Washing your Sleeping Bag

[daveamkrayoguy]

Okay, domestic household automatic top load washer:

You met your match! This will be the last thing your loyal, faithful, loving owner will have you do, then, to the great laundromat in the sky...

(Or should I go to a commercial laundry that has those front-loaders in the super-duper size????)

— Dave

 

[appnut]

I'd take it to the laundromat and put it in a front loader.  

 

[thomasortega]

Whatever front load washer would easily wash it.

 

[DADoES]

 
I don't have a sleeping bag to examinate how the AquaSmart would handle it.  Perhaps will try the cycle with a comforter or bedspread.

 

[whirlykenmore78]

To the Laundromat you go:

Any 30-50# machine will handle it. Dry on LOW in large commercial dryers.
WK78

 

[launderess]

I'd take it to laundromat

But that would be just me. *LOL*

Sleeping bags in addition to being bulky often have a poly, nylon or some other waterproof outer layer of fabric. This can cause issues during wash/rinse and or spin cycles.

On smaller things like a jacket or vest you have greater ratio between garment and tub. This will give room for the thing to move about.

With something that bulky and large in a top loader with central beater things may do just that; sleeping bag not move/turn over and area near agitator take one serious beating. Then will come the spin...

 

[gansky1]

The Catalyst DD washers were very good with large, puffy items like this.  The slow spin-fill-recirculate routine saturated the layers of comforters, sleeping bags, etc. very thoroughly.  When the washer stopped to full completely and agitate, the items would turn over and wash well. 

 

If you fill to medium level, tamp down the sleeping bag, saturating it; then fill to high level,  monitor the (relatively short) agitation period and make sure it's low in the basket before spinning - you will be happy with what the DD washer can do.

 

Or take it to the laundromat.  

 

The best top-load bulky item washer I've had was a x-large capacity, belt-drive Whirlpool with the double-duty supercalifragilisticlator.   That could wash almost anything.  

 

 

[retro-man]

Years ago I washed mine a number of times in a Whirlpool top loader and it came out fine. Usually just hung it up outside and it dried in no time. I would unzip it the full length so it was opened flat all the way. Normal cycle about a 10 minute wash.

Jon

 

[yogitunes]

most times its all about bulkiness and construction of materials

if you just want to toss it in and walk away.....Laundromat and a FLer….

if your doing it in a TL.....most times your going to want to sit there and monitor it...

making sure its submerged under water....brief periods of washing and soaking, maybe some help with rollover or pushing it down....and especially the spin, making sure it stays balanced...

many times people talk about wanting to wash something like a king comforter at home....and they forget the thought of drying it.....line dry if you can, but for best results, one of those huge dryers at a laundromat are usually the best

 

[ultralux88]

Our sleeping bags have all always fit in our Whirlpool DD, I feel like in the past not all of them did fit into the old belt drive. The tub in the DD is the super capacity, it’s rather huge. If one didn’t fit these days I’d probably be able to get it into a good friend’s front load SQ.

 

[mrboilwash]

Even a vintage European frontloader with a smallish 4,5 kg drum can handle a sleeping bag just fine.
I`d use the normal cottons cycle to ensure good rinsing and maybe adjust the spin speed if the care label calls for a gentle cycle.
In a toploader I`d follow the wool blanket routine with lots of soaking, spinning, babysitting and so on.

 

[whatsername]

From the LL Bean website:

"You can wash a synthetic sleeping bag in a large commercial front-loading washer. Use a mild detergent and wash on a gentle cycle with warm water. Dry the bag in a clothes dryer set below 140°F or outdoors on a clothesline. Some campers put tennis balls in the dryer to help "fluff" the bag."

The instructions online are the same as on the tag of the LL Bean bag I got for Christmas in 4th grade many years ago. I wash it according to the instructions in my LG front loader with turbo wash, bulky cycle, since we all know today's front loaders are much larger than they were back in the day. No issues whatsoever.

The site goes on to say that washing a down-filled bag is slightly more difficult. Never had to deal with that.

https://www.llbean.com/outdoorsOnline/outdoorSports/camping/tips/choose_sbag.html

 

[thomasortega]

I miss so much the Electrolux LE750...

An average 5kg front load washer with a tiny drum....and that beast would wash a king size duvet packed in the drum.

Results were always perfect, no matter what.

Nowadays I wash my Cal-King duvet in the Samtag Neptune. It works! then to dry i run 2 timed cycles in the Speed Queen or the Frigidaire, medium temperature, maximum time and I open the dryer, fluff and reload 4 times.

 

[revvinkevin]

Reply #4 “any 30-50lb machine will handle it”

... sure if you’re washing 3 to 6 (or 8?) sleeping bags at the same time. But for just one bag, that large of a machine is unnecessary, the smallest FL (20lb?) would be enough for 1 sleeping bag.

I agree, go to a laundromat! Or worst case, use your machine on a gentle / delicate cycle with a high water level.

Kevin

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

Finally, one month later:

Well, here I am washing it, and I think it turned out pretty clean and undamaged, as well...

— Dave

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

Now for drying:

Decided even though it going my dryer wouldn’t have been as a fatal factor, I decided with all those coins left, I’d dry it there, anyway:

— Dave

 

[launderess]

Local laundromat has same SQ dryers

They are reasonably fast, but the card system installed is maddening.

One must insert card, wait for machine to register payment, then press "start". This must be done for each "quarter" is spent. So if one hour of time is wanted, that is four separate inserts, waiting, pressing, etc.....

Other thing don't like is by now all the dryer drums are coated heavily with fabric sheet dryer residue. One's laundry emerges smelling of "Bounce" or whatever regardless.

 

[iowabear]

The last large laundromat front loader I used was a Dexter.  It was a newer and real nice machine, but the wash time was a very short 7 or 9 minutes with no way to make it longer (even for more money.)

 

That's just too short.  The old Wascomat double-loaders I used as a kid had much longer cycles with a pre-wash as well.

 

[speedqueen]

I don't have any problem fitting most large, bulky items into my 1980/81 Whirlpool Supreme (model LHA5800) belt drive. It's the last year for the old 27 gallon tub.