piepatch

I have made about 14 to 15 rag quilts, and have taken all but one of them to the laundromat for the first washing because I was told the washers and dryers there have bigger lint traps, and that made sense to me. I did wash one at home, and didn't have a problem with it. I cleaned the lint filter on the dryer about every ten minutes, and there was a lot of lint each time!

Tothill

I know OP has already done one quilt at home and will do the next one at the laundry mat. But I thought I would share how I wash rag quilts at home.

I have a top loading washer and have made 5 small and 3 twin sized rag quilts. I wash at home, but my machine has a presoak cycle that does not drain. I use the heavy duty cycle and once it has agitated I use a colander and strain the water until I am only getting a few small bit of thread. Then I reset the machine to the beginning of the soak cycle and repeat several times. When it gets to the point I am not getting as much thread, I let the machine complete the wash cycle.

Then it is into the dryer. I find that by doing the long agitation, and straining the threads out of the washer, I do not get as much in the dryer lint filter.

I have used two layers of flannel, a layer of flannel and a layer of denim and two layers of flannel with a layer of thin batting.

I would not attempt a quilt larger than twin sized in my home machine.

mjsylvstr

I have made the chenille quilts and they also give out a lot of lint but have had no trouble doing them at home...just have to be watching the traps for an overload of the "fluff" and cleaning them out often

MyQuiltedFrenzy

You can put it in a pillow case, closed with safety pins. Then wash and dry. No lint in machine and you can then take it outside to shake it out. I repair old quilts and use that method. It keeps them in one piece as some are really delicate.

Amythyst02

I just throw mine in my washer and dry it, but checking the filter quite often. And I usually wash a couple of times too. I have had no problems.

carslo

Ditto to the above - I even wrote about this on my blog once

BellaBoo

The washer drain line is at least 4 inches wide once passed the pressure empty drain. It takes a lot to clog it, like a diaper or stuffed animal being flushed. LOL And a good dryer is designed to put lint where it's suppose to be. I clean my dryer vent screen several times during the drying cycle and that's all.

lyndi

My washer doesn't dump into a tub, but I did the same. I put a nylon stocking on the end of my hose, making it VERY secure with rubber bands. I only secured the top end of the stocking, letting the foot part hang free, then stuffed it down drain pipe. I was afraid it might work loose so I stood by to watch it. Worked perfectly. I did remove the stocking and clean it after every rinse.

Wintersewer

So...everyone thinks it's OK to plug up a laundromat washer, but not their own???

2blackcats

This is so true, I do mine at home also.