Beds are where a goodnight’s sleep takes place and recover our body from the hectic daily routines. We spend somewhere between 48-56 hours a week on the bed at night. Pillows, blankets, sheets, everything gets dirty if these many hours are spent on it. To attain a hygienic environment, it is crucial to clean them on a frequent basis.

How often should you clean?

Frequency of washing and changing your bed sheets depends on a number of factors:

Do you wear pajamas while sleeping? Body soil is being protected by wearing pajamas.
Do you sweat more than an average person? If yes, you need to change your sheets more frequently.
Do you bath before bedtime? Sheets remain clean if your body is clean.
Do you have a cold, virus or flu? If so, Change sheets every day or every alternate day.
What do you do in bed? If you eat, study or work on it, there will be more soil.

Due to our body oils, fluids and dirt on the surface, sheets become more soiled. Bacteria in those fluid increase over the period of time. This could lead to skin irritation when we get a cut on our bodies. For people with skin or acne problems, the pillowcase should be washed frequently in order to avoid inflammation and transfer of bacteria.

For people who bath regularly, wear pajamas for sleeping and uses the bed only for sleeping, sheets should be changed either weekly or bi-weekly, but no longer than that.

People who wake up with stuffy nose, it could be due to the dust mites and the skin cells accumulated in the bedsheets. Even if you do not have any allergies, it can affect you. Make sure to wash your sheets more frequently if you face breathing problems.

How to wash your sheets?

Most of the sheets come with a fabric care label that lists out the fiber content and has instructions on how to wash them. If you have cotton or cotton/polyester sheets, they should be washed in hot water with a detergent, like Ariel or Tide to remove body oil and soils. If there is a stale odor coming from your sheet when you remove them from the closet, that means they are not cleaned.

Some of us might prefer a soft feel for sheets and pillow covers and therefore use fabric softeners for it. But it could lead to reduction in the absorbency of natural fibers and make fabrics to become uncomfortable for people who sweat more often. Distilled white vinegar should be used instead of commercial fabric softeners for the last round to remove any residues that could leave the sheets stiff.

Below type of fabrics need additional care while cleaning:

Satin Bedsheets
Silk Pillow Covers
Natural Fiber Linen
Flannel Bedsheets and Winter Bedding

If you wash, dry and put the sheets back on the bed, you will need to fold them. There are easy ways to fold and stack the sheets in an orderly manner in the linen closet. Simply put all the rounded corners smoothly inside each other to create a rectangle and then fold into a proper square.

There could be times when you will need to give extra attention to sheets and linens:

When someone is ill or sick for a long time.
When there is a bed bug infestation.
When there is head lice infestation.

How to wash your bed pillows?

Most types of the fabric of pillows can be put in the washing machine. Always check the fabric care label before doing this, if you are doing it for the first time. It is also crucial to check that pillows are not torn or damaged in any way. If they are not in proper condition, some of it’s filling could come out and escape as they are being washed.

If you are sure that your pillows are completely safe to be washed in a washing machine, put some cases first in order to prevent them from snagging on the inside of the washing machine drum. The next step is to wash them on a gentle cycle using regular detergent.

Once the cycle is finished, you will need to dry the pillows out as soon as possible in order to prevent mildew and mold. Cross-check the care labels and if they can be tumble dried, put them in the dryer on very low heat. Alternatively, you can also leave them to air-dry in a warm room or outside if it’s sunny