Most Australian’s dread is cleaning their beddings. It does sound like a job that involves a lot of time and effort. While it’s recommended to wash your bedding at least once a week, the mattress and pillows should be cleaned at least twice every year.
That sounds like something we can all manage to do – setting aside a minimum of two days spread throughout the year, for cleaning our mattress.
Not to scare you but an average mattress can contain tens of thousands of dust mites (gross, I’m going to save you from the images), so if you don’t clean your mattress as often as recommended, your bed can become the dirtiest and germ-packed item in your house.
To note: If you have read our best mattress guide, you’ll be glad to know that memory foam and latex are more naturally resistant to dust mites.
This is because your mattress is exposed regularly to a lot of dead skin flakes, drool, sweat, hair and skin oil, faecal matter (especially if you tend to sleep naked), and other nasty bodily fluids.
Your mattress plays an essential role in maintaining both your mental and physical health. So it is vital to give your bed some attention once in a while and clean it properly.
In this article, I am going to show you how to remove stains from a mattress. The methods I will be sharing here do not involve strong and expensive chemicals. It is important to remember that this is a space where you have and will spend a considerable chunk of your life, and so the last thing you need is irritating fragrances or harsh chemicals that could be a health hazard.
If cleaning isn’t your thing, you can also hire an experienced cleaner who specialises in cleaning mattresses.
Let start with some of the most common mattress stains:
How to clean urine from mattress
Before you start, make sure you do a small spot test on an inconspicuous area of your mattress and see the reaction of the mixture on the bed before soaking your bed.
The supplies you will need:
- Bicarbonate of soda
- Hydrogen peroxide
- Dishwashing soap solution
- Vinegar
- Lavender essential oil, though optional
- Spray bottle (empty)
To prepare the cleaning solution, mix about 220ml of hydrogen peroxide with 3 tbsp of bicarb soda and a half tbsp of washing up liquid. Place the mixture into the spray bottle and, if you like, add a few drops of lavender oil.
The reason I included the lander oil is that it will neutralise the smell of the mixture, and help whoever uses the mattress, sleep better.
Shake the mixture gently so that the ingredients can combine adequately, but not excessively; otherwise, the solution will create bubbles.
Step #1: Soak your mattress with vinegar
The vinegar will help you get started. It doesn’t matter if the stain has just happened or it is already dry.
But if the urine stain is still wet, soak up the moisture with dry cotton or paper towels, otherwise, douse the entire area and even beyond, with white vinegar.
Step #2: Apply your solution
Spray your solution over the urine-stained area until it soaks, then leaves it for at least five minutes. But if the stain has set, you can allow the mattress to soak in the solution for about 20 minutes.
Step #3: Reapply the solution if needed
If the stain persists, reapply the solution until it comes off. However, avoid rubbing or wiping with towels since this will only make the stain spread to other areas of the mattress.
How to remove blood stains from mattress
Despite how messy it may look, cleaning blood stain from your mattress is very simple. You don’t need any chemical or complicated solutions – all you need is cold water.
Blood usually dissolves in cold water; therefore, soak the area with the stain and dab it with a cloth also soaked in cold water.
Note: It is essential to keep in mind that using hot water on the bloodstain will only set it in.
Alternatively, you can also use bicarb soda for this exercise. Absorb the mixture of bicarb soda in a cloth and apply it onto the stain and then leave for 30 minutes. Use a towel to dab the stain dry.
Another home-based method is using a meat tenderiser. This product works so great due to its ability to break down proteins to marinade, and since blood also has protein, which is what causes the stain, meat tenderiser can help get rid of the bloodstains on your mattress.
Just smear the paste onto the area with the stain and let it cover for at least an hour. Dab the stain with a dry towel to remove the moisture.
How to remove a coffee stain from the mattress
Breakfast in bed is quite a treat until you spill your coffee on your mattress. No matter how quickly you strip off the beddings, you are likely to have a coffee stain on your mattress.
Luckily, you can remove the stain easily using any stain remover spray, which comes ready-to-use.
However, you will need:
- Fan
- Water
- Clean cloth
- Paper towel
Follow these steps:
- Use absorbent paper towels to soak up the coffee moisture.
- Spray the area using spray remover
- Leave it for 15 minutes
- Use a wet sponge to scrub the stained area.
- If the stain persists, apply the stain remover again.
- Use the fan to dry the defective area.
How to clean a mattress with bicarb soda
If you want to remove general filth from your mattress, you can use ordinary baking powder. This kitchen product is known for being able to clean just about everything in the house, including cleaning your mattress.
What you need:
- 500gram bicarbonate of soda
- Vacuum cleaner
- Essential oil
Steps to follow:
First, rotate or flip the mattress, since this is recommended to extend the lifespan of the bed as well as preventing sagging.
Add up to 20 drops of essential oil of your choice into the box containing bicarbonate of soda and close it then shake it vigorously. Essential oils are nature’s antibacterial, be it ylang-ylang, chamomile, lavender, or sandalwood.
Sprinkle the mixture over your mattress then use a lot of bicarbonate of soda (most people recommend the entire box), and rub it into the bed for deep cleaning. Let the combination work for at least an hour.
The final step is to vacuum the mattress to remove all the bicarb soda.
Remove stains from mattress with vinegar
You can also clean stains from your mattress using white vinegar. All you have to do is fill an empty spray bottle with white vinegar.
Spray a light coat off pure vinegar all over the bed and allow it to dry.
For urine, coffee, and bloodstains, spray a heavy coat of pure vinegar until the area with the stain is saturated.
Sprinkle bicarb soda over the mattress and allow it to settle overnight.
Vacuum your mattress to get rid of the bicarb soda.