How often do you clean your mattress, do you know how to clean your mattress? Are you like me and never thought about cleaning your mattress until you have a toddler potty training and it’s the middle of the night and they have a SOAKED bed and now they are coming to sleep in your bed to likely pee in your bed too!? Thanks to one of my children, I have a thorough and deep understanding of how to clean your mattress, and even better, how to protect it and keep it smelling fresh.
You don’t only have to clean your mattress if you have a toddler, you really should be deep cleaning it about every 6 months or so to extend the life of your mattress. Mattresses naturally slowly break down and need to be replaced about every 10 years. This is a pricy item so for me, taking care of it is a no-brainer oh, and the fact that mattresses can get downright gross. Think about it, you spend or should spend about 8 hours a day lying on your bed. You sweat, drool, lose skin cells, shed hair, and more gross stuff that can not be mentioned on this blog, all this “stuff” makes its way to your mattress and makes a nice little meal for dust mites and bacteria. Yuck! No, thank you! Now that I have you running to clean your bed, let’s learn how.
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How to Clean Your Mattress
It’s recommended that you wash your sheets weekly. Your sheets are your mattress’s first layer of defense, they are the first ones to catch the “nasty stuff” and you don’t want to give the “nasty stuff” time to work its way deeper into your mattress. You should also have a mattress protector covering your mattress, I especially like the waterproof ones to help save the mattress from fluids such as vomit, urine, or spilled drinks. You should wash your mattress protector when you wash the rest of your sheets.
Now that you have a bare mattress give it a good vacuuming with the upholstery attachment on your vacuum. Be sure to get in the side grooves or where any seams are since dust and dust mites can settle there. You will also want to vacuum the box spring as much as you can as well. Vacuuming your mattress will cut down on allergens which is especially beneficial for people who suffer from allergies.
If you have a clothes steamer you can run it over your whole mattress to help kill any bacteria and odors. You will want to avoid getting the mattress too wet though since this can grow mold and mildew. Make sure you allow your mattress to fully dry before you put your sheets on it.
They also make linen sanitizing spray which I have used and liked. This would be your final step in the cleaning process. Again, you do not want to saturate the mattress but use as the directions say, misting the mattress. This will also kill bacteria that is on your mattress.
To freshen up the smell of your mattress sprinkle baking soda over the entire thing. Don’t be afraid to use a whole box! Next, you will let the baking soda sit for a long while. I try to aim for 8-12 hours. Doing this will give the baking soda time to absorb any odors. After you have waited and given the baking soda time to do its job vacuum it again to remove the baking soda. You will be amazed at how fresh your mattress smells. Do take your time to vacuum up the baking soda, I rushed this step once, put clean linens on my bed, and then felt like I was sleeping with fine sand in my bed
How To Get Rid of Stains on Your Mattress
Once you have had your mattress for a while it is likely to accumulate some yellow stains, thanks to night sweating and oil from our bodies or urine. Believe it or not, it is not that difficult to get these unsightly stains out.
If you are dealing with a fresh wet mess, such as urine or vomit, blot up as much of the moisture as you can. You can use a spot carpet cleaner or a cleaner that has enzymes to break down the odors. If you are using one of these follow the directions on the package. Make sure your mattress is fully dry before covering it up.
If you are so lucky to discover these stains after they have dried there are some home remedies to remove these stains as well as their odors. To begin sprinkle some baking soda over the whole stain. Next, combine one cup of hydrogen peroxide and one cup of water in a spray bottle and heavily spray the stain. Then, use a scrub brush to work the stain. Let this mixture sit for the day, like 8 hours or so. Once you have waited get your vacuum and the upholstery attachment and thoroughly vacuum over the stain. Every time I have used this method, (I have three young kids) it has worked to get the stains and odors out.
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