How to Sanitize a Mattress: The Complete Guide to a Cleaner Bed

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You spend roughly a third of your life on your mattress, and over time it collects things you would rather not think about: dead skin cells, body oils, sweat, dust mites, and allergens. Learning how to sanitize a mattress properly keeps your sleep environment healthy and can extend the life of your investment.

The good news is that you do not need expensive equipment or professional services. Most of what you need is already in your kitchen. Here is the process we recommend to customers at our Brantford store, based on what we have learned about mattress care over 37 years in the business.

Why Sanitizing Your Mattress Actually Matters

This is not about being obsessive. There are real health reasons to keep your mattress clean.

The average person sheds about 1.5 grams of skin per day, and a significant amount of that ends up in your mattress. Dust mites feed on dead skin cells, and a typical used mattress can harbour tens of thousands of them. The Asthma Society of Canada identifies dust mites as one of the most common indoor allergens, contributing to nasal congestion, sneezing, and worsened asthma symptoms.

A 2015 study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health found that mattress dust is a significant reservoir for allergens, bacterial endotoxins, and fungal components, all of which can affect respiratory health (Arlian et al., 2015). Regular cleaning reduces these concentrations.

Beyond allergens, mattresses accumulate moisture from body sweat. The average person loses approximately 200 millilitres of water through perspiration during a typical night of sleep. In Brantford's humid summer months, this moisture gets trapped in mattress layers and can create conditions for mould growth if the mattress is not properly maintained.

Supplies You Need

You likely have most of these at home already.

8 min read

Step-by-Step Mattress Sanitization

Allow about 2 hours for the full process, plus drying time. Start in the morning so the mattress has all day to dry.

Step 1: Strip Everything

Remove all bedding: sheets, pillowcases, mattress protector, and any topper. Wash everything in hot water at 60 degrees Celsius. This temperature kills dust mites and their eggs. If your protector is not machine washable, follow the manufacturer's instructions.

Step 2: Vacuum Thoroughly

Using the upholstery attachment, vacuum the entire mattress surface. Work in overlapping rows, covering the top, all four sides, and the bottom if you can flip the mattress. Pay extra attention to seams, piping, and any tufted areas where dust and debris collect in the crevices.

If your vacuum has a crevice tool, use it along the seams. This is where most of the embedded dust accumulates.

Step 3: Spot Treat Visible Stains

Before general sanitization, address any visible stains. Different stains require different treatments (see the stain removal section below). The key rule: always blot, never rub. Rubbing pushes the stain deeper into the mattress fibres.

Step 4: Deodorize with Baking Soda

Sprinkle a generous, even layer of baking soda over the entire mattress surface. Do not be shy with it. Baking soda is a natural deodorizer that absorbs moisture and odours. Let it sit for a minimum of 30 minutes. For best results, leave it for 2 to 4 hours. If you can, open a window or turn on a fan to help the baking soda draw out moisture.

Step 5: Vacuum Again

Vacuum all the baking soda off the mattress. Take your time here. Baking soda can settle into fabric creases, and leftover residue can feel gritty under your sheets.

Step 6: Disinfect

Fill a spray bottle with equal parts white vinegar and water. Lightly mist the mattress surface. The key word is "lightly." You want a fine mist, not a soaking. Vinegar is a natural antimicrobial that kills most bacteria and inhibits mould growth. The vinegar smell dissipates as it dries.

If you prefer, you can use a commercial fabric sanitizer spray instead. Look for products labelled as safe for fabrics and free of bleach.

Step 7: Air Dry Completely

This is the step people rush, and it is the most important. A damp mattress invites the exact problems you are trying to eliminate. Leave the mattress uncovered for at least 4 to 6 hours. Open windows, turn on a ceiling fan, or point a standing fan at the mattress to speed drying.

The mattress should feel completely dry to the touch before you put your protector and sheets back on. If there is any lingering dampness, give it more time.

Stain Removal by Type

Different stains respond to different cleaning approaches. Here is what works for the most common mattress stains.

Cleaning Considerations by Mattress Type

Not all mattresses can be cleaned the same way. The materials inside your mattress determine which methods are safe to use.

Innerspring and Pocketed Coil Mattresses

These are the most forgiving when it comes to cleaning. The coil system allows airflow, which helps with drying. You can use all the methods described above. If you have a flippable mattress, clean both sides. Our Restonic ComfortCare models and Sleep In flippable mattresses both handle routine cleaning well.

Memory Foam Mattresses

Memory foam requires more caution. The dense foam structure traps moisture and takes much longer to dry than coil mattresses. Never saturate memory foam with liquid. Use the lightest possible misting when applying vinegar or cleaning solutions. Avoid steam cleaning memory foam, as the heat and moisture can damage the foam structure and void your warranty.

Latex Mattresses

Natural latex is naturally antimicrobial and resistant to dust mites, which means it needs less frequent deep sanitization than other types. When you do clean latex, avoid harsh chemicals and direct sunlight exposure, both of which can degrade the material. Stick to gentle vacuuming and light baking soda treatments.

Hybrid Mattresses

Hybrids combine foam comfort layers over a coil support system. Clean the surface using memory foam guidelines (light moisture only) since the top layer is usually foam. The coil base handles drying better than all-foam designs, but the foam layers still need time to dry completely.

Prevention: The Easier Path

Cleaning your mattress is important, but preventing contamination in the first place is more effective and far less work.

Use a Mattress Protector

This is the single most impactful thing you can do for mattress hygiene. A waterproof, breathable mattress protector creates a barrier between your body and the mattress. It catches sweat, skin cells, spills, and allergens before they reach the mattress surface. Unlike your mattress, a protector can be removed and machine washed regularly.

We sell protectors at our Brantford showroom and strongly recommend them with every mattress purchase. A $50 to $80 protector can save you from stains that would otherwise become permanent.

Wash Bedding Weekly

Sheets, pillowcases, and duvet covers should be washed weekly in hot water (60 degrees Celsius or higher). This temperature kills dust mites. Washing in warm or cold water cleans the fabric but does not eliminate mites.

Rotate Your Mattress

Rotate your mattress 180 degrees (head to foot) every 1 to 3 months. This distributes body weight and wear evenly, which prevents the foam layers from developing permanent impressions. If you have a flippable mattress, flip it when you rotate.

Control Bedroom Humidity

Dust mites thrive in humidity above 50 percent. Health Canada recommends keeping indoor humidity between 30 and 50 percent. In Ontario, this is straightforward in winter (heated indoor air tends to be dry) but harder in summer. A bedroom dehumidifier during July and August can make a meaningful difference for both mattress hygiene and sleep comfort.

When Cleaning Is Not Enough

There are situations where sanitizing will not solve the problem.

Mould inside the mattress. If you see mould growing on the surface or smell a persistent musty odour that does not respond to cleaning, the mould has likely penetrated deeper than surface treatments can reach. Mould inside a mattress is a health concern, particularly for people with respiratory conditions. Replace the mattress.

Severe or set-in stains with odour. A stain that has been sitting for months and still smells after enzyme treatment has soaked into the foam or batting. Surface cleaning will not reach it. At some point, the cost and effort of repeated cleaning attempts exceeds the value of the mattress.

Mattress older than 8 to 10 years. If your mattress is approaching a decade of use, sanitizing addresses surface contamination but not the accumulated internal degradation. The support structure has likely worn down, and the interior has accumulated years of moisture, dust, and allergens that surface cleaning cannot reach.

Bed bugs. Sanitizing does not treat bed bug infestations. Bed bugs require professional pest control treatment. Do not attempt to clean your way out of a bed bug problem. If you suspect bed bugs, contact a licensed exterminator before doing anything else.

Sources

• Arlian, L. et al. (2015). "Reducing relative humidity to control house dust mites." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 12(8), 8561-8574.
• Arroyave, W.D. et al. (2014). "Impermeable versus semi-permeable mattress encasings for allergic patients." Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2014(9), CD011563.
• Asthma Canada (2025). "Common Allergen Triggers." asthma.ca
• Health Canada (2024). "Indoor Air Quality: Moulds." canada.ca
• Caggiari, G. et al. (2021). "What type of mattress should be chosen to avoid back pain and improve sleep quality?" Journal of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, 22, 51.