‘Best temperature’ to wash your bed sheets ‘properly’ – and it’s not 60 degrees

Households shouldn’t sleep in their bed for more than seven nights in a row without washing the bedding.

For most people that means cleaning sheets on a weekly basis, but for those who travel a lot, they can stretch this a bit.

Those who have been bedridden sweating out the flu, or share their bed with pets they’ll need to wash the sheets more often.

Plus, anyone who suffers from asthma or other allergies may find that washing bed sheets more frequently helps to reduce their symptoms.

Also, accidents happen. So if the sheets have been contaminated with anything that might stain them, they should be washed immediately.

Over the course of the night, bed sheets accumulate dead skin cells, body oils, sweat, viruses and bacteria and dust mites.

While dead skin cells and sweat certainly don’t sound attractive, the cleaning experts at Fantastic Services claimed that it’s the dust mites and their byproducts that “cause the most problems”.

They explained: “Dust mites live exclusively on dead skin cells so they thrive in beds and bedding. Almost all households have them and if unchecked their numbers can reach many thousands.”

However, washing bed sheets regularly helps to keep dust mite numbers under control. In order to wash them “properly” the experts have shared five steps to follow.

1. Check the label 

Households should look out for any specific care instructions, if there are any, they need to follow them.

The experts said: “Generally speaking, the best temperature to wash bedding is between 30 to 40 degrees.”

2. Know your washing machine 

Households need to know what the maximum load is for this appliance. The experts warned that overloading the machine “strains the motor” and “sheets only get cleaner” if they have “plenty of room to move around” in the washer.

3. Use the right setting

Some machines have a special setting for sheets, if that’s the case then that should be used. Otherwise, use a normal setting unless the care label on the sheets specifies otherwise.

4. Wash sheet separately from other laundry

Delicate linens “can be damaged” by mixing them with rougher textured laundry, such as towels. When washing sheets and towels together, it’s important to remember that towels can cause damage to sheets due to their size and thickness.

This is because thicker fabrics will cause friction between them during the wash cycle which can lead to pilling or tearing of the delicate fabric of the sheets over time.

5. Don’t overdo the detergent

Too much detergent can also “damage” fibres, resulting in bedding wearing out more quickly.

The experts suggest saving the stain removers for occasions when they are essential and checking the machine and detergent instructions to see how much to use.