Covered before. Search site for "down comforter", etc.

I found this: http://ths.gardenweb.com/search/nph-ind.cgi?term=down+comforter&forum=laundry&forum_name=Laundry+Room

I wash mine all the time. And I have been doing so for decades.

I have comforters as large as a medium weight queen size, but most are double sized and from heavy to summer weight. My FL machines are all the small European ones: Asko and Miele, 5K sized models.

In my experience, it's not the size of the washer that's the limiting factor but the size of the dryer that's the problem. If your comforter completely fills the dryer when dry, you will have a difficult time getting it to tumble enough to get it totally dry, though it can be done. You may have to run the machine for 8 to 12, or more, hours to accomplish it, however. Or you could wash it at home and then take it to a laundromat for drying. It will still take several hours (as many as 3-6) there even in a huge dryer because it must be dried at very low heat.

Is there a reason you have to attempt this in the winter, or do you live in a warm climate? I generally reserve down-washing extravaganzas for spring and fall as I live in northern NY.

Here's my short version of the instructions:

Purchase special down washing soap from a camping store or Cuddledown. In a pinch you can use sweater washing products without built-in fs, but NOT liquid Woolite. The ban on Woolite applies to FL's as it is very sudsy. If you were doing this in a TL, Woolite would be OK. Do not use regular laundry detergents, especially anything with enzymes (like Cheer for instance) which will be very hard on the down. Most regular laundry detergents have various additives that could be very damaging to the down by stripping it. The special down soap is worth the trouble to locate. I have had very good luck with stuff from Cuddledown, and they sell by mail order. (Link below.)

First inspect the comforter very carefully to locate and repair any tiny tears or seam rips. If you don't do this beforehand you will be picking the down off the inside of your machine.

Pretreat any especially grimey areas with a bit of the liquid down soap. If the spots are really bad, push the down away and use a liquid spot cleaner product just on the soiled area of the shell. Rinse well in a bath tub to remove as much of the pretreater as you can as it will be hard on the down.

Take the comforter down to your washing machine and stuff it in. Do not be worried if it barely fits; it's full of air and when that is pressed out, it will wash just fine.

Run a cold, rinse-and-spin cycle (or whatever passes for that on your machine, even a quick wash program). DO NOT ADD SOAP at this point. Keep repeating this cycle until the machine has completely saturated the item and the spinning action has collapsed the down and driven the air out of the comforter. It should look quite smashed. It is now ready to be washed.

Set the machine up for a short to medium length wash period with a high water level, at mildly warm temps with gentle action, with as many rinses as possible and an energetic spin cycle. Often gentle action comes with an attentuated spin cyle. If that's the case, don't worry about it. After the gentle wash cycle is completed, leave the item in the machine and perform a high-speed spin-only program to drive out as much moisture as possible.

Use only a small amount of the down soap, as it often is quite foamy. Use NO fabric softener, though a bit of vinegar won't hurt.

When you retrieve your comforter after the wash cycle it will look utterly awful, but that's OK. In fact, if it doesn't look like you've pretty much ruined it, it probably isn't clean!

I generally try to do comforters on warm breezy days as I like to alternate machine drying with line drying. However I always start with a period of machine drying. When you purchase the down soap you should also get some fat nylon rings. These are necessary to bang up the wet down clumps and add some necessary static electricity at the end to regain maximum loft. Some people use clean tennis shoes or tennis balls, instead, but I find the rings more satisfactory. You can put them in clean cotton socks if the banging is annoying. You can also get these rings at pet stores that sell Nylabone dog toys.

Run the dryer at low temps for an hour or more. Pause it occasionally to check that things are going well and to shake out the comforter. After an hour I would hang mine out in the wind, and alternate between periods of 2 or 3 hours outside and another hour in the dryer. The shell will dry hours before the down will, but you absolutely must soldier on and get the filling fully dry. You can pause the half-dry comforter overnight if you don't want to run it while you're sleeping. Just hang it somewhere outside the dryer and arranged relatively loosely. You do not want to allow any opportunity for the down to get moldy before it is completely dry!

You will know when it is fully dry because the it will regain its original loft and a careful "feeling" of it will reveal no little bumps of clumped (and therefore still damp) down.

Home-washing of down items is a lot of work, but the advantage is that they are cleaned without drycleaning solvents. Properly done they will wind up clean, soft and sweet-smelling.

HTH,

Molly

Here is a link that might be useful: Cuddledown Down soap - on sale right now

Molly, that's fantastic. Thanks so much for the detailed instructions. I loved the line "you absolutely must soldier on" (honestly, I'm chuckling even as I type it again LOL). I purchased some down soap yesterday at REI, and will get some nylon rings today. I know it'll be more effort than dry cleaning, but one of the reasons I wanted a front loader (and specifically one of the reasons I didn't buy the Affinity 7000, because the dryer is too small) is to be able to wash comforters at home. So, today we give it a try! Thanks and Happy New Year!

I forgot to say that one of the main reasons we want to be able to wash comforters at home (and by the way, we're in the SF Bay Area, sort of a medium climate) is that last time we took one to the laundromat, we left during the dry cycle and it (along with several others belonging to other people) was stolen out of the machine! Since I don't want to have to sit in the laundromat (my number one favorite thing about getting my first house 30 years ago was no longer having to do the laundry at a laundromat) watching the comforter dry....

Molly, it worked perfectly - thanks! I ran it through 2 cold rinse-and-spin cycles, then washed it on warm-warm and high spin, then ran another rinse-and-spin (my set doesn't have a "spin only" cycle), then dried it on low temp for about 3-1/2 hours, during which I shook it out about 3 times. I used the tennis ball in a sock because it was what I had. Very happy with the results. In the spring, I'll try hanging it out to dry. Thanks much and Happy New Year!