duvet cover and attract dust mites. Yep, not a pleasant thought but one to spur you on.
Check the washing instructions on the label and consider the size and type of your duvet before deciding on whether you can wash this at home or need to take it to a dry cleaner.
As a general rule, larger or higher tog sized duvets and those that are feather or down filled are better washed at the launderette or dry cleaners. They will tend to be fluffier and benefit from being washed in a larger sized washing machine drum.
You may not have a large enough machine at home anyway – usually, a 9kg drum machine is needed for a king size duvet – so a trip to the launderette could be the best bet.
For natural filled duvets, the dry cleaners provide a great wash and dry service and often have a special duvet package. The introduction of wet cleaning at many dry cleaning outlets in the UK means that gentler solvents and cleaning processes are now available for duvets, leaving them not only clean but with a pleasant smell and less wrinkled. The process is also kinder to the environment.
Once the washing is done, it is essential that duvets are completely dry before putting them away otherwise mould or mildew may develop. Air dry your duvet outside if you can even if you think it’s dry when you get it back from the laundrette or cleaners. A few hours on the line will get rid of any lingering process smell and ensure it is completely dry.
When deciding where to store your duvet, select a place that is always dry and clean so not in the attic, shed or garage where there is the chance of mice, damp or insects. Don’t store your duvet in a bin bag as these are not airtight. The best storage bag is a cotton one that keeps bugs and dust away but will allow the duvet to breathe.
If you have a feather duvet then try not to store anything on top of it to avoid the feathers or down being crushed and going lumpy. It’s also really helpful to label the duvet bag so that when you come to put the duvets back on in Autumn you know whose is whose.
So as the weather warms up and the sun comes out, it’s a perfect time to get your duvets back in pristine condition and come winter you’ll be as snug as a bug. Or hopefully not!