Does Dry Cleaning Eliminate Odors?
There are many reasons why people find it necessary to keep their clothes clean, and one of the most important of these is to reduce the odor in the clothes. This becomes very important particularly if you if you sweat a lot, such as if you suffer from anxiety or live in a very hot country. In such cases, the fact that you are likely to end up with clothes that have an odor even after you have them washed might make you more self-conscious, and this can quickly erode any self-confidence you might have had. For this reason, it is usually very important to make sure that you pay attention to this very important issue when you are thinking of ways of cleaning your clothes.
Can dry cleaning get rid of it?
When you are interested in getting rid of odor from clothes, you will often find that dry cleaning might or might not work. This is mainly related to the way the dry cleaning process is carried out. As you might know, the reason why dry cleaning is called so is on account of the fact that not water is used when using this method to clean anything. Instead, a series of chemicals that are designed to get rid of mostly particulate matter is used. The main goal of using dry cleaning is to ensure that fabrics that can be damaged by water can still be cleaned. Of course, you can choose to use dry cleaning for other types of fabrics as well.
However, the problem with using this method of cleaning is the fact that it might not be very effective in removing odors from the fabrics. Part of the reason for this is that odors are usually compounds that are based on fats and oils, and some of the dry cleaning agents might not be able to remove them. This is why you might have your clothes dry cleaned, but then find out later that they still smell of sweat even though they look visibly cleaned.
What you can do to avoid this problem
There are a few things you can do to reduce the chances of this happening. One of these is by choosing to have your clothes dry cleaned by high quality cleaners. These types of cleaners are usually very specific about the types of dry cleaning agents that they use, and in many cases they end up using ones that have the capacity to get rid of some odors that others might not. The result of this is that by working with them, you will end up with cleaner clothes that will have a lower risk of retaining odors such as sweat.
Of course, there are other benefits associated with using such cleaners. These include the fact that they are usually more delicate when handling your clothes, which means that you are less likely to end up getting damaged garments. In addition to that, the fact that they are very professional also means that you will not need to worry about issues such as getting the clothing in time. With all these things in mind, it’s easy to see that even though working with such cleaners might be a bit more expensive than usual, it will definitely turn out to be well worth it in the long run.
Using alternative methods of cleaning the clothes
If you have dry cleaned your clothing several times and have found that it still retains an odor that you do not want, it might be wise to consider trying other cleaning modalities. For instance, you could decide to hand wash the clothing using water and regular soap.
Of course, you need to be careful with how you go about this in order to reduce the risk of damaging the clothing. For one, you should find out if the fabric can actually be washed using water. If it turns out that the material cannot be washed using water, then you should definitely avoid doing so. However, if it turns out that you can, you might need to find instructions on how to clean that particular type of fabric. To ensure that the odor is removed, you might need to gently hand wash the clothing in some warm water if need be. The use of scented soaps will help, as will the use of a fabric conditioner after the cleaning.
Other things you can try out
If you get your clothes from the dry cleaner and it turns out that they still have an odor, there are other strategies you can adopt to get rid of it. One of these is by sprit zing some vodka on the areas that have the most odor, typically the armpits. This has been shown to be very effective to dissolve the particles causing the smell, and then evaporating. Of course, you might not be able to wear the clothing immediately after this. The presence of the alcohol can irritate your skin if you are sensitive to it, and you might end up smelling of alcohol as well. You can also achieve the same result by using some vinegar and water which is then spritzed on the areas that have the odor.
Another unconventional way to get rid of the odor in a piece of clothing is by using unused cat litter. This has a product known as activated charcoal, which plays the role of absorbing all the organic molecules from the fabric of the clothing. You would need to place it in the litter for around 24 to 48 hours in order to get the desired results. To reduce the chances of the clothing becoming very dirty, you could first put it in a plastic bag, and then poke holes in it to encourage airflow to and from it. You can then have the clothing dry cleaned again, and you would end up with clothes that are clean and free of any odors. This is one of the best ways of removing odors from clothes that cannot be laundered using water.