So, how many times do you....

“.......wash/clean your sleeping bag? I've had mine since summer, four times out and had not been washed yet. No stank, but I'd like to keep the loft good as much as I can. Do you wash yer bag after every trip or what?

I have a REI 15 degree Shasta....”

“Nope not after every trip.
But at the end of a season (i carry different bag for the summer)”

“Once a year is probably about right.

I have only washed mine three times since I got it. It's been more than three years!”

“Just buy a new one! ;o)”

“Sassafrass = gear junkie??”

“who, me? If I had someone else's money, maybe.”

“On average I do mine once for about every 30 nights spent in it or once a year, which ever comes first.”

“As little as possible. My down bag is 6 or more years old, and it's been washed (by hand, in the tub) 3 times. Only really washed it then to remove the odors from long trips.
A liner is critical to keeping the bag cleaner IMO.”

“I agree, Le Subtil w/ the liner thing. I am debating to buy one. I've seen the Moonstone (about 65 bucks) small down liner, only .5 lbs, and thought good way to keep the bag clean and drop the "R factor" down to below zero. Too bad I just bought a new (to me??) pack :)”

“The manufacturer suggests using a front loading tumbler washer or hand washing around every 10 trips or so. Do NOT use liquid detergents. Use only a powdered detergent without bleach. Do NOT dryclean.
When the bag is to be stored for any long periods, fluff it out and keep it in a box of some kind or hang it upside down. Also, when preparing for the backpack, stuff it in the sack vs rolling it up tightly. This keeps the loft from forming a memory and won't refluff over time.
Yeap, that's what he said, alright.”

“febreeze?”

“In response to Trekker John DO NOT USE DETERGENTS!!use a soap based material. Detergents are pertolium based products and as such will solvate oils and grease (that's why they are so good to do laundry with). One of the essential benefits of down as a fill is it's loft, predicated on the fact that each bit of down and feather has a small amount of oil assocaited with it, once these oils are removed it will no longer loft to it's maximum, thus ruined.

A soap based cleaner will not remove the oils. LoftII is a product specifically formulated to launder down. You can find it at most outdoor retailers like REI, etc. If you don't want to go that rout you can use Ivory Snow...

You do need to use the commercial front loadeing washers though, otherwise the central agitator in your home washer may blow out (rip or tear) the baffels between the down chambers leading to shifting insulation (cold spots).”

“What Big Wave Dave said.

Didn't use a front loading washer once on a cheap bag, tore the bag to shreads!”

“What about bags with artificial fill? Any special instructions? Or do you just toss 'em when they are stanky? lol...”

“Artificail fill is basically the same with regards to agitation and overall care. You can use a detergent on those but just to be consistant and avoid costly mistakes, just get in the habit of using a soap based cleaner.”

“OK cool, thanks...never washed either of my bags, but they are getting ready to see a lot of use...”

“TMI! :-D”

“They're not that bad....one of them has 1 night's use so far, and the other has about 10-15”

“Okay, sorry .. .. I was referring directly to the artificial stuffings.... not real feathery down. I have just always used the artificial stuff as feathers make me sneeze, wheeze, snore and all sorts of ugly things in my sleep.
But, ALL this is very, very good information!!!”

“Ive had my bag for 3 years....never washed it once...

Hmmm....why does it smell like wet stinky socks?”

“We had to get a new washer last year and while in the store looking at them I told my wife "Thats the one we need right there that big front loading one."



Thats the one we got.”

“My brother got one of those Neptune washers the last time he bought a set. He kept talking about how much power and water it would save. I said, electricity is $.06 a KW/hr, water is almost free here.

Then, he moved to Houston. He's probably already made the difference back...”

“I have the Neptune, I like it for the water savings, but Maytag is not living up to the image. Just put several hundred into it for bearings after less than 5 years, and I am a two person household. The last Maytag I had only lasted 11 years.”

“I've had it probably... 5 years, maybe... 200 bag nights, never been washed... I didn't know it was common practice, lol. ahh, maybe sometime, it's gettin smelly.”

“I clean my bags VERY INFREQENTLY to preserve the loft. I make it a point to wear clean sleeping clothes as much as possible to keep my dirty body from rubbing against the inside of my bag. I also clean my arms, neck, and head with body wipes before going to sleep to try and keep the bag clean. I also air the bag out in the morning as long as possible before packing it and store it out of the stuff sack.

I must admit that living in a dry climate probably helps because we don't have as much sweat and other types of moisture to deal with.”

“I use Febreze Xtra on mine!

8)”

“"we don't have as much sweat and other types of moisture to deal with".. . ..
dang, down here in the South, you can just THINK about moisture and we will sweat like a roasting piglet !!! Our humidity hovers around 98.6% and even inside under the 70 degree air conditioner, we break a bead just watching TV.... it's awful this year. Rain, rain and more rain. This amounts to higher humidity, West Nile virus carrying mosquitoes, snakes, and all those things that go BUMP in the dark !!!”

“about once every couple of years I'll get a soapy rag and wipe it down. Then rince it with a damp rag and then let it air dry for a while.
After a trip I always hang it in the garage for a few days.”

“'Cause I'm REAL stinky!!

I want to hear from the people who wash their packs. I don't wash my pack. Maybe I'll hose it down one of these days.”

“encourages washings after every trip. I like my bag not to be stinky...so I wash it after every trip...haven't lost one shred of loft. I have a wiggy's.”

“I just air mine out between trips... aint stank yet :}”