How do I clean and dry the Ella bath pillow to prevent mildew?

The Ella head pillow is built to resist mildew: its cover is marine vinyl and the stuffing inside is removable polyester that inhibits mildew, so the pillow does not soak up bath water the way a fabric cushion would. To clean it, take it off the tub, wash the cover with a mild dish detergent and household bleach solution on a sponge or soft cloth, rinse it thoroughly with clean water, and let it air dry before pressing its suction cups back onto a clean, dry spot on the shell. The suction-cup care that keeps it in place is the same routine described for the seat cushion in What Is a Seat Pillow Riser on a Walk-In Tub?.

Take the Pillow Off the Right Way

The pillow holds to the tub, or to the wall behind it, with suction cups alone, so nothing is drilled or glued to the shell and taking the pillow off for cleaning changes nothing on the tub. The cups are the part most easily damaged, and a cup that stretches or pulls out of its mount is a wear item that is replaced on its own. Release them by sliding the pillow sideways and up, which breaks the seal of each cup in turn. Never pull on the pillow while it is attached to the tub or the wall, because a straight pull strains the cups and their mounts. Make this the first step of every cleaning, and take the pillow to a sink or basin rather than washing it in place, so the cleaning solution and the loosened residue end up in the sink and not on the acrylic.

The Cleaning Solution and How to Use It

1. Mix 1 tablespoon of liquid dish detergent and 2 tablespoons of household bleach in a gallon of water.
2. Dip a sponge or a soft cloth in the solution and clean the vinyl cover, working over the seams and the back where water sits against the tub.
3. Rinse the pillow thoroughly with clean water until no detergent or bleach remains.
4. Let it air dry.

Keep the solution for the pillow only. The tub shell has its own non-abrasive cleaners, so wash the pillow away from the tub and rinse it well so none of the solution is carried back onto the acrylic when the pillow goes back. Pay the same attention to the cups and their mounts, where soap film and residue collect in the folds. A pillow that is wiped with the solution, rinsed and dried has nothing left on it for mildew to feed on, and because bath oils, bath beads and bubble bath feed residue throughout a tub, a pillow in a tub where those are used needs the wash more often.

Drying so Mildew Never Starts

Mildew needs moisture held against a surface, and the pillow is designed so that does not happen: the marine vinyl cover sheds water instead of absorbing it, and the polyester stuffing inside inhibits mildew on its own. Air drying is all it needs. Stand the pillow where air reaches both faces, and do not put it back on the tub while the cover or the cups are still wet. The stuffing is removable, so if it has taken on water it can come out of the cover to dry on its own. Between baths, a pillow that has been wiped down and allowed to dry gives mildew nowhere to start.

Putting It Back and Caring for the Suction Cups

Suction cups hold only on a clean, flat, smooth section of the shell. Before the pillow goes back, wash the acrylic where it will sit and the cups themselves with soap and water, dry the cups, and press them flat onto a smooth spot away from jets, texture lines and the seat edge. A cup that lands partly on a jet face or on a textured area will not seal. The cups are simple wear items: if one stretches, pops out of its mount or is missing, open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support with a photo of the pillow and the cup mount, and a replacement cup is arranged. Have your model and serial number ready for the ticket.

If the Musty Smell Is Not the Pillow

A clean, dry pillow that still seems to smell is usually sitting in a tub whose smell comes from somewhere else. On a jetted tub, the hydro and air lines behind the shell hold body oils, soap film and bath product residue, and that is where a musty smell lives. The fix is the published vinegar flush: combine 2 cups of white vinegar with 2 cups of water, fill the tub with water to one inch above the highest jets, add the mixture, run the tub for 10 minutes, then drain, and repeat it until the drained water runs clear. Clearing hair and debris from the pump inlet cover is part of the same routine. Why Does My Walk-In Tub Still Smell Musty After the Vinegar Flush? walks through the checks in order. Tubs with air massage also dry their own lines: the Auto Purge cycle starts automatically about 20 minutes after the air pump is turned off and runs for 120 seconds to blow residual water out of the air lines, the self-cleaning feature described under Walk-In Tub Therapy Options and Features. The pillow is the one soft item in the tub, so it is the one piece that depends on you to dry it.

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