How to Wash a Body Pillow Like a Pro (Full Guidelines)

We all know that sleeping is crucial for our physical and mental health. We all have to sleep to lead a healthy life. And we should sleep comfortably so that we can sleep properly. That’s why we make our surroundings favorable while sleeping. We use soft and comfortable beds, soft pillows, and so on. Usually, people use two pillows while sleeping—one for the head and one for the body. Going to sleep is our daily routine, so it is expectable that the pillows will be dirty. And one should know how to wash a body pillow.

Here we are explicitly talking about the body pillow, and we will learn how to wash a body pillow.

What is a Body Pillow?

A body pillow is a long-length cushion used by side sleepers for comfort and pain relief. It is an oversized cushion so the side-sleepers can comfortably place part of the pillow between their legs and keep aligning their spine and neck. It also helps people from rolling into a less advantageous and uncomfortable sleeping position.

Why Should You Wash Your Body Pillow?

Using it every night collects dirt, sweat, and other debris, which attracts dust mites and triggers allergic and harmful reactions. So it would be best to wash your body pillow to have hygienic and comfortable sleeping nights. You should wash your body pillow every 3 to 6 months.

How to Wash a Body Pillow

You can wash your body pillow in 2 ways. You can wash it with your hand, or you can use machine washing. We will talk about both of them. But before washing, you should have acknowledged some things about your body pillow. They are:

Material: 1st, you should identify the material used to make your body pillow. Common materials for the body pillows are feathers, latex, or foam. Most pillows have a tag; you can know the material from it. You can also find the guideline about how to wash your body pillow. But if your label doesn’t have this or you cut the tag off, don’t worry; our guidelines will help you.

Washing Temperature: The care instruction usually includes the maximum washing temperature for your body pillow. Either you should use cold water or warm water.

You may find these types of symbols on that guideline. But if you don’t have that and need to know the temperature you should use to wash, go with cold water to be safe. Don’t risk using hot water, as it can ruin the pillow material and cause it to be misshapen.

Detergent: The care instruction also mentions the correct type of detergent you should use for your body pillow. You may need to use that specific kind of detergent powder when you do hand washing. But if you do machine washing, detergents are only intended to be used in a washing machine.

After knowing all these things, you will go for washing your body pillow. I’ve already mentioned you can wash it in 2 ways: machine washing and hand washing. Now let’s briefly discuss how to wash a body pillow by machine washing and hand washing.

Machine Washing

First, we are going to talk about how to machine wash a body pillow. Machine washing is the least time-intensive and is the most convenient way to wash a body pillow. But you can only place some body pillows in a washing machine. Machine washing is best for body pillows made of cotton, feather, down, down-alternative, or durable and malleable materials. For machine washing, you can go through the following steps.

Step 1: Wash Your Body Pillows Alone

Body pillows are large, so they’ll almost fill your washing machine. And it would be best if you balanced your washing machine. If you do that, your pillows will need more space to be appropriately cleaned and may potentially damage.

You can also fold your body pillow in half. If your washing machine needs to be bigger and your body pillow doesn’t fit, you can take it to a local laundromat and find the machine that will fit. And then use that machine to wash.

Step 2: Use a Mild Detergent

Wash your body pillow using a mild detergent containing only surfactants; avoid bleach or chlorine. You will use a couple of tablespoons of detergent.

Step 3: Wash with Cold or Warm Water

I’ve already said that. If you know the maximum temperature, then go for it. And if you don’t know, use cold water to wash your body pillows.

Step 4: Air Dry or Tumble Dry

After satisfactorily washing, it’s time to dry it. You can air dry your body pillow or dry it on a low heat and low tumble. Cotton and polyester pillows dry quickly. But it can take 2/3 hours to dry feather pillows. You can add a couple of tennis balls or dryer balls to boost your drying process.

And if you do air dry, then keep your pillow flat and lay it under the sun. But if the sun doesn’t show up, keep your body pillow next to a fan. It doesn’t matter how you dry, but you have to be sure your body pillow is completely dry before placing it back into its cover. Otherwise, being damp can ruin your pillow.

Step 5: Fluff Your Body Pillow

When your body pillow has been thoroughly dried, fluff up it by holding the corners—and fluffing diagonally. You can also massage, knead, and swat your pillow to prevent lumps. Fluffing your body pillows will help maintain their shape and keep them looking nice and fresh.

[If you also want to fluff your pillow and want to know details about it, you can check the article: How to Fluff a Pillow]

Hand Washing

Well, you should know how to hand wash a body pillow because hand washing is the best option if your body pillow is too large to fit in any washing machine or is made with a delicate material, latex, or memory foam. By the way, any pillow can be hand-washed. But for the above materials, it is necessary to be hand washed. For hand washing, you can go through the following steps.

Step 1: Fill up Your Bathtub or Large Bucket With Cold, Soapy Water

Body pillows are large, so a basin or small bucket will need to be more significant to wash them. That’s why you need a bathtub or enough large bucket. Fill it with cold water and then mix it with a mild detergent.

Step 2: Work the Soapy Water into Your Pillow

Immerse your body pillow into the mixture. And allow it to be fully saturated. When thoroughly wet, squeeze and massage the soapy water mixer into the pillow for several minutes or until it’s spotless.

Step 3: Rinse the Body Pillow Thoroughly

Empty the bathtub or the bucket of soapy water. Then fill it with clean water. Massage your pillow and ensure all the soap is thoroughly rinsed out. Then, gently squeeze out the excess water but don’t wring your pillow to prevent misshaping.

Step 4: Air Dry Your Body Pillow

After the pillow is rinsed thoroughly, place the damp pillow flat in front of sunshine or a fan. In front of the sun is the better choice because the sun’s heat effectively kills bacteria. But you should remove your pillow after an hour or two to avoid discoloration. Bring it inside and completely dry it under a fan.

Spot Cleaning

Spot cleaning is not thoroughly washing your body pillow. It is helpful for minor stains on your body pillow. Overwashing body pillows can damage them, so do the spot cleaning when your pillow gets dirty. Let’s see the cleaning method.

Frequently Ask Questions (FAQs)

Question 1: How often should a pillow be washed?
Answer: A body pillow should be washed every 3 to 6 months.
Question 2: Why do body pillows turn yellow?
Answer: Sweat is the most common reason for pillow yellowing. We all sweat at night. They can also turn yellow for stains and oil buildup.
Question 3: How long do body pillows last?
Answer: Body pillows last long up to 2 years.

Conclusion

We are at the end of the article. Now you know how to wash a body pillow, and I hope you have understood what you want to wash your favorite body pillow at home. It’s essential to clean the body pillow regularly to avoid infections and keep it fresh. Washing your body pillow will help you sleep soundly and refresh you.