If you are asking this question, chances are you probably haven’t washed your sleeping bag recently or even ever. Well, the short answer to this question is yes, a sleeping bag can be washed. It can be a slight nuisance but it can absolutely and should be done. You just need to make sure you follow some simple steps to ensure that you do it the easy and safe way so that you don’t damage this important piece of camping gear.
It doesn’t matter if you have a synthetic or down sleeping bag, you will want to keep it clean. How you wash the synthetic versus the down is a bit different but the main point is to have a clean bag.
How to Keep Your Bag Cleaner for Longer
Sleep in it Clean
One of the best ways to make sure your sleeping bag stays cleaner longer is to sleep in it when you are clean. You can either shower before bed or you can sleep in clean clothes. This will help keep dirt and body oil residue from your body off your sleeping bag.
Take a Shower
Sometimes it is very tempting to climb in your sleeping bag when you are tired but you really should change clothes or shower. If you are tent camping, you can try using a solar heated camp shower bag to take a shower or if there is a bath house nearby, head up for a quick shower before bed.
Use a Liner
You can also use a sleeping bag liner. This is like having sheets for your sleeping bag. If you use a liner, it will be much easier to wash it when you get home rather than having to wash the bag itself. Liners are lightweight and can add additional insulation to the temperature rating of your bag. It would be something to defiantly consider for colder trips.
Don’t Touch the Ground
If you tent camp, you will want to make sure your bag never touches the ground. This can also help keep it clean. As simple as this advice sounds, you would be surprised at how many times your bag might accidentally touch the ground. If you are camping under the night sky, make sure you use a tarp or a waterproof fabric.
Air it Out
Another way to keep your bag fresher for longer is to let it air out. You can use a clothesline to hang it from for this, just be sure it isn’t exposed to sunlight for too long. This will break down the fabric faster.
How to Wash Your Sleeping Bag
You can always spot clean your bag. To do this, you can make a paste from a non-detergent soap and water. Clean the spot that is soiled and let it air out to dry.
If you need to machine wash your bag, always refer to the manufacturer’s instructions first. When we wash our bags, we use a mild detergent, cold water, and an industrial size machine and dryer. If your bag is made of down, you will want to use a detergent like Nikwax Downwash. It’s a high-performance cleaner that maintains loft and insulating properties of down filled items.
For regular synthetic bags, you can use Nikwax Techwash. It safely cleans technical synthetic materials without damaging DWR like normal household detergents.
When washing your sleeping bag, we recommend sending your bag through a second rinse cycle to make sure all the detergent has been rinsed out of your bag. After this, make sure you dry it completely on a low heat setting. We put wool dryer balls in to help keep the fluff.
Drying your sleeping bags can take a long time, this is why we use an industrial size machine for this. It can be a pain but it will be well worth your time in the long run.
How to Handwash Your Bags
If you don’t want to go to the laundry mat to machine wash bags, you can always use your bathtub. To do this, just fill the tub with cold water and add the detergent. Lie your sleeping bag inside the tub and agitate the bag with your hands or you can use your feet. Rinse the bag thoroughly and then hang it outside to dry.
Storing Your Bag
Just because your bag is clean doesn’t mean you can just toss it in the closet. You will want to make sure you keep it stored properly. You can hang it in the closet, lay it out on an extra bed or put it in a stuff sack that is big enough for the bag to not be crammed inside.
Extra Tips
- Try to not over wash your bags. We usually wash ours once per camping season and we either sleep in them clean or use a liner.
- Make sure the zipper is zipped up all the way when you wash it.
- Use cold water.
- Dry completely on a low setting.
Making sure you wash your sleeping bag correctly will also help keep it in the best possible shape for the long term and keep your camping trips fun and low maintenance!