Many consumers spend considerable time and money selecting the bed sheets that they will use in their home.  Because these linens represent a substantial investment, the home owner will no doubt want them to be fresh and crisp when being used, as well as to keep them that way for as long as possible.

As a result, it is important to remember to change and launder bed sheets regularly.  However, how often is too often?

Changing sheets daily, such as is often done on cruises and at hotels, is overkill.  Unless they have been soiled, bed sheets simply do not need to be cleaned that often.  On the other hand, waiting many weeks or months between washes can be problematic as it has been shown that bed bugs and dust mites will build up dramatically during such a lengthy period of time.

With that said, if a homeowner has allergies to dust mites or suffers from night sweats, you may need to change your bed sheets more often than someone that does not.

Stains should be pretreated as soon as they occur.  Deciding whether to use a commercial stain spotting agent or a plain bar of soap is a matter of personal preference.  However, because the simple bar of soap is economical and will actually remove most stains, it may be the better choice to keep handy in your laundry room.  Using cold water -- note that hot water can actually cause the stains to set -- the process is relatively straight forward:  rub the soap bar onto the stain and through the bed sheet into the washer. 

Real silk sheets sometimes require a different cleaning approach.  Most homeowners, however, have faux silk sheets (i.e., actually satin sheets) or washable silk sheets.  These can usually be washed in the same manner as cotton sheets.  Satin sheets are very similar to silk sheets but instead of being made of natural silk from a silkworm, they are made out of synthetic material. 

Obviously, it is important to follow the care label instructions for your bed sheets.  As a general rule, wash your bedsheets using the gentle cycle with cool water, and tumble dry using the low heat setting.

Because washing your bed sheets can sometimes be a timely process, especially if necessary to send them out for dry cleaning, many consumer advocate groups recommend three bed sheet sets are purchased for each bed in the home.  By doing so, one bed sheet set is available for immediate changing, one to remains on the bed, and one is being cleaned. 

Similarly, it is important to regularly and routinely wash and clean your bedspreads, blankets and comforters.  Silk bedspreads should be dry cleaned at least twice a year. 

Unfortunately, due to the considerable amount of material that makes up the typical bedspreads, blankets and comforters, many older model washing machines are have inadequate size capacity to properly wash them (i.e., fully cover them with water while allowing the machine to aggitate properly).  Accordingly, it may be necessary to have them washed at the local laundromat, which usually have extra large capacity washing machines.

If you are in need of freshing up your bulky bedding and cannot give it a proper washing, consider placing it in  the dryer for five or ten minutes on the "air fluff" setting.  This has the effect of loosening dust particles and other microscopic debris from the bedding.  Another quick fix method is to hang it outside on a sunny day.  The ultraviolet rays from the sun will kill any bacteria and the wind with blow away any surface dust.

You can extend the time between having to wash your bulky bedding by using comforter covers such as duvets.  This permits you to wash the covers every couple of weeks rather than having to wash the entire bedding.