Keep winter coats clean as experts say there’s one thing to avoid

The colder weather means it’s time to get your big winter jacket out and ready for another season of staying warm. 

Whether you’ve got a long wool coat, a puffer jacket or anything in between, they’re essential for keeping out the cold during the winter months. 

But since they’re worn so often during this time, they can get dirty very easily, and they aren’t always the easiest to clean. 

This is because they’re often made up of some tricky materials, such as down, wool or fur, and it can be pretty unclear what the best way of washing is. 

However, according to experts from Which?, there’s an easy way to go about this – and one thing that you should avoid doing at all costs. 

Throwing it in the washing machine might seem like the obvious answer, as this is where we put all the rest of our clothes to clean them. 

However, the rules may be different when it comes to winter coats. 

Not all coats are machine-washable, but by checking the care label, you can quickly determine if yours is or not.

However, if you see the symbol with a bucket of water with a hand over it, that means hand wash only. If there’s a bucket of water with a cross through it, then the item is dry-clean only and getting it wet could ruin it. 

If you’ve checked the label and you can wash it in the machine, there’s one thing that you should never do – and that’s wash it higher than 40 degrees.

Keeping it on a cooler setting will help to ensure that any delicate fibres don’t get damaged. 

Before popping your coat in the machine, zip it up and close the pockets, as the open zip can sometimes attach to other garments and potentially ruin them. You should also remove anything detachable like belts or hoods. 

Ideally, each of your coats should be washed separately to avoid them getting caught on each other, but if you have a couple that are very similar they can go in together. 

You should use your machine’s ‘delicates’ setting for coats, or if yours doesn’t have one, opt for ‘gentle’ or ‘hand wash’.  

In most cases, a simple detergent will work fine. But if you’re washing a wool coat, you might need to pick up an alternative that’s suitable for that fabric. 

And when it comes to drying, many coats can be tumble dried at a low heat. It’s especially beneficial for puffer jackets, as this helps to even out the filling. 

However, for anything woolen, simply lie it out flat to dry so that it doesn’t stretch out of shape.