How to clean your curtains

How to clean your curtains

Curtains need deep cleaning at least once a year. However, many people don’t ever clean their curtains because they’re afraid of damaging them. While curtains can be trickier to clean than some other things in your home, the whole process isn’t that difficult if you know a few tips! Here is How to Clean Your Curtains Without Ruining Them.

1. Follow the Manufacturer’s Instructions

Before trying any curtain cleaning techniques, you’ll want to read the tag on your curtains to see if it says anything about how to clean them. As all curtains are different (and some are very delicate) this is important. The tag may say things like “Don’t bleach,” “Don’t dry clean,” or “Iron, medium,” all of which can help keep you from ruining your curtains.

2. Only machine wash certain curtains

When you’re considering how to clean your curtains, remember that not all fabrics should go in a washing machine. In general, lightweight nylon, cotton, and polyester curtains can go into your washing machine without any issues. Heavier curtains would be better off getting steam cleaned, because due to their density they can take a long time to dry. Steam cleaning is also an option for curtains that are very long, and thus hard to get down from their rod. Delicate curtains should be hand washed. And if you’re hoping to wash your curtains in your washing machine, remember that washing some fabrics (like some cottons) in hot water can cause them to shrink.

3. Hand Wash Gently

If you decide to clean your curtains by hand washing them, it’s likely because they’re delicate. As a result, you’ll want to be gentle when handling them, and you’ll want to use a gentle laundry detergent. You may want to invest in a detergent specifically made for washing delicates, just to be safe.

4. Steam Clean Carefully

If you decide to use a steam cleaner to clean curtains in your home, make sure to be careful so you don’t burn yourself with the steam. Also try to keep from over-saturating parts of the curtain. You can prevent this by keeping the steam cleaner a decent distance away from the surface of the curtain. And remember to steam from the top of the curtain down, not from the bottom up.

5. Don’t Use a Dryer

While your curtains may fit in your dryer, you really should avoid drying them that way. Delicate curtains may become damaged during the tumbling, and even hardier curtains could develop irremovable creases if they’re mechanically dried. Instead, the best way to dry curtains is by hanging them up, ideally outside. Just make sure to hang them up in the shade so that the sun doesn’t cause their color to fade.

6. Iron Creases

After you clean your curtains and dry them, you may find a few creases that need removing. Ironing can remove these creases, but you need to be careful so that you don’t damage your nice, clean curtains. If your curtains say “Don’t iron” on their tag, you’ll probably want to respect that. But if you’re determined, a safer way to iron delicate curtains is by turning the heat on your iron down low and by putting a sheet or pillowcase between the curtains and your iron. This will help reduce how much heat actually hits the curtains. Whether your curtains are delicate or not, you should take your curtains down from their rod, then start to iron them on an ironing board, working from the top of the curtains to about midway through. Then hang them on their rod, drape the bottom half of the curtains over the ironing board, and finish the job. This will prevent new creases from appearing.


To avoid having to go through this whole process often, you’ll want to make sure to vacuum your curtains regularly to keep them decently clean. And if something does happen to get on them, try to spot clean the stain as soon as possible with a sponge, laundry detergent, and a little water.


How often do you clean your curtains?