Cleaning Flood-Soiled Bedding
Mattresses
A good innerspring mattress should be sent to a
commercial renovating company. Renovation is too difficult
to do at home. Ask about the cost of such work. It could
be less expensive to buy a good reconditioned or new
mattress.
If mattress must be used temporarily, scrape off
surface dirt and expose it to sunlight to dry as much as
possible. Cover mattress with a rubber sheet before using it.
If you decide to keep any flood-soiled mattress, it
should be sterilized. This must be done at a sterilizing
plant--a mattress company or a state hospital. Ask your
local public health department for information on
mattress sterilizing plants in your area.
Have mattresses as dry as possible before taking them
to a sterilizing plant. Crop drying fans or household fans
may speed up the drying process.
Pillows
Feather pillows
If ticking is in good condition, wash feathers and
ticking together.
1. Brush off surface dirt.
2. To circulate water through pillows, open a few inches
of the seam in opposite corners of the pillow, turn edges
in, sew loosely with strong thread, or fasten with safety
pins.
3. Wash in machine or by hand in warm (not hot) suds 15
to 20 minutes. Use a disinfectant in the wash cycle. If
using an automatic washer, do not wash more than two
pillows at a time.
4. Rinse at least three times in clear, warm water.
5. Spin off water or gently squeeze out as much water as
possible. Do not put pillows through a wringer.
6. Dry in an automatic dryer at moderate heat setting, or
dry in a warm room with a fan, or across two or three
clotheslines. Put several bath towels in dryer with
pillows to speed up drying. Allow at least 2 hours. Shake
up feather occasionally to hasten drying.
Washing feather and ticking separately. If ticking is not
in good condition, or if pillow is badly soiled, wash
feather and ticking separately.
1. Find a muslin bag which is two or three times larger
than the ticking.
2. Open one edge of ticking.
3. Sew the open edges of the ticking and the bag together.
4. Shake the feather from ticking to muslin bag.
5. Close seam of bag.
6. Wash bag of feather in lukewarm, sudsy water and
disinfectant.
7. Repeat if necessary.
8. Rinse in lukewarm water, changing water several times.
9. Squeeze out as much water as possible by hand. Do not
use a wringer.
10. To air-dry, hang on line by two corners. Change
positions end to end and shake feather occasionally to
speed up drying.
11. Finish drying pillows by laying them on a flat
surface or pinning them to a clothesline to dry in the
open air.
12. Wash the ticking. With a sponge, apply a starch
solution to the inside of the ticking.
13. Transfer clean feather to the clean, sanitized
starched ticking, using the same methods as for emptying.
14. Close seam of ticking.
If pillows have been badly soaked, it may not be possible
to remove all objectionable odors.
Polyester fiberfill pillows
1. Brush off surface dirt.
2. Wash by hand in warm water and low-sudsing
detergent. Add a disinfectant to the wash water. Flush
water through pillow by compressing it. (Twisting and
wringing will tear filling). Change water and repeat if
necessary.
3. Rinse three times in clear, warm water.
4. Spin off water in automatic machine. Tumble dry in
dryer at moderate setting with several bath towels, or
press out as much water as possible by hand, and hang on
line outdoors to dry.
Foam rubber or urethane pillows
1. Remove cover. Brush off surface dirt.
2. Follow manufacturer's directions if they are available.
Otherwise, soak in cool water; then wash in warm suds by
hand. Use a bathtub or large sink. Then wash by pushing
down on pillow, releasing, and pushing down again. Rinse
the same way. Pillows can be machine-washed on gentle
cycle with lukewarm water plus a disinfectant.
3. Rinse well in lukewarm water.
4. Gently squeeze or spin out excess water. Blot with
towels.
5. Dry away from heat and sunlight. Do not dry in dryer
unless on an air only setting. Pillows may dry very slowly
in the air.
Blankets, quilts and comforters
Wash only one blanket, quilt, or comforter at a
time.
1. Shake and brush to remove surface dirt. Follow
manufacturer's laundering directions if available.
Otherwise, proceed as follows.
2. Soak at least 15 minutes in lukewarm water. Turn two
or three times during soak period. Several soak periods
may be beneficial depending on the amount of soil lodged
in fibers. Change water for each soak period.
3. Use a mild detergent, disinfectant and lukewarm water.
Immerse blanket and work suds in gently, using as little
agitation as possible. If necessary change water and
repeat.
4. Rinse in several changes of lukewarm water.
5. Gently squeeze out water. Hang blanket over two lines
to dry so it forms an "M" shape or dry it in preheated
dryer with several large dry bath towels. Remove blanket
from dryer while it is still damp and hang over two lines
to finish drying. Gently stretch blanket into shape.
6. Brush blanket on both sides with stiff brush to raise
nap, press binding, using synthetic setting on iron.
Wash lightweight quilts following directions for wool
blankets. Dry outdoors in sunlight, if possible, to
remove unpleasant odors.
You may need to take thick comforters apart, and wash
cover and filling separately.
Electric blankets are washed as you would normally.
Sheets, towels, linens
1. Brush off as much loose dirt as possible.
2. Rinse mud-stained fabrics in cold water to take out
particles of soil lodged in fibers.
3. Wash in warm suds and disinfectant several times if
necessary. Do not use hot water since it will set red and
yellow clay stains.
4. If stains remain after several washings, try bleaching
white cottons and linens with chlorine or sodium perborate
bleach. Do not overbleach. Sun drying will aid bleaching.
Bleaches may be used on some colored fabrics; follow
directions on bleach package.