How to wash your pillows: Mum's 'secret formula' leaves them brand new

Mum’s ‘secret formula’ for washing pillows to keep them fluffy and sparkling white – so are YOU cleaning yours often enough?

• Mum Carolina McCauley has revealed the correct way to machine wash pillows
• The Perth cleaning queen uses baking soda, detergent, vinegar, eucalyptus oil
• Carolina revealed that the mixture keeps the pillows plump and smelling fresh

A mum-of-two has shared the correct way to wash your pillows that keeps them plump and fresh.

Carolina McCauley, from Perth, has gained a following of more than 2.3 million on Instagram for sharing helpful cleaning and organisation videos.

In a new video she revealed that she machine washes her pillows using baking soda, gentle detergent, hydrogen peroxide, vinegar, and eucalyptus oil.

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Carolina McCauley [pictured], from Perth, has gained a following of more than 2.3 million on Instagram for sharing helpful cleaning and organisation videos

According to Good Housekeeping, pillows should be washed every three months at least because they collect dust, oils from your hair and face, sweat, saliva, skin cells, and bacteria.

In addition, an average person sheds 1.5 grams of skin each day – which is an amount that can feed one million dust mites, which will live and reproduce in your bed – and spread their faeces, which many people have allergic reactions to.

An unwashed pillow can collect up to ⅓ of its weight in bugs and dust mites in the span of two years.

The cleaning queen divulged that she always checked the labels on her pillows first.

As while many pillows can be machine washed, some of them require soft hand washing or dry cleaning.  

It is often advised against bleaching, tumble drying, and ironing pillows.

‘Take care not to overcrowd machine,’ Carolina said, as doing so could damage your machine’s drum and decrease its washer’s efficiency.

Carolina then adds 1/2 cup of baking soda to the drum with the pillows, and uses a gentle detergent for the process.

The mum places 1/4 cup of hydrogen peroxide with detergent and replaces fabric softener with 1/2 cup of vinegar.

‘I also add a few drops of eucalyptus oil with the vinegar to kill dust mites,’ she said.

The last special hack she uses is placing a couple of dryer balls in the drum to help the pillows keep their shape.

The mum places 1/4 cup of hydrogen peroxide with detergent and replaces fabric softener with 1/2 cup of vinegar

Sleep Foundation also recommends replacing your pillows every two years as doing so ensures that your pillows are supportive, clean, and free of allergens.

Pillows may also need to be replaced sooner if you’re waking up with a sore neck or are unable to find a comfortable sleeping position.

Pillows that are sagging, excessively yellow, or ones that have developed lumps are unsafe to continue using.

How to machine wash your pillows 

Thousands thanked Carolina for her excellent homemaking tips.

‘I definitely needed this,’ said one woman. ‘Thank you!’

‘I usually only wash my pillow cases – but I will try this next time,’ added another.

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