Dry cleaning duvet madness!

timmmers

Haha ..so I take it that some if us didn't see the documentaries with microscopic pics and info about how many bugs live in matresses, pillows and duvets

This may not be 100%, but a pillow ends up being made of about 50% bugs after 3 years or something....you're supposed to bin them quite often. I'd leave Googling that until tomorrow for your own peice in bed tonight..

On a slightly happier note, I had a Chinese mate who was at our house one evening when the ex was taking the mickey out of a duvet label that said "wash with tennis shoe".. she took it to be por translation. He said that it was rightly translated...and didn't we English add a tennis pump to help keep quilted items fluffy? That works a treat ....even with smaller quilted jackets etc. after all, it's the trapped air that helps them imsulate isn't it?

t

Agapanthus

I like a down duvet and they're better washed and tumble-dried - but a double is too big for my washing machine. However I recently bought an all-seasons duvet, which consists of two parts - one of 4.5 tog and one of 9 tog. In summer I use the thin one, in autumn and winter the thick one and in really cold weather I put both on.

Each part fits in the washing machine on its own, so that's a problem solved!

hardpressed

I have a friend who takes her duvet to the laundrette ever couple of months, I've not owned up to how often mine is (not) washed! Yet she is quite happy to stay in a hotel and sleep with a duvet used by other people and probably never washed.

Loopy_Lobes

We buy cheap ones, use them for a couple of years and replace. We put the olds ones in the loft laid out as extra insulation. We do the same with pillows.

[Deleted User]

My old Mum used to wash the blankets with the aid of my self and a packet of Dreft.Take said blanket and place in bath with a good sprinkle of Dreft, cover with luke warm water and place said small child (me) on top and let said child trample and jiggle about in the bubbles and warm water for about ten minutes.Then remove rather damp child and sit on a chair with a biscuit whilst you wring out the blanket then replace blanket several times in clean water untill all soap is out.Depositing said child at times on top of the blanket to help the process along.When the water is clear remove child, and dry with towel and a big cuddle,then wring out blanket and throw over the line in the garden for a good blow dry.If the duvet is a polyester one I don't see that you couldn't do the same .As a child I loved being able to dance on the blankets in the bath,(not a lot of free entertainment in the early 1950s):rotfl::rotfl:Don't think I could do it now though as I'm the wrong side of sixty but it was a lot of fun, and I did get a biscuit and a cuddle as a reward

trollface81

Having found the yearly trek to the launderette with a duvet a pain (I don't drive) or trying to wrestle a kingsize duvet to clean it in the bathtub and then ring it out sufficiently to dry it out hard going I decided on a different approach this year. I refuse to pay even £6 for a new duvet when my own is perfectly fine, just in need of a clean.

This year I decided to cut the kingsize and double duvets in half so that they could fit in the washing machine. I washed them and then when they were dry I roughly hand sewed a strip of velcro down the edge of each half so that they would stick back together. Worked a treat, you wouldn't know when the duvet covers are on and the different halves stay together just fine.

This was a little time consuming, but the velcro was cheap and this will save time in the long run as I now don't have to wait around at the laundrette etc. I'd defo recommend this method if the duvet unless its a really thick duvet, might take a bit of perseverence to sew through it. I'm not a brilliant sewer, haven't even learnt to use a sewing machine yet either so if I can do it anyone can. Might even be possible / easier to do this on a sewing machine with the right sort of needle.

Re: mites that live in bedding I'm pretty sure that the hot water will get shot of them, not so convinced with dry cleaning.

My duvets aren't paticularly thick but if you are washing thick duvets in the washing machine throwing a tennis ball or two in the washer stops keeps the duvet padding from bunching up, I use this when washing pillows.

rachbc

you can buy a duvet for £6 but not a good one...I'd rather buy a decent down one in the first place and wash it. Mine says to wash rather than dry clean - in fact when we swap to the summer one soon I shall cart it off to the lauderette

luxor4t

Polly wrote: »

....... Will probably have to replace the washing machine shortly as its been repaired lots of times and is about to give up. Will def get one with a larger drum so I can wash this type of thing....snipped....

My machine died of old age & overwork last winter & without thinking I bought a smaller one in the sales because it's just the two of us now that the kids are flying the nest. I'm STILL kicking myself - there is absolutely no saving in the long run plus lots of inconvenience!

flutterbyuk25

JackieO wrote: »

My old Mum used to wash the blankets with the aid of my self and a packet of Dreft.Take said blanket and place in bath with a good sprinkle of Dreft, cover with luke warm water and place said small child (me) on top and let said child trample and jiggle about in the bubbles and warm water for about ten minutes.Then remove rather damp child and sit on a chair with a biscuit whilst you wring out the blanket then replace blanket several times in clean water untill all soap is out.Depositing said child at times on top of the blanket to help the process along.When the water is clear remove child, and dry with towel and a big cuddle,then wring out blanket and throw over the line in the garden for a good blow dry.If the duvet is a polyester one I don't see that you couldn't do the same .As a child I loved being able to dance on the blankets in the bath,(not a lot of free entertainment in the early 1950s):rotfl::rotfl:Don't think I could do it now though as I'm the wrong side of sixty but it was a lot of fun, and I did get a biscuit and a cuddle as a reward

:rotfl: I love your stories JackieO

x

ladylouise62

With too little money for a cleaners, and no car for the launderette I just cleaned my Kingsized (polyester) quilt in the bath. Unlike JackieO I didn't have a child to hand and the cat wasn't in a helpful mood so I got a bit of a work-out myself :-)
It was a sunny day, but I was still surprised how it was dry by the end of the day - and all done with limited mobility... it's amazing what you can manage when it saves a wedge of dosh :-)