Your bed is a haven for all sorts of ungodly dirt, oil, and sweat while you sleep. That’s right, it’s a cesspool. Learn how often to wash bedsheets so you can sleep soundly on clean bedding—or at least moderately less disgusting bedding.

You typically spend upwards of eight hours in bed each day, marinating in a delightful cocktail of dirt, body oils, dead skin cells, sweat, and other grime. This isn’t just gross; it also provides a five-star buffet for dust mites, puts extra strain on the fabric’s fibers, and triggers health issues like allergies, skin irritation, and acne. Basically, your bed is a petri dish of horrors—not exactly ideal for a peaceful night’s slumber.

The average person changes their sheets about every 24 days, according to a survey by Mattress Advisor. But let’s be honest—that’s absolutely appalling. If you thought that was sufficient for optimal hygiene and freshness, think again. How often you should wash your sheets depends on a few factors, but there are some general rules that work for most people. Read on to learn exactly how often to wash your sheets, and how to preserve their freshness if you decide to flirt with disaster and bend the rules a bit.

How Often to Wash Sheets

Washing your bed sheets roughly once a week is the bare minimum to keep them from becoming a biohazard. Seriously, plan to add this misery to your weekly cleaning schedule to make it a habit. And no, you don’t need to wash sheets the same day you strip your bed. Having a few different sheet sets on hand makes it easy to quickly swap the old for the new, so you can continue your lifelong avoidance of the laundromat.

Of course, how often you should wash your sheets depends on how quickly they get dirty. If you’re constantly gallivanting around and not sleeping in your own bed every night, you can probably stretch the time between washes. But if you—or your partner—sweat buckets, or if you share your bed with a furry friend, your sheets will become disgusting much faster. Allergy sufferers and those with sensitive skin might also want to change their sheets more frequently, like every three to four days. Fun, right?

If washing your sheets weekly (or more frequently) seems horrific, there are a few coping mechanisms to help stretch the time between washes. First, wash your face and bathe or shower before bedtime to reduce the grime you bring into bed. Consider banishing your pet to their own bed to avoid hair and dander on your pristine sheets. And for goodness’ sake, stop snacking in bed! Owning multiple sets of sheets also helps, as you can simply swap them out and leave the laundry for another day—because who doesn’t love procrastination?

Now, let’s dive into some tips to help you sleep on a clean, safe, and bug-free bed every night:

So there you have it. Is washing your sheets a chore? Yes. Is it a necessary chore to avoid sleeping in a microbial soup? Absolutely. Embrace the grim reality, and for the love of all that is clean, wash your sheets.