Washing, drying, and storing your sheets correctly will help preserve the fabric over time.
Use these tips to learn how to wash bedsheets the right way.
Climbing into a bed with clean, fresh-smelling sheets is a gloriously cozy feeling.
Credit: Edmund Barr
Here are a few essential tips for how to wash bed sheets.
Look at the care label or packaging to identify the fabric content.
The most common materials are cotton, Egyptian cotton, or a cotton-polyester blend.
Credit: John Bessler
Cotton-polyester blends will generally come out of the dryerless wrinkledthan all-cotton sheets.
Bamboo, linen, and silk sheets will probably need special care.
Separate Sheets
The first tip for how to washbed sheetsis to launder themseparately from towels or clothing.
This gives them more room to circulate in the water, so they’ll get cleaner.
This strategy will reduce the damage resulting from sheets coming into contact with the agitator.
Give special fabrics the proper care by following these instructions forwashing bedsheets.
Pre-Treat Stains
Always pre-treat stainsbefore laundering sheets.
Avoid using bleach on bed linens as it can damage the fabric.
Choose the Correct Detergent
Use a mild detergent for cotton and cotton-polyester-blend sheets.
Fabrics such as linen and silk might require a specialized detergent, so check the care label before washing.
Use the Correct Water Temperature
Wash the sheets on a gentle cycle using cool or lukewarm water.
Remove the sheets as soon as the cycle is over to reduce wrinkles.
Shaking out the sheets before placing them in the dryer can also reduce wrinkles.
Dry Sheets
When possible, dry sheets on an outside clothesline but out of direct sunlight.
Use a low heat setting for machine drying to minimize damage from high temperatures.
Avoid ironing the sheets if possible because the high heat can damage the fibers.
Don’t wring silk sheets.
Instead, blot them with a towel.
The more frequentlylinen sheetsare washed, the softer they’ll become.
Use a mild detergent, and avoid bleaches or detergents containing bleach.
Linen can be ironed at the hot linen setting on your iron.
Bleach or harsh cleaners will damagebamboo sheets.
While air-drying is preferred, sheets can be put in a dryer on a low or air-dry setting.
The longer these particles build up on the sheets, the more stress is put on the fibers.
In addition, skin cells and body oils or fluids can attract microscopic mites.
Keeping excess sweat, oils, and dirt out of bed will keep the sheets clean longer.
The sheets will last longer by rotating three sets of sheets per bed.
How to Store Clean Sheets
Save time when making up the beds by keeping matching sheets together.
