How clean is it to put brand new unwashed sheets on a bed without washing them first?

Posted by sbizzler@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 32 comments

Moved into a flat and realised I had no bedsheet for my bed, only pillowcases and duvet cover. Went to the shop to buy a sheet but it says “wash before first use” on the label. I would like to put this sheet on the bed so i can sleep with sheets on tonight, but I am quite paranoid about germs and dirt. Will it be okay for me to use this sheet? Maybe also worth mentioning that the sheet’s packaging was simply a cardboard sleeve surrounding the folded sheet, so the sheet itself directly touched the shelf in the shop I bought it from.

Reply to Post

32 Comments

[-]

GrumbadaBands@reddit

I know this post is 2 years old but I have to add... I never bothered walking them before putting them on the bed before, but from now on I will! I got a rash on my arm and leg from sleeping on brand new sheets this week. I noticed they really started to itch almost as bad as fiberglass, but though it was my imagination. Yes, wash the manufacturing chemicals off your sheets first!

[-]

Jazzgirlao9609@reddit

I once watched something on TV where the woman bought a swimsuit and wore it without washing. She git a bot fly in her boob. Ever since then, I wash everything new.

[-]

DependentAd2274@reddit

Until the late 19th century we shat in a bucket and threw it out the window. New sheets will be just fine.

[-]

fartingbeagle@reddit

You had a bucket? Luxury!

[-]

HopAlongInHongKong@reddit

They could afford solid food? Gauche.

[-]

Psychological_Bar870@reddit

Thanks for this hahah!

[-]

Martipar@reddit

It depends, personally i have to wash things before i use them otherwise they irritate my skin. I also can't use fabric softener and have a limited choice of washing detergents i can use. Bedclothes straight from the shop would irritate me and I'd not be able to sleep at all. However if you're not affected by sensitive skin I don't see an issue with it.

[-]

HirsuteHacker@reddit

You really should be washing them, but if you have no choice you'll be alright.

[-]

DevilRenegade@reddit

I never bother. Out of the packaging and straight on. I have been known to just buy a new cheap set of sheets when I can't be bothered trying to wash and dry my other ones.

[-]

sbizzler@reddit (OP)

Even if the packaging didnt completely cover the sheet? It’s not wrapped in plastic, just the bedsheet in a cardboard sleeve.

[-]

alrighttreacle11@reddit

It's fine, I never was new stuff, clothes aren't wrapped up usually and I wear these from new

[-]

ig1@reddit

It probably won’t have germs but will likely have meaningful amount of dust, production chemicals etc so if you’ve got asthma or dust allergies wouldn’t recommend it. Why not just sleep on your duvet cover?

[-]

sbizzler@reddit (OP)

I need the duvet cover for my duvet and it’s the only one I have currently.

[-]

elgrn1@reddit

You can sleep with a duvet without a cover. Just wash the sheets and make up the bed tomorrow.

[-]

sbizzler@reddit (OP)

Reading this feeling like a massive idiot

[-]

LilacRose32@reddit

Sleep in the duvet cover

[-]

eionmac@reddit

Wear pyjamas and bedsocks.. If no pyjamas wear your jeans.

[-]

N7twitch@reddit

I’d wash them first. I find new fabrics can be stiff and itchy, especially something like bedding where my whole naked body will be touching it. But I have sensitive skin, your mileage may vary.

[-]

strawbebbymilkshake@reddit

It won’t kill you, but textile factories are filthy and most materials are coated in chemicals to make them easier to handle. I wash everything before first use.

[-]

oktimeforplanz@reddit

Warehouses, even ones with textiles in them, are filthy. There could be production chemicals, excess dyes, etc. that will come off the sheets and on to your skin which could be a problem for your skin if it's quite sensitive. If it wasn't within plastic packaging, then you've also got the fact that some of it was wide to the world to be touched by whoever - the staff handling it at all stages of its journey to your hands, customers, etc. It's quite unlikely to harm you to not wash them, but I would personally always wash them anyway. If they wouldn't be dry in time for tonight, it's not going to be a problem for you to sleep on a mattress without a sheet for one night.

[-]

peterbparker86@reddit

It's fine. Nothing will happen to you

[-]

terryjuicelawson@reddit

I guess it may have some kind of dust from the factory, but I don't see what magic running it through a crappy home washing machine and going through the drying process will do. Maybe it would have some chemical residue, I quite like the smell of new sheets and clothes though, I never wash stuff like that. Do we wash shoes before putting them on?

[-]

Mop_Jockey@reddit

It won't really do you any harm, it's not clean but not exactly dirty either.

[-]

BeardedBaldMan@reddit

>Do you wash clothes before weaning them when you buy new stuff? Always. You don't know how the material was stored before being made into clothes, nor how the clothes were stored before packaging.

[-]

Mop_Jockey@reddit

I know why you'd do it to be fair but the Q was aimed more at OP specifically since it's basically the same point for each.

[-]

MajorHubbub@reddit

I find breast milk stinks after a while tho

[-]

SweetSusan45@reddit

Ah, the age-old dilemma of fresh vs. clean sheets! It's like rolling the dice with your sleep hygiene.

[-]

zephyrmox@reddit

bot

[-]

bucketofardvarks@reddit

I expect that your usual sheets are dirtier once you sleep in them for a day, unless there's some weird smell or obvious dirt for some reason I wouldn't wash them first

[-]

IpromithiusI@reddit

You are not going to catch anything.

[-]

bucketofardvarks@reddit

I'm afraid your skin would have a 73.4% chance of shriveling up and falling off your body if you did this

[-]

AutoModerator@reddit

**Please help keep AskUK welcoming!** - Top-level comments to the OP must contain **genuine efforts to answer the question**. No jokes, judgements, etc. - **Don't be a dick** to each other. If getting heated, just block and move on. - This is a strictly **no-politics** subreddit! Please help us by reporting comments that break these rules. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskUK) if you have any questions or concerns.*