Can You Wash a Duvet at Home?

It is one of those jobs everyone puts off. You know your duvet needs a clean, but it is big, it is heavy, and you are not even sure it will survive the washing machine. So can you actually wash a duvet at home, or is it one of those things best left to the professionals?

The honest answer is: it depends on two things. What your duvet is filled with, and how big your washing machine is. Get those right and some duvets wash perfectly well at home. Get them wrong and you can end up with a lumpy, smelly duvet, or a broken washing machine. Here is how to tell the difference.

First rule: always check the care label

Before anything else, read the label sewn into your duvet. It will tell you whether the duvet can be machine washed, what temperature to use, and whether it says “dry clean only”. If the label says dry clean only, believe it, washing it at home will ruin it. Everything below assumes your label allows home washing.

Can you wash a synthetic duvet at home?

Usually, yes. Synthetic duvets, the ones filled with polyester, microfibre or hollowfibre, are the easiest to clean and the most forgiving.

As long as it fits in your machine, a synthetic duvet can normally be washed at home on a gentle cycle, around 40°C, with a mild detergent. The golden rule is space: the drum should be no more than about two-thirds full, so the duvet can move around and actually get clean. Cram it in and it just gets pushed around in a soggy lump.

Synthetic duvets also dry fairly easily, which is half the battle. You can tumble dry most of them on a low heat, and adding a couple of clean tennis balls or dryer balls helps stop the filling clumping.

Can you wash a feather or down duvet at home?

This is where people come unstuck. Feather and down duvets can sometimes be washed at home, but they need real care, and most domestic machines are simply not big enough.

The problem is not really the washing, it is the drying. Natural filling holds a lot of water and takes hours to dry all the way through. If even a little damp is left trapped inside, the feathers can start to smell musty, clump together, or in the worst case go mouldy and rot from the inside. That is why a feather duvet that was not dried properly often comes out worse than it went in.

If you do wash one at home, you need a large machine, a gentle cold or low cycle, and a lot of patience with the drying, usually several tumble dryer cycles on low, not one. For most people, this is the point where a professional is simply easier and safer.

What about wool and silk duvets?

Wool and silk duvets are a different matter again. These are usually labelled dry clean only, because water and agitation can damage the natural filling and ruin the duvet’s warmth and structure. Do not put these in the machine, take them to a professional.

The real problem: machine size

Even if your duvet can technically be washed at home, there is one thing people forget, machine capacity. A standard 7kg home washing machine is too small for most double, king or super king duvets. Forcing a big duvet into a small drum means it does not clean properly, the seams can tear, and the strain can damage your machine’s bearings.

As a rough guide, a double duvet needs at least a 9kg machine, and a king or super king needs even more. If your duvet is bigger than your machine can comfortably handle, home washing is not really an option, which is exactly why so many people bring theirs to us.

When to let a professional handle it

It is worth using a professional duvet cleaning service when:

• Your duvet is too big for your machine (most king and super king duvets).
• It is feather or down, and you want it dried properly without the musty-smell risk.
• It is wool or silk, or labelled dry clean only.
• You simply do not want the hassle of hours of drying and a damp duvet on the line.

A professional service has the large-capacity machines and proper drying to clean a duvet thoroughly and return it fresh, fluffy and completely dry, which is the part that goes wrong most often at home.

How often should you clean your duvet?

Whichever way you clean it, most people should give their duvet a proper clean every six months, or every three to four months if you have allergies, sweat a lot, or have pets on the bed. Using a duvet cover and washing that weekly takes some of the load off, but the duvet itself still needs a proper clean a couple of times a year.

Not sure? We can help

If your duvet is too big, too delicate, or you just want it done properly without the drama, bring it to Ilford Dry Cleaners. We clean feather, down, synthetic, wool and silk duvets of every size, and return them fresh, fully dried and ready for the bed. Pop into 85 Ilford Hill or call 07774 694552. We also offer free collection and delivery on orders over £100 across Ilford and the surrounding areas, handy, because a duvet is an awkward thing to carry.