This blog is intended to take you through a few ways on how to wash a weighted blanket.
The perfect sleep is determined by many factors that cater to your needs. For some, it may be a comfortable bed, the perfect pillow, a side pillow to cuddle, or even the perfect blanket to keep you warm and cozy.
Yes, even a blanket with the perfect stimulations can result in you having a good night’s sleep. Blankets have gone through a plethora of developments since time immemorial. Humans have struggled with getting the right amount of sleep since the rise of the internet and fast-paced life.
In this lifestyle, good sleep can determine your functions at work and mental health stabilities. Therefore, it is ever so important to be mindful of the type of bedtime essentials you get, including weighted blankets for the perfect slumber.
In case you own a weighted blanket, here are a few ways on how to wash a weighted blanket and maintain it.
Table of Contents
Benefits Of Weighted Blankets
Weighted blankets besides being super comfortable, weighted blankets come with many benefits, as listed below:
- Stress can increase your heart rate in stressful situations. In this scenario, a gentle weight on the body helps it calm down by stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system that, in turn, stables the heart rate during stress. Pressure therapy induces a calming amount of pressure, like what you’d get from a hug and swaddling, cuddling, or being held.
- Weighted blankets help to alleviate one’s anxiety. Over 40 million people in the US alone have anxiety. Weighted blankets can make a huge difference in helping them overcome anxiety.
- Sleep disorders are an everlasting factor in sleep deprivation. Over 70 million are affected by sleep disorders such as chronic sleep disorders or insomnia in the US alone, many of which have been helped significantly thanks to weighted blankets that bring down the heart rate and calm the body.
- It helps other disorders as well, such as ADHD and Autism, in which weighted blankets with gentle pressure from the weight help provide comfort by overstimulating and allowing more relaxation.
How to Wash A Weighted Blanket?
Washing a weighted blanket depends on its usage, which will determine how frequently it must be washed. For one, if the blanket is on top of a duvet or any other blanket, i.e., not coming in contact with the skin, one could get away with not washing it for a month or so.
However, if there is skin contact or if your pet sleeps on it, it is better to wash it every month or every other week. On another hand, if it’s been kept in storage for a while, then one might need to wash it anyway to rinse off accumulated dust and germs. Washing a weighted blanket also depends on the fillers. The following list should give you clarity on your weighted blanket fillers and how the overall blanket should be washed.
In case of
- Plastic Pellets: Wash them in cold water and then air-dry.
- Steel-shot pebbles, hand wash them or machine wash them, then let them air-dry.
- Smooth Pebbles do not machine wash; only hand wash them and let them air dry.
- Organic materials, which can be corn, beans, mustard seed, or rice, are unfortunately unwashable, but you can only spot-clean them.
- The same applies to weighted blankets with sand. You need only spot-clean them.
- Microglass beads need only to be hand-washed and air-dried.
Washing A Weighted Blanket
Machine Washing
When it comes to machine washing a weighted blanket, besides knowing the inner material of it and whether it is machine washable or not, weighted blankets are easy to machine wash as long as you select a cool setting and gentle spin without too much softener. Too much softener can make the fabric itchy and stiff.
Handwashing
Once again, based on the inner material and the fabric, one can determine how to wash a weighted blanket. But compared to machine washing, handwashing weighted blankets is way more difficult since the following procedure must be followed to maintain the quality of the fabric.
If you have a tub, fill it up with warm water, and even distribute and dissolve the detergent before submerging the blanket completely; let the blanket soak for 39 minutes to an hour. Take the blanket out and get rid of the soapy water; fill the tub with fresh water and soak the blanket in it again, squeezing the stained areas as you do so. Take the blanket back out, replace the previous water with fresh water, and repeat the process until there is no more soap left in the fabric of the blanket. Then, let it air-dry.
It is always better to let a weighted blanket hang dry as it will take care of the textile fabric.
But there’s another way. Lay a sheet of plastic down on the floor first, then lay on the blanket. This will ensure that it is clean post-washing. Leave it dry just like that and keep checking for the top; if it’s dry, flip it over to the other side to let it dry.
FAQs:
- How to wash a weighted blanket?
Washing a weighted blanket doesn’t have one answer as it depends on the inner material, the weight, and drying time overall which will determine the washing procedure of a weighted blanket.
- What should I keep in mind while purchasing a weighted blanket?
The inner material, weight, the fabric among other such factors should be considered while buying a weighted blanket.
- How do weighted blankets help in improving sleep disorders?
Weighted blankets apply a gentle pressure similar to that of a hug which gives one the sensation of being held gently in sleep which lowers the heart rate thus inducing a relaxed feeling enough to put one to sleep.
Conclusion
Till now, you must be quite clear on how to wash a weighted blanket, but before you go to buy one, make sure to get a weighted blanket that is machine-wash-friendly and will not be too heavy to carry around to hang dry or lay on the floor to let dry.
Maintaining is key for a weighted blanket if it means better sleep and maximum comfort. So keep the above in mind, and owning a weighted blanket should be a breeze.
