to be honest, I do mine as often as I can when I have a day off. I work weird hours, so sometimes I have a lot of time and others, I am working 14-20 hours a day. So, once a week unless I'm working super hard. Then, it's been known to go two weeks....I try to comfort myself with the dust mite protectors on the pillows and over the mattress pads-- which, by the way, are uncomfortably hot and moist. I can't imagine that's too good for mites, but whatever. I like to dry my sheets on the line for the fresh smell. I used to iron everything when I had the time, but with work sometimes eating up night and day (Saturday and Sunday, too!), it just doesn't happen. Of course, I know this is not a "real" excuse, cuz if people with kids can do it, I sure as heck should be able to find the time. But there you have it!

I wash my sheets with antique lace on the edges and Italian high thread count (I love high-end sheets-- a weakness) on delicate, and the other sheets on hot to kill any germs that might be able to survive two weeks on our bed! Most of my sheets can't take the dryer, though. the 1200 TC and up tend to look not as good through the dryer. Fluff them and hang them.

I agree with the overkill of germs-- I had a friend who told me he regularly ate soft serve ice cream from DQ just to boost his immune system:-)

Sheets and pillowcases are washed weekly every Saturday, as part of my cleaning routine. First Saturday of each month I also wash the mattress pads and bedcovers.

We also are all evening bathers/shower takers.

Ann

kgwlisa,
Same here -- Princess and the pea syndrome.
If there is one teensy crumb (kitties bring things to the bed on their feetsies), or one tiny pill on my not-very-expensive sheets, I'll find it while moving around to get comfy.
If my leg runs across crumb or pill, out of bed I get, lghts go on and the culprit has to be found and removed, immediately! LOL

Old-fashioned, hard-side, free-float waterbed here.
Sheets and waterbed mattress cover get changed every Friday morning.
Waterbed mattress gets a wipe down with Mr. Clean.
Top Blanket once every couple weeks.
Comforter, folded at foot of bed during summer only gets washed at the beginning of the cold season.
During the cold months the comforter gets washed about once a month.

It has nothing to do with mites and I'm not afraid of germs---I've tried letting the sheets go longer but it's a mental thing and I can't get comfy if my brain thinks about the week's grunge from the kitties and doggie in the sheets even though hubby and me shower every night before bed.
TMI, I know. *s*

Re dust mites: Not an issue if you have a latex bed (as we do), or a waterbed (presumably?).

Sheets here are changed on Sunday, laundry day - usually they come off the bed, go into the wash, and get put back on right out of the dryer so there's no need to fold them. :-) Everything else gets washed on a "when it needs it" rotation. A midweek sheet change (laundry day is still Sunday though, we try for having 3 sets of sheets in stock although I'm short right now) may well happen if it's hot, although that is less common since DH quit smoking and his perspiration is significantly less rank. Guests get fresh sheets and blankets when they arrive, and if they stayed long enough (like hell they would LOL - Ben Franklin was right, guests and fish both start to stink in three days!) their sheets would go on the same rotation.

I'm a "princess and the pea" too but it's about softness and wrinkles (ridge-type wrinkles, not wrinkly-fabric wrinkles) - if the bottom sheet isn't flat, if the top covers aren't tucked in properly so they lie flat as well, then it drives me crazy. If the fabric's at all scratchy, fuhgedaboudit. The crisp sheets that many of you love so much are so uncomfortable to me I can hardly stand it. One would think that the beech/modal (fancy names for rayon) or jersey-knit sheets would be just the ticket for super-softness but they stick to spots of rough skin which is even more maddening.

One of the most laughable commercials I can remember is that one from Clorox where the guy is about to jump into bed and hovers above this bubbling green-brown swamp instead, while some plummy voice intones soberly about "body soil". Hilarious.

I wash my sheets every weekend (I am an earlybird) with an infrequent lapse in the schedule, then I'd catch it the following week. I have no pets - couldn't put up with the hair on the bed let alone the furniture!!!

I also don't stress about the dust mites. I have bought the zippered cover for the mattress pad and pillows, but seriously the EEEW factor does not get me the way that visible pet hair does.

I don't have a duvet cover but wash my bedspread, blankets and mattress pad every other week on warm.

decorpas: the mattress and pillow protectors you use do not have to be uncomfortably hot -- you just need to use the right ones, made of micro-denier material which breathes. We found the vinyl ones, and the ones lined with urethane to be too hot, as well. But the ones made of micro-denier material are very comfortable for us. Unfortunately, they are much more expensive than the vinyl or urethane-lined type.

Here is a link that might be useful: Examples of different types of mattress encasings for dustmites

Saturdays. Blankets as needed.

I read this kind of fast

"I change the sheets every couple of days. I have lots of sets"

and thought that sets was another word that started with se, but ended with x. And I thought no wonder she changes her sheets so often!

Once a week for the kids' bed.

For the master's bed, every time the deed is done which is ahem...once every day? Haha...no I am just kidding
;-)

Ok I didn't click on the mite link but I just stripped my bed and threw the sheets in the wash. No pets here and we're empty nesters but the sheets only get done every couple of weeks as a norm, and if it goes 3 I don't freak. More if someone is sick or they just start to feel icky and stretched. I gotta believe those who don't wash theirs as regularly as most responses here just aren't responding....lol.

Once a week on hot, mattress pads, blankets, and comforters less frequently. All pillows and mattresses are encased in dust-mite proof covers. No pets in or on the beds here.

In general, we do once a week here. We have 6 beds to change so that is my limit. If somebody is sick and stays in bed the whole day, I will change them while they are in the tub (no bath, no clean sheets). Before making the bed, I pull the covers all the way down to let the bed air out while I eat breakfast and to keep things fresher. Blankets, generally once a month maybe a little longer depending on my schedule. They get washed sooner if I notice a kid dragging it around the house and by the woodstove before I have cleaned up the ashes.

I forgot one thing, Dh only wants me to change more often because he feels that if there are clean sheets on the bed, that is the perfect opportunity for us to go in and ruffle them up (thus sheets are changed in the middle of the week when I work nights). Otherwise, I don't know that he would even notice.

Every two weeks. It doesn't sem to bother either of us.

Me, too. Every two weeks...may have even gone longer if I am busy :-o

(As far as the dust mites, I like to think that they are eating away some of my old lady skin layers and making me look fresher. Who needs facial lazer treatments.)

OK, Mimi, I'll 'fess up. Nevermoreoftenthanonceamonth, and I'veneverwashedtheblankets! We're clean, the house is neat, but EVERY COUPLE DAYS? I can't imagine that. Seems like an enormous amount of wasted effort, dust mites or no. Symbiosis rocks! My life is much too interesting and full of too many other things to spend that much time doing laundry, changing sheets. In fact, it never even ocurred to me! Besides, my bed is king size and the blankets would never fit in my machines.

And how on earth do princesses sleep with hairy animals if they can't abide a sheet after a few days? Don't they know what kitties walk in after they do their business? Surely they don't wash kitty's paws with disinfectant after they use the facilities. I empty the litter box every day, but only once a day, so....no animals in my bed. We trained our cat and dog to never enter our bedroom. They stop at the threshhold. Very nice to have one room that is fur-free, except for the little that comes in on us.

I hope I don't sound like a crank, but animals in bed are not my thing, and changing sheets that often seems very wasteful. A small towel is much more efficient for taking care of - ahem - things (well, maybe a towel wouldn't work for Bellaflora, TeeHee.) I kinda wish I could post this "anonymously!"

Once a week I wash sheets, blankets and spreads in hot water and bleach.

I have a friend who is a retired nurse. Years ago she'd change the bed every day!! I must admit that sounds good, but I don't think I could keep up with that schedule.

I feel like I should change them every week, but only do it every other week. With four beds to change, it takes some time. Probably doesn't help that I take them off, wash them and put them back on. I probably should invest in more sheets.

I'll have you know that this morning I got motivated by this thread and stripped our entire bed, even the fitted sheet covering the box spring, mattress pad etc. then even rotated the mattress. I will say I am looking forward to getting in my nice clean bed tonight!

There are some hilarious comments in this thread -- thank you so much!

LOL. I did this to prove to hubby that people DO in fact WASH sheets... Now he wants to know what Dave Barry thinks, but um, I don't have a direct line to him...

I have to wonder if this poll was more anonymous whether you would get different answers!

I wash my sheets about every other week. I wash the pillow cases when I do whites, about once a week.

How often do you wash your sheets and pillowcases?

Every 2 weeks - my housecleaner changes them and I wash.

How about duvet covers? Don't have any, but I do wash comforters every 6 months or so.

And does your husband or wife agree with that frequency? He wouldn't have a clue...

How many of you sleep with animals on your bed?

Animals next to the bed, not on it. I let the big poodle up there once in a while for a cuddle (oui, j'embrasse mon chien sur la bouche), but he doesn't get to sleep there. Just me and the DH.

Oceanna, are you talking about Dh or the kids? Our doggie sleeps outside but if you ever heard the noise level in my house, you would certainly agree that the kiddoes qualify.

Usually every three days in the winter, more frequently in warm weather: every other day or even daily if necessary during heat spells. (no A/C, here).

If someone is sick then they get daily bed linen changes, twice per day if they have a fever.

I only machine wash, not machine dry, sheets and cases as line-drying is the nuts for sheets. I do it even in the depths of winter (and that's deep as I live in northern NY).

Cotton bed accoutrements (mattress pad, blanket cover, bedspread etc.) are washed monthly. Down comforters are aired on the line outside every day it is isn't raining, year-round. The first thing I do evry day is take the all the household's down comforters out to the lines. Duvet cover changed twice weekly, or oftener if my fur-babies have been too importunate.

Wool blankets washed about every couple of months in spring and fall, less so in winter as it can take a week, or more, to line dry a heavy wool blanket in below freezing temps, and they are vulnerable to damage in windy sub-zero periods.

Molly~

This if funny!

I wash the sheets about once every 10 days and the comforter once a month.

We have a king that is very high. Our 9.5 year old Black Lab begs to get on the bed every night (this is my DH fault for putting him on the bed one night). He weighs 90lbs and has a bad hip. Dh has to pick him up and put him on the bed. I have few old sheets and I put one on the bottom of the bed and change it out everday.

Our 4 year old ends up in our bed 95% of the time. I don't know exactly what time he arrives but he is usually there when we wake up. So, it's the two of us, a 4 year old, some stuffed animals, a 90lb Lab and a 10 lb cat all in bed together.

Now that I told you all that I need to wash my sheets!!

No animals in the house and my husband wouldn't comment since he doesn't do the sheets:-)

Cats in the bed. Dogs sleep in their beds on the floor.

I think the ideal would be twice a week, I personally aim for once a week; but let's face it, when you are the one washing and redoing the bed, it's pretty much room service work so you can cut yourself some slack at times when you are too busy and it's your own , I was going to say filth but that would be an exaggeration, let's call it "unfreshness" you are sleeping in.

Just me and one white mini schnauzer in a king bed. Well and whatever daughter is home from college and thinks its fun to crash with Mom! Everything washed every sunday afternoon and hopefully (weather permitting, hung on the line to dry in the sunshine.)

Molly I'm tired just reading what you do!!! I'd be on a first name basis with my mites before doing all that - my life is too short - don't you ever just want to say not today?

kitchenkelly you should have warned me - I about spewed my coffee!

Most nights dog is on the floor in his bed at my side. When my feet are cold I let him come up but usually kick him off during the night.

DH does the laundry (has for years, ever since we lived in Boston and had to haul the laundry out to the laundromat on foot) so obviously he agrees with the frequency of sheet-changing. :-) When I get up on Sunday mornings I strip the bed and bring the sheets down, he's a wicked early bird so often the washer is already empty and ready to go.

robynpa, have you checked out the doggy stairs for your Lab? I've seen them at Bed Bath & Beyond as well as the pet stores.

Goku-pup only gets up on the bed when invited and won't stay long, he prefers the floor. Random-kitty loved to cuddle under the sheets with us - her favorite place to sleep was curled up behind someone's knees. I have always let my critters sleep on the bed if they wanted to, because I love having the extra chance to cuddle with them!

About once a week on sheets. Blankets? Umm, you're supposed to wash those? LOL! We have a duvet in a cover on our bed that's dry clean only. I am careful to always have the top sheet against us, not the duvet. But still--I guess I should get it over the dry cleaner. Does anyone else have dry clean only bed toppers? I wash my kids blankets more frequently, but to be honest, neither one likes to sleep with covers. So I certainly don't do them every week!

We have allergies, so all bedding gets washed once a week. I had the duvet cover custom made and picked washable upholstery fabrics. The duvet cover has a zipper so that the duvet insert is completely encased. Kids' bedding gets washed once a week or as need -- we're still in potty training days. ;)

Oceanna: We always welcome any of our animals to sleep with us. One of our dogs does so every night; our other dog, if he's in the mood. And our cat wants to cuddle with me every chance she gets! :)

Every 7-10 days, on average for sheets.

I tend to change pillowcases more frequently, esp. in the summertime.

Duvet cover, bedspreads? once a month, thereabouts? not sure actually. Ditto mattress cover.

I wash blankets, comforters, pillows once a year. But I do hang them outside regularly over the season to air them out.

About once a week -- depending on the season and the need ....... four cats here -- so there is always a spare cat or two on the bed .....

{{!gwi}}

Once a week, sheets get washed in hot water; in spite of the fact that the label says cool or warm water. I add a cup of all fabric bleach and a bit of Borax to help keep them white and bright. I worry about the dust mites as well, and sleep with a cat and a bossy male Papillon dog.
Down blanket gets washed every other week. Bedspread when I see pawprints on it; usually once a month. Often I wash the pillowcases a few times per week (I sometimes drool when I sleep!!). Perhaps the drooling problem is why I sleep alone with a cat and a dog... something to think about!

I've got an 8lb leech, a.k.a. our tiny poodle, attached to me all night long for warmth. I mean attached. Under the blankets and sometimes partially smushed. He's not bothered in the least by my movements and futile attempts to get some space, and will not detach until I pry him off in the morning when its time to get up, lol.

When XH and I were still together our lab slept downstairs in her kennel as she was way too big to be in the bed. Now that she no longer lives with me, she goes back and forth during the night between his mom's & his aunt's bed depending on her mood. She's a lucky lab :) and spoiled rotten.

I wash our sheets about every 10 days. The pillowcases get thrown in every time I do a white load of laundry (2-3 times a week.) The duvet cover and featherbed cover get done once a month. The quilt that covers the bed during the day gets folded down to the bottom at night. No one sits or reclines on our "made" bed(it's a little anal, I know - but that's why we have chairs in there...), so the quilt gets laundered only once a year.

I'm a seasonal person. Every two weeks in the winter and once a week in the summer. I have to say my kids take showers at night so they don't go to bed dirty. I don't know why the say rule doesn't apply to DH and myself:) If anyone is sick I wash or change out pillowcases daily and then wash sheets once sickness is over.

I do however like Kitchenkelly's idea about the dust mites eating away at the flakey dry skin while your sleeping. I'm all for a free facial:)

Wow, really blown away by the responses. I wash sheets hopefully every two weeks. We have two non-shedding dogs but they are not allowed on the bed. I keep clean, tidy, and sanitary house, but I could just not see changing the sheets, say twice a week.

Yes, our cat sleeps with us, but we've trained him to stay in his "spot," which is on the blanket folded up at the foot of the bed.

Teacats, I don't think I've seen your house. It's gorgeous! What a beautiful bedroom :))

I'm an infrequent visitor to this board after my project was mostly completed over a year ago, but I do love lurking and looking at pics of gorgeous homes, etc. Anyway, this was a very interesting read with my morning tea. I had no idea!

My sheets are washed weekly (though the exact day may vary). They are washed and immediately go back on the bed (king-size--HATE to fold). I wash the mattress pad when I think of it (it's so thick, it has to go to a laundromat, so it's not often) and the duvet cover gets washed 2x year. Luckily our ancient kitty no longer chooses to sleep with us (the bed it too high up for her--she's 20).

My mom (very "old-school"--born 1919) would never have washed any more often and was sometimes known to switch the sheets around from top to bottom. She rarely washed blankets and never (that I know of) washed quilts--she aired them out. All of us kids survived quite healthfully.

My MIL was worse about cleanliness (and even I cringe) and none of her children were ever sick or had allergies, etc. I think that keeping things overly clean is a detriment to our immune system. Humans spent many more years barely bathing, etc., and only in the last half-century has regular washing of any kind been less of a chore. Maybe ignorance IS bliss? When I was a kid, I'd never heard of dust mites, so I didn't fear them.

Oh, and I laughed about the towel on the bed thing, Sherrmann.....I've been known to grab one too, especially when the sheets are fresh clean!

Now if I had a live-in maid? Oh, how lovely to have fresh bedding each night......but it ain't ever gonna happen with me having to do it :-)

I bet those of you that change your bedding so often also use clean towels each time you bathe?

Thanks Squirrel!! I'm really trying to get better at posting some of my photos

Looking for new camera ..... sigh.

I choose not to air my dirty laundry in public ;~>

Teacats,

Love your bedroom!

What SquirrelHeaven said, I don't think I remember seeing pics of your home, and for sure never of this very pretty room.

Do you happen to have a close shot of your window, the valance?

Wisrose LOL LOL

As far as pets in bed;
Yes. Two cats. One has to be under the covers, spooned into my tummy.
One medium-sized Heinz-57 dog wherever she can squeeze in and
you haven't lived until you wake up to a parrot doing a chomp on your nose because you haven't gotten up in time for his morning bananna slices.

I am a lurker here and putting in my 2 cents for the first time...cuz this is interesting! LOL

I try to change the sheets every 2 weeks. I have multiple sets, so sometimes they sit down in the basement for awhile before I actually wash them. I sleep with my 2 dogs and my 2 cats. The dogs need to be touching me, which tends to drive me crazy, but deep down I guess I love it...because I let it happen! BTW, my DH actually has his own room! He says I snore to loud and he is a very light sleeper. He is a bed hog...and snores way more loudly than I do, so that is what works for us for us both to get a decent nights sleep! LOL I am better off sleeping with the critters and the dust mites! And another btw, he washes his OWN sheets!!