How to Sanitize Bedding and Eliminate Germs

There’s nothing quite as comforting as a clean and cozy bed when you’re feeling under the weather. But with all the coughing, sneezing, and sweating – your sickness sanctuary quickly becomes a haven for germs and bacteria. Without proper cleaning, this could cause an illness to return to you or spread to others.

Learn how to eliminate lingering germs from your linens and get back to sleeping in crisp, clean comfort.

Preparing Germ-Infected Bedding for Wash

Once you’re feeling better:

1. Remove all bedding (sheets, blankets, pillowcases, etc.).
2. Place the bedding in an empty laundry bag or basket, keeping it all away from your face and body as much as possible.
3. If you have both colors and whites, separate them and plan to wash the colors first.
4. Get to your nearest Clean Laundry location.

Washing Germ-Infected Laundry

Your best ally in the battle against bacteria and germs is heat. That’s why Clean Laundry’s water is steaming hot, not lukewarm.

Use the hottest wash temperature setting for best disinfecting results.

Try using one (or all) of these household products for a strong and effective sanitation:

• Bleach – Add ½ cup once the wash cycle has started.  You should use color-safe bleach for any dyed fabrics, and chlorine bleach for white bedding.
• Hydrogen peroxide – Unlike chlorine bleach, hydrogen peroxide is safe for most fabrics and dyes. Add 1 cup of this antiseptic oxidizer to your wash. Note: you should still spot test to make sure it doesn’t cause discoloration.
• Borax – Add ½ cup to your wash. Borax does all kinds of good things for your laundry. It increases stain-removal, neutralizes odors, and disinfects extremely well.

If you use a laundry bag, you can add it to the wash as well. If you use a basket, clean it with disinfectant wipes once everything’s in the washer.

Drying Away Germs

Again, heat is your friend. Use the highest heat setting and pay attention to how long the dryer runs.

Kelly Renolds, a germ researcher at the University of Arizona, says “high heat drying for at least 28 minutes is the most effective way to kill viruses.”

With Clean Laundry’s Giant-Sized 5-load dryers, you get 28 minutes of heat for just $1.

Or, disinfect your bedding on one of our free dry days and pay nothing for heat.

It’s about time,
Clean Laundry