temperature for washing bed covers

[giraffescantdancethetango]

is it 60 that kills bed bugs? I usually wash everything at 40 but Im sure I read ages ago someone on here saying you should use higher for bed covers. Is it 60 or 70 or...? Thanks

A friend who works in a hospital told me that all hospital bedding and other linen is washed at 60. I never wash anything above 60. Family bed linen I generally do at 40 though - sometimes 30.

I usually do it at 60...but only so my washing machine gets a regular 60 was to stop mould.

40 is just as fine

I do mine at 60.

I always wash sheets, pillowcases, undersheets and pillow covers at at least 60° - often at 90°. I only buy pure cotton bed linen.

What material is your bedcover made of? I would wash it at as high a temperature it will bear.

Why, Anna? Why so hot?

you only need to do it at 60 if someone has allergies

I do ours at 60 cos of dh's asthma but kids' bedding I do at 40

Like Anna, I also do mine at 60 degrees or more, depending on the label instructions.

Dry outside in the sunshine unless it's a feather down duvet or pillows, in which case they need to be tumble dried to fluff up.

I don't wash anything at 30 except delicates that can go in a washing machine.

I wash it at 60°/90° because I think bedlinen gets to smell rank pretty quickly unless it is washed very hot.

I can't line dry mine outside, but I tumble it lightly and then spread it out on a clothes horse in a room with a wide open window.

To get rid of bacteria or dust mites (or whatever it is that lives in the bed), it needs to be washed at 50 or higher. Apparently the lower temps won't kill it.

definitely 60 or more for cotton bedding else the dust mites don't die!

Hospitals actually wash at 90 and even that doesn't always get them clean!

We stick with 30 unless anything actually looks grubby, and it all looks gleaming white none the less. I remain dubious about the actual evil effect of dust mites, etc, but then we are all very healthy in our family, and I know that's not the case for everyone.

We're the same as GrendelsMum.

I'm saving the environment too don't you know?!

lol - you're probably right!

It's quite new so I must remember to do a hot wash now and then to keep it sparkly!

60 or 40 i dont wash anything at 30

I'll go and put my head in it and report!

I also forgot to say that we don't have any 'little accidents' - if people were weeing, vomiting etc regularly we'd probably be washing on our '60 - stains' setting.

My friend says that how well you can clean on different temperatures is also down to how new your washing machine is, and that those people with new washing machines that wash clean at 30 should stop being so smug.

60, or above, on an hours cycle kills the dust mites in your bedding. I know this as my son has one of those washable duvets (spundown duvet) that may be washed at this temperature. I wouldn't want to wash it on any lower a temperature as, to be honest, I'm usually washing it after he's wet the bed!