Does Dry Cleaning Remove Bad Odors?
Tips For How To Choose Clothes To Be Cleaned By A Dry Cleaner And Those That Should Not
Dry cleaning has been proven to be a convenient and a faster cleaning process than hand washing and other methods of cleaning clothes. All clothes always carry a label put by the manufacturer that recommends the best procedure of taking care of the clothes during the washing process. The label specifies the material that was used to make it and the best way of cleaning and drying it. Moreover, the label guides the owner of the cloth on how to iron it and remove all the creases. The label is very helpful because it provides all the information that is used to determine whether the clothes are well suited for dry cleaning or any other form of washing clothes.
Although the dry cleaning process has been deemed appropriate, there are some specific instructions concerning the presets that should be considered on the dry cleaner. Besides, there are some presets that specify whether certain types of clothes can be mixed with other types or some colored clothes. The presets depict dry cleaning as a straightforward process. However, a problem always arises with the clothes that do not have the labels and the ones whose labels are not reasonably succinct. Some clothes may have only two to three optimal presets for dry cleaning and the option of hand washing. This will probably confuse the person who wants to wash it. Hence, here are important tips that help in knowing the clothes that should be cleaned and the ones that should not be cleaned using the dry cleaner.
1. Material of the clothes
The material used to make the clothes should be considered when choosing the clothes that should go to the dry cleaner and the ones that need to be hand washed or washing using other forms of cleaning clothes. The typical materials that always react with water negatively include silk, cashmere and wool although they react at a lesser extent. Mostly, wool and cashmere always shrink when they are soaked in water hence makes hand washing to be a non-recommended way of washing them. The squeezing and kneading of wet cashmere and silk that is always done during hand washing ruin the appearance of the clothes. Many people have mistaken the ironing of clothes after hand washing as a way of bringing them back to the original shape but in the real sense the water has ruined the clothes hence it does not regain its original shape. The owner of the hand washed clothes has the option of either wearing them the way they are or replacing them with new ones.
2. The cleaning chemicals and products
Dry cleaning entails the use of petroleum products such as Perchloroethylene and other solvents that have been proven to remove all the stains and dirt on a cloth without requiring any soaking. Dry cleaning does not involve any use of water. This makes dry cleaning the ideal cleaning method for clothes that are made of cashmere and wool. Dry cleaning is also a suitable mode of cleaning clothes whose materials do not have problems with hand washing such as acrylic, cotton and polyester.
3. Stain removal procedures
The presence of stains on the clothes requires an effective stain removal procedure that needs to be done before the clothes are put on the dry cleaner. The procedure is essential to reduce cases of clothes that are in the same cycle in dry cleaning machine getting ruined due to stains in one cloth. The stains on the specific clothes come from chemicals, food and grease. Whenever there is no appropriate stain removal procedure that is available before the dry cleaning process, then the cloth needs to be put in the dry cleaning machine alone so as to minimize the harm it poses on other clothes due to adverse effects of the stains. Moreover, the stains always give bad odors to other clothes.
4. Use of solvents
Over reliance on the solvents manufactured by the industries in process of dry cleaning has been considered to be unsuitable for cleaning certain clothes. The undergarments for toddlers and children have the specific dry cleaning indications on the labels. Considering the problems that may arise with the use of some solvents, hand washing is the best method for cleaning such clothes. The solvents that are used in the dry cleaning process have been known to cause unwanted effects on the baby`s skin when the clothes have been subjected to continuous exposure to the solvents.
5. Number of materials in the cloth
All the cloths that are made of two different materials and have metallic buttons, zips and chains need to be cleaned using the dry cleaner. Hand washing process is known to be vigorous hence is not suitable for the cleaning of such clothes. Besides, the clothes that have excess print outs with inks that can be damaged by the regular hand washing process need to be cleaned using the dry cleaning process. The dry cleaning process is harmless provided that one presets the right washing setting on a dry cleaning machine.
6. Usage characteristic of a cloth
When choosing the clothes to be put on the dry cleaning machine and those that should not be put then one should consider the cloth`s usage characteristic. Clothes exposure to alcohol poses negative effects and odors on some dyes hence can become detrimental in the process of cleaning the cloth. This requires the clothes that contain alcohol and clothes with heavy perspiration to be aired so as to remove the alcohol and any other fluid. After the clothes have been adequately aired, they need to undergo the normal cleaning process that always start with the removal of stains before being put in the dry cleaner. The instructions on the clothes label should be adhered to and when they are not available then it is prudent to consult a dry cleaner expert before deciding between hand dry cleaning and hand cleaning process.
The above tips are essential in the cleaning process because they play a bigger role in ensuring that clothes are cleaned with the required cleaning process hence improves the quality of cleaning and the life span of the clothes.
