How to Wash a Knitted Wool Blanket
- 1). Fill the bottom of your bathtub with lukewarm water. You'll only need about six inches of water. Make certain the water is lukewarm -- a little warmer than room temperature is safe. Both hot water and cold water can ruin your wool blanket, so be very careful with this step.
- 2). Add a capful of wool wash to your lukewarm water. There are several on the market. Woolite, Eucalan or similar products are good to try.
- 3). Submerge your blanket in the soapy water and gently agitate the blanket, squeezing and softly rubbing parts of the blanket in your hands to remove soiled areas. Be very gentle -- do not pull, tug, ring or stretch any part of the knitted fabric.
- 4). Allow the blanket to soak. Your blanket may need to soak for anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours or longer, depending on how soiled it is. A few minutes of soaking should yield good results for an item that is only lightly soiled. For tougher stains and heavily soiled blankets, longer soaking times will be necessary. It may take hours, or even overnight, for extremely soiled items.
- 5). Drain soapy water out of the bathtub, and refill with clean lukewarm water. Again, make certain not to run hot water or cold water directly onto your wool blanket. Moving the blanket to the side of the tub while filling it will ensure you do not ruin it. Be very careful to use lukewarm water.
- 6). Rinse the blanket by gently agitating in the clean water until no sign of bubbles remains. If your rinse water becomes too soapy, drain the tub, refill with lukewarm water and rinse again.
- 7). Drain all water from the tub and very gently squeeze out all excess water from the blanket, when the blanket rinses clean, with no bubbles remaining in the rinse water. Do not ring or twist the blanket.
- 8). Lay towels out on a large surface, like a bed, dining room table or clean floor. You will need enough towels to equal the size of your blanket.
- 9). Lay your blanket flat on the towels to dry. Drying time can be up to two days for small blankets and three to five days for larger blankets. Your blanket should feel completely dry to a hand-squeeze when it is finished.
