I have a TNF Chrysalis which needs a washing pretty bad. I got a bottle of Nikwax down soap and have access to a front loading washer, so I can deal with that part. Normally the next part involves drying at low or no heat for hours and hours. I really don't want to sit around the laundromat for that long.

Can I just bring home the sleeping bag wet, and then hang it up in the bathroom to dry? If it takes a day or two, that's fine. If it takes weeks or is going to get all mildewy or the down is going to stick together, that's not so good.

There's not that much sunlight in the bathroom and the air circulation could be a bit better, even with the window open. I don't have an electric fan but could buy or borrow one, I guess.

Thanks for thoughts.

Wet down bags have a very nasty habit of ripping seams in even the better quality makes. Be extremely carefull removing it from the wash. Drying usually involves tumbling on the lowest and gentlest setting. Toss in a few clean golf balls to break up the clumping. This involves a certain degree of subterfuge in a public laundry. Commercial dry cleaners and wet laundromats hate down. If it rips the downtime cleaning out those feathers is prohibitive. I cleaned my bag in an extremely noisy laundromat with screaming kids, an attendant wearing walkmans with Cindy Lauper leaking out of her earphones and personally leaned against the dryer catching a baseball in my old mitt. Looking upward at the ceiling and talking to God also helps. <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> When my bag's time came I distributed the down to greatfull nesting birds in the spring and bought my Wiggy.

sounds like a disease ...

I leave mine hang over the clothes hanger for about a week. I sometimes run a fan under for better air circulation. but I usually put the clothes hanger over the bath (separate shower) or somewhere else out of the way.

I dont know how long it does take to dry but because I cant feel inside but I figure its better to leave a bit longer and make sure.

Tennis balls also work, and are much quieter.

I always see the suggestion of tennis balls (golf balls I hadn't seen before, but same idea) but I don't play golf or tennis and the idea of going out and buying golf or tennis balls just to dry a sleeping bag seems a bit odd.

Anyway, I'd really rather not use a dryer at all, but just to air dry the bag. I guess I'll give it a try, being careful about removing the bag from the washer. Thanks all.

Use a dryer with tennis balls. They don't cost much and can be used over and over - unless the dog gets to them. Make sure any hook Velcro is covered or it will grab hold of the tennis balls while spinning.

If you try to air dry the bag, I'd honestly worry that the bag would start molding/mildewing before it dries sufficiently.

Using the dryer here really seems like asking for trouble. If I set the heat down low, someone will crank it up unless I'm sitting there watching it, and I don't want to sit in front of the dryer all day. Plus I'd have to keep feeding it quarters. We're talking about hours and hours of drying at low heat, right?