As with all of your other bedding, you’ll need to learn how to wash a weighted blanket for hygienic reasons. However, the same factors that make you love your weighted blanket are also the reasons that may cause you to hesitate when it’s time to launder it.
A weighted blanket provides a gentle amount of pressure that can calm your nervous system and make you feel relaxed and happy. In this state of calmness, you can fall asleep quicker and experience a good night’s sleep. These heavy blankets, which can weigh between five to 30 pounds, relieve anxiety and treat insomnia, but because they’re so much heavier than your other bedding, it can be difficult deciding how and when to wash them.
Can you hand wash them to spot clean? Should you throw them into the washing machine on a gentle cycle or not? What’s better: cold water, warm water, or hot water? Should you use a mild detergent like dish soap, or is it safe to use chlorine bleach? What about drying: should you select a low heat setting, fluff, or high heat? Suppose you have a removable cover—does that get thrown in too?
Or should you cart your weighted blanket off to the laundromat and use a commercial washer instead? These are all things you need to carefully consider before you decide how to wash your weighted blanket.
Also, there are different types of weighted blankets. For example, of my favorite weighted blankets, some contain glass microbeads, like the Baloo Weighted Blanket and the Casper Weighted Blanket, while the California Design Den Handmade Weighted Blanket is made of chunky knit. In short, there are tons of options when it comes to this product, and therefore the washing instructions may differ.
I reached out to experts from these companies—Elizabeth Grojean, founder and CEO of Baloo; Deepak Mehrotra, founder of California Design Den; and Melissa Danielson of the product development team at Casper—to discover how to wash a weighted blanket so it continues to look great and perform well for years to come. Here’s what they advised.
Consider size and material
Always consult the manufacturer’s care instructions for specific washing instructions. However, as a general rule, if you want to launder your weighted blanket in the washing machine, it will depend on the blanket’s size. “If your blanket is less than 25 pounds, you can use your washing machine at home,” says Grojean. If your blanket is over 25 pounds, she recommends taking the weighted blanket to a professional laundromat or dry cleaner.
Now, you may be thinking, “Well, if it fits into my washer and dryer, let’s just roll the dice instead of lugging it to a laundromat.” However, Mehrotra says this is a bad idea. If the blanket is too heavy, it could damage your appliances. “Make sure you check your washing machine/dryer load capacity to avoid any damage to them,” Mehrotra advises.