Mattress pad- maybe quarterly? Comforter- about the same. Duvet cover- monthly or slightly more often. Pillows.... less often because they are a pain in the neck to launder and dry!

My mattress is 15 years old! Ick! I think I'm on track with the washing of everything but I think I'll be going mattress shopping next week.

I agree with Sparky..if you don't have mite allergies forget about it, besides you can never get rid of them. Lol. If it really upsets you you can buy a matteress zipper cover.

Sheets and pillowcases should be washed at least weekly in hot water. Duvet covers that are generally against skin weekly also.

A comforter that's in a duvet cover is fine to go 3 months between washings. If you don't use a duvet cover you should at least have a sheet between you and your covering of choice, if you don't use a duvet cover or a sheet than the covering should also be washed weekly. These things require hot water or at the very least very warm.

Thanks for the info! My teenage boys drive me crazy with their bedding. They have a fitted sheet (obviously), then a flat sheet, an electric blanket in the cold months (we're in Michigan), and then a quilt. Neither uses the flat sheet to cover up with!! It eventually gets pushed down and ends up between the footboard and the mattress. So essentially they use the blanket and quilt....I don't get it. I try to explain to them that I do not wash their blanket every week and that is why they have a top sheet. I do wash their quilts, blankets, and mattress pads more than I wash my own because they're gross teenage boys that sometimes get in bed on school nights after practice and fall asleep without showering. I still can't get over the thought of all the dust mites living in my 15 year old mattress. Although....my mattress pad has a waterproof lining...I wonder if they can penetrate that?

Lisa, I have asthma and dust mite allergies and cannot replace my mattress every 8 years, though I know it is suggested. I spend a lot for a new mattress I have had back surgery and need the best. Anyway, after a few weeks the mites have taken up residences. What I do is vacuum often, and steam clean every couple of months. I use my clothes steamer. I have been using a dust mite spray, though I don't know if it helps and a dust mite proof cover. I hate the cover. It is very hard to put on and take off, but that is removed, washed in hot water every 2-3 weeks. I vacuum in between washes. My allergist said that reality is you will never get rid of the mites just control them and for most people it doesn't matter. By the way I am not freaked out by stuff like mites so my solution may not work for you. Hope you can find a nice comfy mattress. A comfortable one is worth it's weight in gold.

I'm due for a new mattress too. One of the things I know I am going to do is not buy a new box springs with a new mattress. Box springs just suck up dust and stuff and I do not want to encase it in plastic. I am going to buy a platform base with drawers at Ikea to replace my bed frame and box springs. That'll show those pesky mites!

This is were I have an edge (at least I think) :-)~

I'm still sleeping on a waterbed...I love this thing.

I've slept on water for over 30 years. So on that note I wipe down the vinyl mattress with a special spray cleaner every two weeks. My mattress can't harbor mites as it's a solid impermeable vinyl material. If there were any mites, they would be wiped away from the spray cleanser and cloth, their numbers would be kept to a extremely low number.

Now on to the washing...

Keep in mind I'm a clean freak so I'm clean when going to bed.

I wash sheets & pillow cases / mattress pad / duvet cover every two weeks. They are all solid white and get a hot wash with bleach. I have three sets of sheets currently.

The comforter (always in the duvet cover) gets washed twice a year in hot with bleach (the start of autumn and start of spring) it's solid white, cotton shell with synthetic stuffing.

Assembling a bed platform should be a thrill a minute for an overweight 76 year old. Think I'll get on it right away.

I wash my covers and fitted sheet weekly in 140°F water.

However, I only replaced my 16 year old mattress recently and only vacuumed it weekly with a powerhead. The new mattress has a removable shell that can be washed.

I haven't washed my duvet and pillow in a long time and only throw the pillow in the dryer every now and then. Since I have no allergies, I'm not too worried about it.

Good idea to throw the pillows into the dryer instead of putting them through an entire wash. My dryer has an allergen setting that I haven't used yet.

Didn't Dadoes talk about dryers and allergens...a dry pillow in a hot dryer for a certain amount of time will kill the mites.

But remember pillows also need a periodic bath. I prefer using disposable pillows LOL I buy the Ralph Lauren pillows at TJMaxx, they frequently have them on sale for a 2 pk, cheap. However they are so nice I washed them this last time 2 at a time in my Duet they came out perfect. I would never have had such good results with pillows in my TL'er.. I also use pillow covers, quilted along with pillowcases, the covers get washed weekly. We won't talk about how often sheets and pillowcases get washed and ironed in this house..LOL.