How to Wash Polar Fleece Sheets or Blanket Without Ruin It
You pay a lot of money. Whether it is for blouses, pants or even polar fleece blankets keeping them clean is a must. Another must is to make sure you do not waste your money and ruin your good blankets when you wash them.
How to wash polar fleece? Polar fleece is a lot like Superman it only has one or two flaws that will ruin it. Whether you hand wash or use your washing machine, you need to avoid using bleach and fabric softener when washing your polar fleece blankets.
Washing your new polar fleece blanket is not that hard. To learn how to care for it all you need to do is continue to read our article. It gives you the information you need to know so that you do not ruin your polar fleece blanket, even by accident.
How to Wash Polar Fleece 101
Can You Wash Polar Fleece?
Washing a polar fleece blanket is okay. In fact, they have a cleaning attitude that makes them the ideal piece of cloth to wash. They are low maintenance and do not shrink.
On top of that, they are also quick to dry. That means you do not have to wait long before using the blanket once again. The key to washing these types of blankets is to use the gentle cycle if you do not handwash and use about 90 degrees F water.
Oh and use a mild soap as the exclusion of harsh chemicals and the warm water tend to keep these types of blankets nice and soft. If you have the time handwashing may be the way to go as that keeps the washing process nice and gentle.
Can You Wash Polar Fleece in the Washing Machine
There is nothing wrong with washing your polar fleece blanket in your washing machine, as long as you follow some simple steps. First, you should always check the cleaning instruction label the manufacturer places on their clothing items.
These instructions help guide you as you clean your new polar fleece blanket. Second, you should pre-treat any stains that have gotten on top of the blanket during your or your family’s use.
The pre-treatment should not use harsh chemicals or fabric softener. Instead, it should include mild dishwashing soap and only be soaked for about 10 minutes prior to washing.
To help get rid of the stains, you can use a paper towel or dry cloth and rub the spot but not too hard and do this after you have finished soaking the blanket. Finally, do not iron your fleece blanket. Just dry it in the drier on low heat.
High dryer heat can possibly melt some of the tips and when those tips dry they can become hard and spoil the soft nature of the blanket.
What Setting to Wash Polar Fleece
When you place your polar fleece blanket into your washing machine, you need to set it to the gentle cycle. This setting goes for all types of fleece blankets. The cleaning process is the same throughout the many different varieties.
Instead of trying to separate the fleece according to their names, Coral, Polar, Sherpa and so on, and then washing them, you should separate them according to their manufacturing style.
In other words, there are only two divisions when it comes to washing fleece- good and bad. The bad fleece is the style that pills or shreds quite easily. This set is also known as low-quality fleece.
The good or high-quality fleece should not do those things and should remain soft for a long time to come. One extra quality that Polar fleece has is its water-repelling construction.
That feature helps the Polar fleece to dry faster than other brands of fleece on the market today.
What Temperature to Wash Polar Fleece
It is possible to wash Polar fleece in cold or cool water. You do not want to use a lot of soap no matter which water temperature you use. The reason for the lack of soap is that there is a possibility that the extra soap gets trapped in the bottom of the fibers and ruins the soft texture of the blanket.
Extra soap does not make the blanket any cleaner. Also, if you want to keep that softness in your blanket, use warm water heated to about 90 to 95 degrees F. The warm water helps keep the Polar Fleece blanket soft. The key is to make sure you use mild soap and no fabric softener or other harsh chemicals.
While those laundry additives may help some clothes get clean and soft, they have an opposite effect on Polar fleece. Once the polar fleece blanket is dry don’t yield to temptation and iron it
Just the weight of the iron alone can ruin the pile your blanket has. Then the heat will do what the dryer didn’t and melt the fabric ends so that it becomes very uncomfortable to use.
How to Hand Wash Polar Fleece
One of the first key steps in washing Polar or any fleece material is that the blankets do not need to be washed frequently. The recommended amount is twice per season. Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule and you will have to be the judge of that.
Next, hand washing may take more time but it may be worth it in the long run. All you need to do is fill a little tub or basin (this can be a laundry sink, bathtub, and similar containers).
Use can use cool or warm water, the temperature is not as rigid here but the soap you use is. The laundry soap should not be harsh but mild or natural. This protects the fibers while making sure they get clean.
After all that is done, you place the blanket inside the tub and get it wet. Then gently rub the blanket together for about 5 minutes. Then rinse and repeat. It is said you keep rinsing till the wash water remains clean.
You can pre-soak the Polar fleece blanket prior to handwashing if you want. That is up to you and how stained the blanket has gotten.
How to Wash Polar Fleece Sheets
When it comes time to wash your Polar fleece sheets, the trick is to keep the washing action to a minimum. You do not want a hard, abrasive interaction between the sheets and the other clothes or itself.
Plus, you should check the cleaning instructions on that little label attached by the manufacturer. Those instructions are there to help you so you do not waste your money and ruin your new polar fleece sheets.
There shouldn’t be any need to wash polar sheets that frequently. If they get a lot of heavy use then you should clean them regularly. Just be cautious and refrain from using fabric softener as well as bleach and other harsh chemicals.
Wash Polar Fleece Jacket
Taking your polar fleece jacket to the dry cleaners may save you a lot of cleaning time but it is the wrong move to make. Dry cleaning chemicals can ruin your fleece jacket as well as sheets and blankets.
To clean your polar fleece jacket, you should follow the blanket schedule and wash them about twice a season. Again, if they get stained frequently, then you should wash them more often but as a rule of thumb twice a season should be enough.
Your washing time may depend on how often you wear the jacket. If you do not use it in any season except winter, then you only need to wash it twice each winter. Since the jacket is made of fleece, then the cleaning instructions found above in the different sections will apply here.
One thing that should be noted is that hang drying for jackets, blankets and sheets is the preferred drying method. That method avoids the abrasive mixing of clothes that comes with tumble drying in the dryer and keep your jacket in top shape longer.
Wash Polar Fleece Blanket
Fleece is a durable material as it is usually made from synthetic fibers. But since it is made from synthetic construction materials it also has some fatal flaws that can ruin it if you clean it wrong.
Like Kryptonite on Superman, harsh chemicals will damage your polar fleece blanket. That is why you can’t take it to the dry cleaners. The chemicals used in that cleaning process are too harsh for the fleece to withstand.
Also, hand washing is a good option as it cuts down on the abrasive cleaning action that takes place when the washer’s agitator spins the fabrics around. Just a little care and attention to cleaning details will help you avoid ruining your polar fleece blanket.
How to Wash White Polar Fleece
One of the steps you need to take that has not been mentioned already is to make sure to turn the fleece article inside out if it isn’t a sheet or a blanket. This action cuts down on pilling and helps keep your fleece in better shape.
You can add a little white vinegar to the water to aid in keeping the fleece nice and soft but that additive will be up to your judgment and experience. In everything we have read about cleaning fleece, not one person made any mention of any special methods to clean white-colored fleece.
Since it is fleece the same cleaning procedures discussed earlier apply. But you may want to avoid mixing colors with fleece as the warm water may cause some color transfer to take place.
Do You Need to Wash Polar Fleece Before Sewing
There is some good news here. You can save yourself a little cleaning work as it is not necessary to pre-wash fleece before you sew it. This fabric does not shrink so what size you sew it will be the same size after you wash it.
Plus, fleece does not bleed color. Pre-washing then to protect the color does not need to be done. Fleece seems to be one of the easiest fabrics to clean making your laundry life a lot easier because of its ideal laundry nature.
There is one exception to this though. If the fleece has some Polartec ® Power Stretch fabrics woven into its construction then it will shrink up to about 7% in width and 5% in length.
Can You Dry Polar Fleece in The Dryer
Yes, this is not a problem either as long as you use low or no heat settings. High dryer heat can damage the fleece and remove the softness you love. The reason for this is the same as why you do not iron fleece.
The fabric ends can melt and ruin the fleece garment or blanket. The preferred method of drying fleece is hang drying. That is because the blanket or garment stays still throughout its drying time.
No harm comes to your fleece items and you avoid ruining them. Fleece may be the ideal laundry item because it is so easy to get clean but it doesn’t have its vulnerabilities that can ruin the item when you are not careful.
Acid Wash Polar Fleece
This version of Polar fleece is designed to replace wool as a warm layer when the days turn too cold for regular clothing. It comes in a variety of clothing items and is very water repellent.
The high water repellent level means that it will dry very quickly. The fact that it is fleece doesn’t change the washing instructions mentioned above.
Some Final Words
Polar fleece is not a natural fabric. It is man-made and with that feature, it is also very easy to get clean. You do not need a lot of soap and it is best to avoid hot water, harsh chemicals, and fabric softener.
It is the ideal fabric to get clean because it dries fast, does not need a lot of water or soap to get the job done. Plus, Polar fleece can be extremely warm protecting you from those cold nights and mornings.
