Quick answer: Most polyester and sheer curtains can be washed at home: remove the hooks, put them in a laundry bag, use cold water on a gentle cycle with a low spin, then rehang them while still damp so their own weight pulls out the creases. Linen, cotton, velvet, and coated blackout curtains are riskier, because they can shrink or the coating can crack. Linen can shrink 3 to 10%, so a 2.5 metre curtain could end up as much as 25 cm shorter.
There is no single answer to “can I wash my curtains myself?” It depends on the fabric, whether there is a lining or coating, and how much shorter you can tolerate them getting. This guide gives you four questions to decide between washing at home and using a laundry service, then explains how to wash them safely yourself.
Most search results on this topic are written by curtain and furniture brands. This one is written from a laundry’s point of view. Most curtain damage does not come from the washing steps themselves; it comes from deciding at the start that a curtain could go in a home machine when it couldn’t. If yours fall into the risky group, see Nova’s curtain cleaning service.
Can you wash curtains yourself? Answer these 4 questions first
You can wash them yourself if the answer to all four is “yes”: the label allows water washing, the fabric is polyester or another synthetic, there is no blackout coating or sewn-in lining, and the curtain fits in a laundry bag with room to spare in your machine. If any answer is “no” or “not sure”, a laundry service is the better bet.
- Does the label allow water washing? A washtub symbol means yes. A P or F circle alone means it needs dry cleaning.
- Is it polyester or another synthetic? Synthetics shrink very little. Linen, cotton, and velvet can shrink or have their surface damaged.
- No coating or sewn-in lining? Blackout curtains with a rubbery coated back, and curtains with the lining stitched to the face fabric, are the riskiest to wash at home.
- Does it fit in a laundry bag with room left in the drum? If you have to cram it in, the fabric cannot move through the water, it will not come out clean, and it will crease badly.
If you cannot find a label, check the top seam or a bottom corner. Made-to-measure curtains often have no label, so ask the shop that made them what fabric they used.
Why linen and cotton are risky: shrinkage in centimetres, not percent
Linen can shrink by 3 to 10%, most of it in the first wash. On a 250 cm curtain that means 7.5 to 25 cm shorter. A curtain that used to just touch the floor can end up visibly hovering above it, and the shrinkage cannot be reversed.
This is based on the finding that >linen typically shrinks by 3% to 10%, with the biggest reduction in the first wash. Hot water is the main cause. Linen that has been pre-washed shrinks only about 1 to 2% more.
| Curtain drop | 3% shrinkage | 10% shrinkage |
|---|---|---|
| 220 cm (standard window) | 6.6 cm shorter | 22 cm shorter |
| 250 cm (floor-length, typical condo) | 7.5 cm shorter | 25 cm shorter |
| 280 cm (high ceiling) | 8.4 cm shorter | 28 cm shorter |
Most people think of shrinkage as a percentage, and 3% does not sound like much. In centimetres, as the table shows, it is a lot for something whose length has to be exact. If your curtains are linen or cotton and you do not know whether they were pre-washed, we recommend a laundry service.
Can blackout curtains go in the washing machine?
Blackout curtains made of thick woven fabric with no coating can be machine washed in cold water. But curtains with a rubber or foam coating on the back should never see hot water, bleach, or a tumble dryer: heat cracks and peels the coating, and the curtain permanently blocks less light.
>IKEA Thailand’s guide puts heavily coated blackout curtains among those that should not be machine washed, and >a blackout curtain maker warns that hot water, bleach, and the dryer can damage the coating.
How to tell if yours are coated: turn the curtain over. If the back is smooth and rubbery, white or grey, with no visible weave, it is coated. If you can see a weave on the back like the front, it is a thick woven fabric.
A coated blackout curtain that has been washed the wrong way shows cracked lines when you shine a light through it from behind. That damage cannot be repaired. If yours has no cracks yet, clean it by vacuuming and spot-cleaning, or send it to a laundry that knows how to handle coated curtains.
How to wash curtains at home in 7 steps
Vacuum before taking them down, remove every hook and ring, wash one panel per laundry bag in cold water with mild detergent on a gentle cycle and the lowest spin, take them out as soon as the cycle ends, then rehang while still damp so their weight pulls the creases out.
These steps are based on >IKEA’s curtain cleaning guide, plus the points people most often get wrong.
- Vacuum first: use the brush attachment and work from top to bottom. Dust left in the fabric turns into grey marks once it gets wet.
- Remove every hook: metal hooks can tear the fabric and leave rust marks.
- One panel per laundry bag: for large panels, washing one at a time beats cramming two into one load.
- Cold water, mild detergent: no hot water, and no bleach on coloured curtains.
- Gentle cycle, low spin: a hard spin sets creases that you will not be able to iron out.
- Take them out straight away: IKEA advises >removing curtains immediately after washing to prevent mildew. Thick fabric left wet in the drum can start to smell musty within a few hours.
- Rehang while damp: no tumble dryer and no strong sun. Hang them on the rail, arrange the pleats, and let the weight of the fabric pull out the creases. Open a window for airflow.
Curtains with a weighted hem chain or pleating tape need extra steps, such as removing the chain or tape first. We will cover curtain types in a separate article.
Can you clean curtains without taking them down?
Only as maintenance between washes, not as a replacement for washing. Vacuuming with a brush attachment every 1 to 2 months removes a lot of built-up dust, and a handheld steamer helps with odours and creases, but neither removes stains set into the fabric.
IKEA recommends >dusting or vacuuming curtains every 1 to 2 months and fully washing them every 4 to 6 months. Condos next to major roads in Bangkok collect dust faster, so use the shorter end of that range.
One caution: do not use a steamer on coated blackout curtains. Steam heat damages the coating just like hot water does.
Washing at home vs. a laundry service
| Washing at home | Laundry service | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Water, electricity, detergent | See curtain cleaning prices |
| Your time | Taking down, washing, rehanging: half a day to a full day | Take them down, drop off, collect |
| Shrinkage risk | High for linen and cotton | Lower, because the method is chosen by fabric |
| Coated blackout curtains | Risk of cracked coating | A shop can choose a method that avoids heat |
| Large panels | A home machine may be too small | Laundry machines usually handle large panels |
Our conclusion is straightforward: ordinary polyester and sheer curtains are cheaper to wash yourself and safe enough. For linen, cotton, velvet, and coated blackout curtains, the cleaning bill is far smaller than the cost of new made-to-measure curtains.
When should you use a laundry service?
- Linen, cotton, or velvet curtains that you are not sure were pre-washed
- Blackout curtains with a coated back
- Curtains labelled dry clean only
- Large panels or high-ceiling curtains that are hard to take down and rehang yourself
- Curtains with mould or rain-water marks along the hem
Send photos of the front and back of your curtains on LINE for the Nova team to assess first. We are on Soi Phetkasem 58, Phasi Charoen, Bangkok, and accept drop-offs 24 hours a day.
Frequently asked questions
How often should curtains be washed?
IKEA recommends vacuuming every 1 to 2 months and a full wash every 4 to 6 months. If you live next to a busy road or someone at home is sensitive to dust, wash them more often.
Will hot water get curtains cleaner?
It’s better not to. Hot water is the main cause of shrinkage in linen and cotton, and it damages the coating on blackout curtains. Cold water with mild detergent is clean enough, as long as you vacuum the dust out first.
My curtains came out of the wash badly creased. What now?
Rehang them on the rail while still damp and arrange the pleats. The weight of the fabric pulls most creases out as it dries. If some remain, run a steamer over them from top to bottom, except on coated blackout curtains.
Can I wash mouldy curtains myself?
Small spots on polyester can be tried with the steps above. If the mould has spread in patches, or it is on linen, cotton, or coated curtains, use a laundry service. Hard scrubbing or bleach usually damages the fabric before the stain comes out.
Do I need to take the curtains down myself before sending them to a laundry?
Ask the Nova team on LINE how to prepare your curtains before sending them, for example whether to remove the hooks, or check our FAQ.