How do you clean a wool mattress? You can clean a wool mattress with white vinegar to eliminate stains, but especially unpleasant odors.
Six years ago, I was so embarrassed about the stains on my wool mattress until I discover these solutions that I want to reveal to you today.
Also, read: What is the benefit of a wool mattress?
Let’s go.
The Advantages Of The Wool Mattress
There are several quality materials and fabrics to fill a mattress. Organic cotton, latex, and synthetic foam are very popular, but it is often wool that wins the vote.
The reason? Wool mattresses offer many advantages. The main one is their thermoregulatory side.
Indeed, wool is a material that adapts to the heat of your body and which is, therefore, cooler in summer and warmer in winter.
Wool is also a very absorbent (moisture and perspiration) and hypoallergenic (anti-mite) fabric.
All these elements make the natural sheep’s wool mattress a very comfortable and pleasant product for your sleep.
In addition, despite its slightly high basic price, wool is a very economical material in the long term.
With regular maintenance and repair after 10 or 15 years, your natural wool mattress can thus have a total lifespan of more than 20 years.
How To Care For Your Wool Mattress?
The maintenance of a wool mattress is not too restrictive, but must still be carried out by following a few rules. Thus, comfort and quality of sleep will be at the rendezvous.
Maintenance During Break-In
The break-in period is the period of 3 to 5 weeks after the purchase of your sheep’s wool mattress.
During this period, the woolen filling of the virgin mattress gradually falls into place and adapts to your back.
It is therefore essential to turn your mattress at least once a week, even if the ideal frequency is once a day.
To perform this operation correctly, follow a simple logic: turn the mattress over from head to toe, then front to back, again from head to toe, then back again.
Thus, the wool mattress will relax evenly and avoid material settling.
To optimize the life of your wool mattress, you should turn it over regularly (at least once a month), even after the break-in period.
Indeed, this action will allow you to restore the swelling of the wool and to maintain the structure of your mattress so that your comfort is optimal and your sleep pleasant.
Air The Woolen Mattress
To maintain the condition of your mattress, another solution is to air it regularly. To do this, let the room in which it is located breathe by removing the sheets, the cover, and the duvet.
Thanks to this daily action of 10 minutes, your natural sheep’s wool mattress will evacuate moisture and night perspiration.
In addition, this anti-humidity action will also limit the proliferation of dust mites in your bed base.
Other tips against dust mites: keep your room at less than 20°, regularly wash your bed linen (sheets, covers, pillows, duvet) and dust the furniture in your room.
Protect The Wool Mattress With A Fitted Sheet
Last thing for the maintenance of your natural mattress, wrap it in a fitted sheet or a mattress protector.
Thus, its surface will be protected and the mattress will be able to offer the full measure of its anti-humidity and anti-mite action.
With all these tips, your natural wool mattress should see its lifespan greatly improve.
Cleaning Your Wool Mattress: The Different Techniques
Cleaning a sheep’s wool mattress is done differently depending on your purpose. To clean a simple stain, for example, the operation will be different than restoring wool to its new state.
Clean Stains From Your Wool Mattress
Cleaning a sheep’s wool mattress should be done by hand in case of stains. For this, several washing possibilities are available to you.
The most common solution is water mixed with soap. Clean, rinse, then air dry your bedding water.
While washing, be careful not to rub the wool. You can also use a steam cleaner. This product will thoroughly disinfect your mattress and reduce odors and dust mites.
As for drying, the machine will take care of evacuating the washing water itself.
Other tips are also effective and offer the advantage of dry cleaning your wool mattress. These are:
The use of soil from Sommières;
Baking soda (with tea tree essential oil).
These two complementary solutions will allow your mattress to wear out less quickly and better fight against moisture-related problems.
Wash Your Mattress Wool
How do you clean an old wool mattress? For this operation, we advise you to call on a professional.
Refurbishment services are expensive, but they get your mattress back to the same condition you bought it.
The savings are therefore real. If you can, don’t hesitate to ask the upholsterer for more care and cleaning tips.
This may allow you to discover new tips or interesting products.
Once the mattress is reintroduced into your home, all you have to do is break it in again so that its sheep’s wool filling becomes firm and comfortable again.
Washing And Care Of A Wool Mattress
Thanks to our advice, you now know how to thoroughly clean a mattress, and also how to maintain it on a daily basis.
How To Clean A Wool Mattress Stained With Urine
Having children causes you to encounter minor accidents on a daily basis. An accident at night or during their nap can occur, including bedwetting.
The smell as well as the yellowish stain that this leaves on your mattress is unpleasant and should not leave you indifferent. Zoom on some tips for cleaning a urine-stained wool mattress.
Use suitable products for cleaning
Your Wool Mattress Is Stained With Urine?
We recommend that you act as quickly as possible to clean it, because the stain may become embedded in the material.
The goal is to prevent the urine from spreading through the fibers of the mattress and causing it to stink. Here are some practical grandmother recipes to help you.
Be careful, at the end of each cleaning process, let your mattress air dry:
Baking soda
Soak your washcloth in hydrogen peroxide to which you have added 4 tbsp of baking soda and a drop of dishwashing liquid.
Rinse, then rub the stain gently.
Then, sprinkle your wool mattress with baking soda and let it act for a few minutes until the product penetrates.
Finally, vacuum it up. This operation must be repeated until the stain disappears. You can also replace baking soda with talc or cornstarch;
The soap: you have the choice between a black soap or a Marseille soap. They both have a sanitizing property.
They will completely disinfect your mattress and their use is easy: dilute 500 ml of black/Marseille soap in 200 ml of lukewarm water, soak a cloth, then rub until the stain disappears;
White vinegar
It is an astringent product that is not only effective in eliminating stains but especially unpleasant odors.
The yellow stains will disappear after a wipe with a cloth soaked in white vinegar;
Ammonia
The use of this detergent requires precautions. Work outdoors and wear gloves, as this product is corrosive.
It is effective for both recent and old urine stains. Pour a coffee cup of ammonia and one washing-up liquid into 2 liters of water, soak a sponge in this detergent, and rinse in cold water using a cloth.
Eliminate Odors
Once the stained area is clean, let’s move on to eliminating the odor.
Apart from the stain it leaves on your woolen mattress, the smell and humidity are not very hygienic.
Borax is highly recommended for its deodorizing property and if the smell persists, opt for essential oils.
Not only do these have a relaxing power, but they also neutralize urine odors. Prefer essential oil:
- Lavender;
- Of lemon;
- Or eucalyptus.
Preventing Urine Stains On A Wool Mattress
After eliminating the stains and the smell of urine, let’s move on to prevention. To remedy this situation, use a mattress protector.
It limits the impact of stains on your wool mattress and contributes to its preservation over time. In addition, the mattress protector is waterproof and hypoallergenic.
Mattress pads are also available on the market. They are disposable or washable and are made of absorbent materials.
Mattress pads are perfect for children who find it difficult to restrain themselves at night. Generally, disposable mattress pads are made of shredded cotton and can be recycled.
Good to know: when you decide to clean your mattress, do it early in the morning, because drying takes time.
By following all these tips (bicarbonate of soda, Sommière earth, repair by a professional), you will therefore be able to increase the lifespan of your entire bedding.
That’s not all, you will also improve your comfort by reducing the presence of dust mites in your bedroom.
Conclusion
Now you know everything about how to clean a wool mattress. Keep in mind that a mattress made of wool or another material (organic cotton, latex, foam) is a very important bedding accessory for the quality of your sleep.
So, you have to take care of it.
I have an extended article stating: Are Wool Mattresses Safe?