Cleaning a mattress is one part of regular household cleaning that tends to get missed more often than not but it should not be. A mattress that is well cared for will care for you.

The amount of time you leave between each mattress cleaning session can vary slightly. It all depends on whether you use a mattress cover, how many and how often you sleep in the bed but if you set a routine where you vacuum your mattress twice a week you cannot go far wrong. Combine this with dusting and airing periodically and it will keep the mattress fresh.

So why do you have to vacuum your mattress. Vacuuming your mattress will drastically reduce the number of bed mites you spend your nights with. You can never be sure if you have vacuumed them all up. These bed mites love sharing the bed with you, they feed on the skin every night you are asleep.

A dirty mattress can cause scabies, which is contagious which is one of the reasons you should always clean your mattress.

To get off to a good start caring for your new mattress use a protective cover. A good quality, washable cover is a must in order to keep your bed clean, fresh, dry and stain free. A waterproof cover is a good idea if you have children or pets in the house.

Let your mattress breathe, especially if your new mattress has that slight "new product" odour. This odour will dissipate in time if well ventilated with fresh air.

Never dry clean your mattress. The chemicals used during dry cleaning, and sometimes in spot removers could be harmful to mattress fabrics materials. The only recommended cleaning method is vacuuming.