Should new duvets be cleaned before use?

[bluecoconut]

I want to get my king size duvet cleaned.
The dry cleaner that is closest and most convenient for me to get to charges £23. An alternative dry cleaner charges £15, however they are further away and it is difficult to park close by.

The only launderette is on the main road into town and there is nowhere to park for stays longer than 45 mins.

I am thinking that it will be just cheaper and easier to buy a brand new one.
When chatting about this with a friend she said she always has duvets and pillows cleaned before first use. I have never heard of anybody doing this before.

Is she right? Should new duvets be washed first? If so, then I may as well just put mine in to be cleaned.

I do wash mine before first use. I don't like the smell of the plastic packaging so I always get them washed before I use them. Although ive never dry cleaned mine as I have the extra large drum on my washing machine. I just put them through the silks wash if they say dry clean.

Thanks Roses. I can't say I have ever noticed the packaging smell or at least certainly not enough to bother me. I can understand your reason for doing so, but is it necessary in terms of hygiene?

I never wash mine when I buy them brand new. Covers, yes. Actual duvets and pillows, no.

Good grief no - air them if there is any smell of the packaging, but that's all.

I always have a feather duvet no way am I washing a brand new one! They normally come in a cardboard box so no plasticky smell!

no I air them outside for a few hours though, just to get rid of the chemical 'new' smell.

we have singles, so they fit in my 7kg washer, which I do once a year after hayfever season is over.

Thank you all. I will just go and buy a new one. I only usually spend about £25 anyway.

While she is clean and tidy etc, she is not usuallyobsessively so. However, her DP is, so maybe this comes from him???

No - never!

The reason that dry cleaning isn't recommended is because of the solvent being held in either the feathers or the fibre, which is potentially dangerous.
If you do dry-clean, long airing would be advised.

We had a new duvet a couple of months ago and I just took it out the package and put it straight on the bed. When I took the old one to be cleaned the lady in the dry cleaners said it is now illegal to dry clean bedding (new EU directive) due to the inhalation of the chemicals, so she would machine wash in her v large capacity machine.

The 45 minute parking outside the laundrette is not a problem. Park, put the duvet in, go away, come back an hour later.

I wouldn't wash a new duvet.
If you buy the sort with two thinner duvets which button together then you can wash them in a normal machine. I normally peg them out then put in my normal sized tumble dryer to fluff up the feathers.