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When most of us think about washing our clothes, the first thing that comes to mind is probably water. So how can cleaning clothes be a \u201cdry\u201d process? What does dry cleaning mean? What is the dry cleaning process, and how exactly does it work? Understanding the answers to these questions will highlight the importance of proper fabric and garment care. Professional dry cleaning is a wonderful modern convenience that can help preserve your belongings and save you time, stress and money.<\/p>\n
Dry Cleaning is a “water-free” cleaning method done by laundry professionals.<\/p>\n
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Most professional dry cleaners follow\u00a0a thoughtful, multi-step process<\/a>\u00a0that ensures the utmost care and consideration for your belongings. While the dry cleaning process may vary from cleaner to cleaner, industry standards typically adhere to a process that is comprised of the following steps:<\/p>\n You, the garment owner, must first drop off your items at the dry cleaner or take advantage of free pickup and delivery service. If there are specific stains on your clothes that you are aware of, mark them using pins or tape. If possible, compile a list of stains for your dry cleaners. This list will ensure that your items receive care to your satisfaction. Of course, you should always check pockets and empty them before you drop anything off at the cleaners.<\/p>\n Before they begin the dry cleaning procedure in earnest, dry cleaning employees will inspect each of your items by hand. This way, they will be able to make note of any stains that may need special attention during the dry cleaning process. In addition, the inspection step gives dry cleaning employees a chance to note any flaws, missing buttons, broken zippers, or other pre-existing damages that your items may have.<\/p>\n In the pre-treatment phase, the dry cleaner will apply a stain removal agent or use a steam gun to address any pre-existing stains. These may be stains that you, the garment owner, have identified or stains that the dry cleaner found during the inspection step of the dry cleaning process.<\/p>\n Today, most dry cleaners use state-of-the-art, computer-controlled dry cleaning machines. Dry cleaning is a water-free process. Because it does not use water, the dry cleaning process is safe for most delicate fabrics. The dry cleaners will insert your pieces, dry, into their dry cleaning machines. Once inside the machines, your items are exposed to a dry cleaning solvent through a tumble action process. The dry cleaning solvent works by lifting stains and surface dirt away from the fabric. During the cleaning process, the machines cycle the cleaning solvent through filters to ensure it is completely purified and distilled before it is reused.<\/p>\n After the dry cleaning employee takes your items out of the machine, they will inspect your belongings once again for any persistent stains, which they will then work to remove. Post-spotting, as it is commonly referred to, is a relatively simple process, though it does require professional equipment and expertise. During water-based home laundry, wet stains come out during the washing process, while oil-based and grease stains remain. In dry cleaning, the opposite is true \u2014 the dry cleaning solvents remove grease stains, and the water-based stains must be removed in the post-spot treatment step.<\/p>\n Professional dry cleaners are skilled at identifying and removing water-based stains during this step while preserving the integrity of the garment. The most stubborn stains are those\u00a0caused by dyes and tannins<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 even the most professional, experienced cleaners may not be able to remove those types of stains.<\/p>\n This is the last step of the dry cleaning process. The dry cleaners will do a final inspection of your items. Typically, they will steam, iron, and press your items to ensure that they are ready for your use. To protect your belongings from the time you leave the cleaners until you return to your home, the cleaners will typically wrap your pieces in plastic garment bags.<\/p>\n It\u2019s important to remove these plastic bags from your items as soon as possible \u2014 this step will prevent trapped moisture and undesirable odors from forming.<\/p>\n There are a few different types of dry cleaning solvents, or dry cleaning fluids, that are commonly used throughout the professional industry today. The use of solvents dates back to the earliest days of dry cleaning. The\u00a0first dry cleaning patent<\/a>\u00a0belonged to Thomas Jennings, an American tailor and entrepreneur. He earned a patent in 1821 for a process he called \u201cdry scouring,\u201d a precursor to modern-day dry cleaning methods. Unfortunately, the details of Jennings\u2019 patent have been lost to history.<\/p>\n In 1855, a Frenchman named Jean Baptiste Jolly realized that kerosene could be used to clean tablecloths. He opened a fabric cleaning service and called it \u201cdry cleaning.\u201d The use of kerosene and gasoline as solvents was common until 20th-century innovations resulted in safer, more stable options. In the 1930s, a stable, synthetic solvent called perchlorethylene (commonly abbreviated as \u201cperc,\u201d or PCE)\u00a0emerged as the industry standard<\/a>. Today, PCE is\u00a0no longer used by most dry cleaners, being replaced by new dry cleaning methods like heated hydrocarbon and\u00a0silicone-based solvents.<\/p>\n Depending on factors like the style of clothing you typically wear, the type of fabrics you wear, your lifestyle, and the climate where you live, the frequency with which you should dry clean your belongings may vary greatly. Luckily, most fabric items are made with built-in tags that include fabric content information and instructions for cleaning and care. While an item\u2019s care instructions tag is always a good place to start, it\u2019s not always easy to ascertain how accurate those care instructions really are.<\/p>\n Because many clothing items represent significant financial investments and are beloved closet staples, you may not want to risk at-home spot treatments or conventional, at-home laundry. The following questions can help you determine what type of care your items need. If you answer \u201cyes\u201d to one or more of these questions, dry cleaning may be the best course of action. You can always\u00a0consult a dry cleaning professional<\/a>\u00a0with any specific questions and concerns that you may have.<\/p>\n Is your item made of a delicate fabric such as silk, velvet, suede, leather, wool, or cashmere? Laundering these fabrics at home may result in color loss, pilling, shrinkage, or other problems.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Is your item made of a fiber that you are not familiar with or have never cleaned before? You may not want to risk home laundering unfamiliar items.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Is your item made of rayon or a rayon-blend fabric? Rayon is hand-washable\u00a0\u2014\u00a0however, it is prone to shrinkage when exposed to water.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Are there any stains on your item that you are unsure of how to treat? Are there any stains or spots that you know are oil or grease-based? If so, water will not be able to lift them, and dry cleaning is likely your best option.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Is your garment lined? If so, are the lining and the outer layers made of the same fabric? Often, garment linings are made of a different fabric than the outer layer. As a result, home washing lined items often results in mismatched and misshapen outer and inner layers.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Is the item difficult to iron? Items with many pleats, pintucks, or other tailoring details may never lay the same again after you wash them at home.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Does the item hold any special, sentimental value for you? Was it particularly expensive? Imagine if you washed the item at home and it shrunk or became damaged. If you know that would make you upset, it\u2019s definitely worth a trip to the dry cleaners. Better safe than sorry!<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n If you have a garment that meets any of the descriptions above, you’re in luck \u2014 many dry cleaners offer\u00a0pick-up and drop-off services<\/a>\u00a0that make cleaning as simple and convenient as possible.<\/p>\n Most everyday items do not require dry cleaning or special care instructions. Contrary to what you might think, cotton \u2014 perhaps the most common fabric type when it comes to clothing \u2014 generally does not need to be dry cleaned. You can easily care for most cotton items at home. Likewise, most synthetic fabrics, such as polyester, nylon, and spandex are durable enough for you to wash at the laundromat or in your washing machine at home.<\/p>\n As mentioned, most cotton items are easy to care for. We recommend that you wash cotton pieces in cold water, with similar colors. Today, cotton is generally \u201cpre-shrunk,\u201d meaning that you can tumble dry cotton on a low heat setting. However, if you are especially concerned about shrinkage, simply line dry your cotton items after washing.<\/p>\n Most synthetic and synthetic-blend garments can be washed at home. Follow the care instructions on your garments\u2019 tags. If you are unsure of at-home washing instructions, a delicate, cold-water cycle followed by a low-heat tumble dry in the dryer is usually a safe bet.<\/p>\n Denim is a very durable fabric. It is most often used to make jeans, jackets, and skirts. Because jeans are one of the most popular clothing staples in the world \u2014 nearly everyone owns at least one pair \u2014 knowing how to care for your denim correctly will save you time and money. If your denim pieces are visibly stained, dirty, or smelly, or if you were sweating while wearing them, you should wash them immediately.<\/p>\n The dry cleaning process relies on the use of chemical liquid solvents like PCE, and certain fabrics simply can\u2019t hold up to the strength of these processing agents. For example, fabrics that are plastic-based \u2014 such as PVC, polyurethane, and neoprene \u2014 should never be dry cleaned. Due to the composition of these fabrics, the dry cleaning process may seriously damage these types of items.<\/p>\n Similarly, very fragile fibers like raffia and straw cannot endure the strength of professional cleaning solvents. Instead, spot clean these items with a gentle washcloth. If you have any specific questions about what can and cannot be dry cleaned,\u00a0consult a professional dry cleaning business<\/a>\u00a0that you trust.<\/p>\n Contact Us!<\/a><\/p>\n The more you learn about the history and practice of dry cleaning, the clearer it becomes that it is a wonderful professional service that you’re lucky to have access to! While we often equate dry cleaning with particular clothing items, it\u2019s important to remember that dry cleaning can be just as effective on most fabric items, such as bed linens, tablecloths, napkins, and many other common home textiles.<\/p>\n Most professional dry cleaners provide many different services to save you time, stress, and money, including\u00a0wash and fold service<\/a>,\u00a0specialized leather care<\/a>, and\u00a0professional tailoring<\/a>, just to name a few. Today, we are all busier than ever \u2014 luckily, many cleaners offer\u00a0pickup and delivery services<\/a>\u00a0to make dry cleaning as convenient for your lifestyle as possible.<\/p>\n At Classic Drycleaners, we greatly value your patronage.\u00a0With eight different locations<\/a>, we are ready to serve you throughout the Greater Harrisburg region. Consult\u00a0our full list of services<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0contact us\u00a0<\/a>any time.<\/p>\n Request Pickup\/Delivery<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Linked: <\/b><\/span><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=i6ZU0Hc3ap8<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n https:\/\/www.classicdrycleaner.com\/about-us\/frequently-asked-questions\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n https:\/\/home.howstuffworks.com\/dry-cleaning.htm<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n https:\/\/www.invent.org\/inductees\/thomas-jennings<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n https:\/\/www.classicdrycleaner.com\/contact-us\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n https:\/\/www.classicdrycleaner.com\/services\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n https:\/\/www.classicdrycleaner.com\/locations\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n https:\/\/www.classicdrycleaner.com\/services\/repairs-alterations\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n https:\/\/www.classicdrycleaner.com\/services\/suede-and-leather-services\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n https:\/\/www.classicdrycleaner.com\/services\/wash-fold-laundry\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n1. Drop Off<\/h3>\n
2. Inspection<\/h3>\n
3. Pre Treatment or Spot Treatment<\/h3>\n
4. Dry Cleaning<\/h3>\n
5. Post Spot Treatment<\/h3>\n
6. Finishing<\/h3>\n
What Is Dry Cleaning Solvent?<\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\nWhen Is Dry Cleaning Needed?<\/h2>\n
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When Is Dry Cleaning Unnecessary?<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\nCotton<\/h3>\n
Synthetic Fabrics<\/h3>\n
Denim<\/h3>\n
What Items Can’t Be Dry Cleaned?<\/h3>\n
Trust Classic Drycleaners for Your Dry Cleaning<\/h2>\n
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