How to Wash Wool – Woollen doonas and more

We specialise in doona washing but the principle of washing wool – for a doona, blanket or jumper or socks is the same.

Its better to use a ‘wool wash’ detergent and not your general laundry detergent. Wool wash is often a liquid and will soften and condition the wool fibres for a longer life. Regular detergents can cause the wool to dry out, shortening the items life. Read the detergent’s instructions as you often use a lot less wool wash in a load than general detergents.

The most important part of washing wool is the temperature. ALWAYS wash wool in cold water and on a gentle cycle, if possible. Heat (via water or the dryer) can shrink your woollen items. To dry your doona you can hang it outside on the clothes line – this can take some time.

I wash my Australian made King sized wool doona in our laundromat’s Commercial American (Dexter) Jumbo 20kg washers on Cold for 30 minutes. Then I put it into our Mega 15kg natural gas dryers on a LOW heat and it has never shrunk. On LOW (55 degrees) it takes about 1 hour to dry. You can have your bulky woollen doona washed and dried in 1.5hours with us. I also sometimes like to put 3, or so, woollen dryer balls into the dryer with the doona to help fluff it up and speed up drying time.