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    Home » Home & Garden » Cleaning » How to Wash and Whiten Pillows

    Last updated: Mar 31, 2021 by Melissa Riker · 27 Comments

    How to Wash and Whiten Pillows

    How to wash and whiten pillows over white pillows and sheets

    Washing pillows is easy, learn how to wash pillows in the washing machine and how to whiten them in the process!

    How to wash and whiten pillows over white pillows and sheets

    How to Wash Pillows

    I learned a little something new last week...did you know when a three year old chugs a bottle of his daddy's gatorade he'll have no less than 3 accidents that night? Yep.

    After that hard lesson was learned I thought I'd take the opportunity during the mountains of laundry I was doing the next day to share a few tips for washing and whitening pillows!

    whiten pillows

    Whiten Dirty Pillows

    If you've read my other laundry posts you'll know that I'm a stickler for washing linens once a week.  A microbiology course in college gave me the big time eebie-jeebies about what we may not be able to see in those beds.  

    When it comes to pillows however, I usually wash them every few months.  Even with regular washing pillows can yellow over time-sweat, saliva, you name it...it's not pretty.  Here's how to get those pillows clean and bright so you can rest easily!

    pillows in washer

    How to Wash Pillows in the Washing Machine

    The number one rule of pillow washing is to wash two at a time to keep the load balanced during the spin cycle!  

    Position your pillows on opposite sides of your washbasin and select HOT wash and extra rinse options, if you don't have an extra rinse option you can manually run a rinse cycle afterward.  Add your detergent and 1 cup of bleach to your washer (following washer instructions.) Run the washer.

    washer settings for pillows

    How to Dry Pillows After Washing

    Depending on what type of pillows you have you'll need to adjust the dryer settings appropriately-down pillows need to be dried on the air only cycle while synthetic pillows can be dried on low heat. (Do NOT dry foam pillows-hang them to dry!)

    Add a couple of clean tennis balls to the dryer to help fluff the pillows as they dry. If possible, lay your pillows out in the sun after running through the dryer. (I learned that from my friend Kelly over at View Along the Way in her article about how she keeps white slipcovers clean with kids!)

    There you have it! Bright clean pillows!! Considering what ours went through last week you can bet I was relieved to know they were totally clean after this process!

    When's the last time you cleaned your pillows?

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    Comments

    1. Katrina Crandall says

      August 13, 2020 at 1:21 pm

      I am so happy to find this post on how to wash pillows. I haven't been able to find a dry cleaner that will clean pillows, and I was never sure how else to get it done. Now I know - and I'm on my way to clean them now! Thank you!!

      Reply
      • Melissa Riker says

        August 19, 2020 at 12:47 pm

        I hope the tutorial was helpful Katrina!

        Reply
    2. Amparo says

      May 03, 2020 at 12:16 pm

      Very helpful suggestions to make life easy. Thank you

      Reply
    3. Sweetdreamtonight says

      September 05, 2019 at 1:53 am

      Thanks for this great post, I find it very interesting and very well thought out and put together. I look forward to reading your work in the future.

      Reply
    4. Tara says

      June 04, 2018 at 5:11 pm

      I have memory foam pillows. Would this work for them?

      Reply
      • Linda says

        August 07, 2019 at 5:46 pm

        Not in my eperience. Just one very expensive ruined piloow.

        Reply
    5. Denise says

      May 02, 2018 at 11:05 am

      Just curious, what type of pillows do you have? Mine always fall flat once we’ve used them.

      Reply
      • Melissa says

        May 04, 2018 at 5:45 am

        Right now I'm using a memory foam pillow that is keeping it's shape really well. I bought it at Walmart as a temporary measure when we moved from England back to the US this past summer and were waiting on our household goods to arrive and loved it so much I've used it ever since. It was very affordable! ~Melissa

        Reply
        • KJ says

          May 26, 2018 at 3:56 pm

          Why do you put tennis balls in?

          Reply
          • Ouida Gabriel says

            May 28, 2018 at 7:12 am

            To fluff the pillows. We don’t have Tommy Boy to do it for us!

            Reply
    6. Gillian Will says

      December 04, 2017 at 11:00 am

      Really love to read this post and its seems like a great blog i have ever seen. Just read your article.
      Good one. I liked it. Keep going. you are a best writer your site is very useful and informative thanks for sharing!

      Reply
    7. Edward Wills says

      October 02, 2017 at 8:30 am

      WOW! Great tutorial Mellisa. Thanks for your effort that you show us those procedures. I always afraid of washing pillow. Because it gets loosen. Though. Is there any DIY way to dry wash? Don't have idea on it.

      Reply
    8. Maria Cynthia says

      September 27, 2017 at 9:15 am

      I am so glad to read your post. I’ve looked for ways to whiten up my pillow cover effectively but couldn't. Thank you so much for sharing.

      Reply
    9. Joseph says

      June 16, 2017 at 9:21 am

      Great! I love these nice tips. Thanks for your sharing

      Reply
    10. aekhan says

      December 29, 2016 at 8:18 pm

      I've tried this with the same washing machine(no middle agitator), the pillows do float. you have to manually flip things around. I used the dryer balls with my husband's gym socks on them. used low heat setting on the dryer for about 2 hours, fluffed the pillows in between. One pillow smelled faintly like cooked chicken; otherwise, my pillows came out great.

      Reply
    11. Emma Clark says

      November 23, 2016 at 6:15 am

      These tips are very helpful for me. Now, i will easily wash my pillows easily. Thank you for all these tips.

      Reply
    12. Janet says

      October 23, 2016 at 3:02 pm

      Sorry but I thought there was going to be something new on how to whiten your pillows. But isnt that a guven laundry detergent and bleach.. I want to add to that for nice whites add borax! It really does make them white and keeps the bleach from yellowing them. *as it does sometimes* a 1/2 to 1 cup borax and your pillows will be beautiful white! Thanks

      Reply
      • Jenny says

        July 07, 2018 at 12:07 pm

        Actually, I hadn’t considered washing two at a time - to keep it balanced. I found that tip extremely helpful.

        Reply
    13. Fuitz says

      June 25, 2016 at 5:45 pm

      What if you dont habe a dryer? I habe down pillows. Can I dry them by hanging or will the down clog?

      Reply
      • Dagmar Graham says

        June 26, 2016 at 11:30 pm

        NO!! The feathers mildew ! A down feather pillow takes approximately 4 hours drying time. I then leave it on " woven " chairs, shake it daily, to dry it more.
        Mildew would give you breathing problems.

        Reply
        • Alisha says

          July 23, 2018 at 11:07 am

          Any pillows you dont want to wash, put in sun..dor a sun barh. what I normally do is I take my feather pillows and I put them in my car in the back window Dash or the front window Dash and I leave them there because the heat from the Sun kills bacteria. I learned this when I lived in Cuba the sun works wonders

          Reply
          • Melissa says

            July 25, 2018 at 11:05 am

            Great idea!! ~Melissa

            Reply
      • Janet says

        October 23, 2016 at 3:03 pm

        Yrs that down is sometimes a mess when washed!

        Reply
      • Deborah says

        February 07, 2022 at 6:25 pm

        My grandmother used to wash her feather pillows, but ONLY in the hottest part of summer, so they would dry thoroughly. She washed them early in the morning, then hung them outside, shaking vigorously every hour or two, for the remainder of the day. It was a lot of work, but was only done once a year.

        Reply
    14. Laura @ Sleep Products says

      January 07, 2016 at 11:39 pm

      I am so lucky to read your post. I’ve looked for ways to whiten up my pillow cover effectively for a long time. Thank you so much!

      Reply
    15. Justin says

      August 31, 2015 at 4:59 am

      I have tons of pillows on my bed, but only use one. It’s be great find another brand that will foster a good night rest.

      Reply
    16. Janine says

      August 06, 2015 at 9:51 pm

      This post makes me want to strip the beds and wash everything right now.

      Reply

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