How to Wash a Duvet or Comforter at Home (and When Not To)

Most duvets and comforters can be washed at home. The catch is that they are big, they hold a lot of water, and the filling reacts badly to too much soap, too much heat or too little drying. Get those three right and a home wash works. Get them wrong and you end up with a lumpy duvet or a musty smell a week later.

The short version

1. Read the care label first. It tells you whether the duvet can go in a machine at all, how hot the water can be, and whether it can go in the dryer.
2. Wash it on its own in a large front-loading machine (or a top-loader without a central agitator), on a gentle or bulky cycle, with about a third of your usual detergent.
3. Add an extra rinse so no soap is left in the filling.
4. Tumble dry on low heat with two or three dryer balls (or clean tennis balls), and pull it out every 30 to 60 minutes to break up clumps by hand.
5. Keep drying until it is dry all the way through, which for a down duvet can take several hours. If you are unsure, dry it longer.

If your machine is too small to let the duvet move freely, stop at step 2 and use a larger machine or hand it to a service.

Duvet, comforter, insert, cover: what are you washing?

A duvet (or duvet insert) is the filled quilt that goes inside a removable duvet cover. A comforter is a filled quilt used without a cover, though many people use the two words interchangeably. The cover can go in with your sheets. The filled part is what this guide is about, and it needs washing far less often.

Check the care label first

The care label was written for your duvet's fill and fabric, so it outranks any general advice, including this article. Here is what the symbols in the Government of Canada's guide to textile care symbols mean, in words:

• A tub of water means it can be machine washed. Dots inside the tub show the maximum water temperature: one dot is 30°C, two dots 40°C, three dots 50°C, four dots 60°C. Sometimes the number is printed instead.
• Lines under the tub mean a gentler cycle: one line is a permanent press setting, two lines is a delicate or gentle setting.
• A hand in the tub means hand wash only. A tub with an X means do not wash in water.
• A triangle is about bleach: empty means any bleach, diagonal lines mean non-chlorine only, an X means no bleach.
• A square with a circle inside means tumble dry. One dot is low heat (no hotter than 55°C), two dots medium (65°C), three dots high (75°C). A filled-in circle means no heat. An X through it means do not tumble dry.
• A plain circle is about professional dry cleaning. A circle with an X means do not dry clean.

If the label says do not wash or do not tumble dry, believe it. Sometimes it is the shell fabric, not the fill, that makes a duvet dry clean only.

Down, feather or synthetic: why it matters

Down is the soft cluster that grows under a bird's outer feathers. It has no quill, and its warmth comes from the air trapped between clusters. Anything that coats the clusters or packs them together makes the duvet flatter and less warm, so down needs the gentlest handling.

Feather fill comes from the outer plumage and has a small, stiff quill. Feather duvets are heavier and firmer, take longer to dry, and can smell a little while drying. Many duvets blend the two; the label gives the ratio.

Synthetic fill (polyester, hollow fibre, microfibre) is the easiest. It handles warmer water, works with regular detergent and dries faster, though it can still clump if it is not shaken out.

Weighted blankets are a separate case. Many are not machine washable at all. Saatva advises keeping blankets of 15 pounds or more out of household washers, and warns that plastic pellets in some can melt in hot water. If yours has a removable cover, wash the cover and spot-clean the blanket.

How to wash a duvet or comforter, step by step

1. Check the machine is big enough

A duvet needs room to move through the water. Packed into a small drum, the middle never gets properly wet or rinsed, and the weight can throw the machine off balance.

Bedding brands recommend a large-capacity front-loading machine. Feathered Friends, a down bedding maker, warns against top-loaders with a central agitator (the post in the middle of the drum), because it can catch and tear the stitched inner walls, called baffles, that hold the fill in place. A top-loader without an agitator is generally fine if the duvet fits loosely.

A rough test: if you have to force the duvet in to close the door, the machine is too small. A laundromat's large front-loaders are the usual answer for a king-size duvet.

2. Inspect it first

Look for small holes, open seams and loose threads. A small tear becomes a large one in a wash, and a down duvet with an open seam will leave feathers all through your machine. Stitch it closed first. Take off the cover and wash it separately.

3. Use less detergent than you think

IKEA and Parachute both suggest about one third of your normal amount of detergent for a down duvet. Extra soap is hard to rinse out of the filling, and leftover residue is what makes down stiff and clumped. For down, use a down-specific wash or a mild, enzyme-free detergent. For synthetic fill, a regular mild detergent is fine.

4. Pick the cycle and temperature

Use a gentle, delicate, bedding or bulky cycle. For temperature, go by the label. Manufacturers do not agree on one number: IKEA recommends a warm 60°C delicate cycle for its own duvets, while Parachute washes its down inserts in cool water, and Samsung suggests warm water for down and cold for polyester. If your label allows a range, the lower end is the safer choice for down.

Wash the duvet on its own. Sheets and towels take up room the duvet needs, and they can tangle with it.

5. Add an extra rinse

Run a second rinse cycle. Down and feather hold soap, and a single rinse often leaves some behind. If the duvet still feels slippery or smells of detergent after two rinses, run another.

6. Spin, then move it straight to the dryer

A good spin removes water that would otherwise take hours to dry out. Do not leave a wet duvet sitting in the machine. Damp fill that sits around is how mildew starts.

How to dry a duvet properly

Drying is where most home washes go wrong. The outside of a duvet can feel dry while the middle is still damp.

• Use low heat. High heat can scorch the fabric and damage down. Parachute suggests checking every half hour and turning the heat down if the duvet is hot to the touch.
• Add dryer balls. Two or three wool dryer balls, or clean tennis balls tucked into socks, bounce around the drum and break up wet clumps of fill.
• Stop and fluff by hand. Every 30 to 60 minutes, take the duvet out, shake it, and pull apart any clumps you can feel. Then put it back in a different position so it dries evenly.
• Expect it to take a while. Feathered Friends gives three to five hours on low to medium heat for a down comforter; Parachute says up to five or six hours depending on size. Synthetic duvets are usually much quicker.

How to tell it is dry all the way through

• Squeeze handfuls of the duvet in several places, especially the middle and the corners. Any cool or heavy patch is still wet.
• Hold it up against a bright window or light. Parachute's check is simple: if you can see clumps, it is not dry yet.
• Smell it. A musty smell means moisture is still inside.

If you are unsure, dry it longer. A duvet put away damp can grow mildew, and the fill may stay clumped for good.

What not to do

• No chlorine bleach. If the label allows bleach on a white duvet, use a little non-chlorine bleach only.
• No fabric softener on down. Peacock Alley, a bedding maker, notes that softener coats the down and reduces its loft.
• No overloading. One duvet per load, and no agitator top-loaders for down or feather.
• No high heat in the dryer to speed things up.
• No putting it away damp, not even slightly.
• No dry cleaning down unless the label says so. Peacock Alley warns that dry-cleaning chemicals can harm the fill.

How often should you wash a duvet?

The cover touches your skin, so wash it as often as your sheets.

The insert needs far less, and manufacturers disagree on how much less: IKEA suggests every two to three months, Samsung two to three times a year, Parachute about once a season, and Peacock Alley, for a down comforter kept in a cover, every couple of years. A few times a year suits most homes, plus any time there is a spill, an illness or a pet on the bed. Shaking and airing it out in the morning helps between washes.

If you want more on why clean bedding matters, see our post on the link between sleep and freshly laundered sheets.

When not to wash it at home

Hand it to a professional or a service when:

• the label says dry clean only, do not wash or do not tumble dry;
• your machine is too small, or is a top-loader with an agitator;
• it is a weighted blanket over your machine's limit;
• it is an expensive or older down duvet with weak seams;
• you have no way to dry it fully the same day;
• a heavy stain or odour has survived your own attempts.

If you'd rather not

Duffloo washes comforters, duvets, blankets, pillows and other bulky items as large items, each on its own cycle. Comforters, extra-thick duvets and large blankets are $14.99 per item; pillows and thin duvets are $10.99 per item. Large items need longer machine time, so next-day delivery doesn't apply to an order that includes one. If we can't safely wash or dry an item, we decline it and you aren't charged for it.

Regular laundry is $1.25/lb with a 20 lb minimum, and pickup and delivery are free^*. The pricing page has a calculator with counters for comforters and pillows, so you can see the total, including fees and HST, before you book, and the FAQ covers what counts as a large item.

FAQ

Can I wash a king-size duvet in a regular washing machine?

Only if it fits loosely and the machine is a large front-loader or a top-loader without a central agitator. If you have to force it in, it will not wash or rinse properly. A laundromat's large front-loader is the usual option.

How long does a down duvet take to dry?

Several hours. Down bedding makers give figures from about three to six hours on low heat, depending on size and your dryer. Synthetic duvets are usually faster. Check the middle and corners before you call it done, and dry longer if in doubt.

Can I use regular detergent on a down duvet?

Use a down-specific wash or a mild, enzyme-free detergent, and only about a third of your normal amount. Too much detergent leaves residue that flattens and clumps the down. Skip fabric softener entirely.

Why does my duvet smell after washing?

Usually because it is not fully dry. Down and feather can hold moisture deep inside while the outside feels dry. Put it back in the dryer on low with dryer balls until no clumps or cool patches are left.

Photo: W.carter, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0).