Do you have numerous items lying around your home that probably need a good wash? While most of us are meticulous about washing our clothes and dishes regularly, many people forget to clean less obvious everyday items. For instance, somebody should clean the makeup brushes, cloth gloves, or fans more often than you may think. Another thing you should add to your cleaning calendar? Pillows. Crystal Cleaning is here to teach you how to wash your pillows and why you should do it more often than you think!
Killing Off Dustmites
According to Apartment Therapy, you should throw your pillows in the washing machine at least twice a year, or more often if you live in a warm, humid climate. Doing so will not only cut down on the off-putting smells that result from months of nighttime drooling, but it will kill any dust mites that have gathered in there.
Dust mites thrive in tropical areas, which is why someone in Florida should wash their pillows once every few months or once per season. In contrast, someone in New Mexico doesn’t have to worry about doing it as often.
Time to Get a New Pillow vs Washing It
Before you get out the laundry soap, make sure your pillows are worth washing. Goose down and feather cushions can last many years, but synthetic fibers don’t last as long. If the synthetic fibers in your pillow are clumping or have flattened out, that’s a good sign that it’s time to upgrade to a new pillow.
To test your pillow’s viability, whether it’s down or synthetic, you should place it on a hard surface, fold it in half, and squish out the air. If it bounces back, it’s still got some life left, while a pillow that stays folded has reached the end of its life.
How to Wash Your Pillow
Ready to wash that pillow?
The best way to wash pillows is in a front-loading machine because pillows can float to the top of a top-loading washer, where they don’t always get uniformly wet.
Check your pillow’s tag for the manufacturer’s instructions and make sure your pillow isn’t “dry-clean-wash only.” If you cut off the tags long ago, don’t worry too much. Here is some advice:
Wash your pillow in warm water on the gentle cycle with mild liquid detergent. Then, put it through an extra rinse and spin cycle on cold to get out any remaining detergent. However, you want to use powder detergent for feather pillows designed explicitly for down because liquid soap can leave a sticky residue.
To keep your synthetic pillows from getting mangled and clumped, Apartment Therapy recommends rolling them up like long sausages and securing the ends and middle with rubber bands. This method will keep the material inside from sliding around too much. Try to wash two pillows at a time so that the washing machine stays balanced.
How to Dry Your Pillows
When it comes to drying pillows, the best method involves getting a little sporty. Start by unrolling the rubber bands from the pillow and throw it in the dryer on moderate heat with tennis balls, which will help cut down on those clumps. If you add in a few dry towels, too, it will speed up the drying process. Keep in mind that the automatic sensor on your dryer likely won’t be able to tell that your pillows are still damp inside. The dryer doesn’t know because most dryers measure exterior surface temperature. Therefore, you’ll have to monitor the timing yourself.
However, memory foam pillows can’t be washed or even steamed, and if you try to dry them, they will probably melt. While you can’t wash your pillow in the traditional sense, you should use a pillow cover to protect against old sweat, oils, and grime.
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