How to Choose Between Dry Cleaning and Water Washing for Clothing
Release Time:
2011-01-27 14:04
Source:
China Laundry Journal
Laundry methods for clothing mainly include water washing and dry cleaning. Whether clothes are washed with water or dry cleaned, the principle should be: to remove dirt from the fabric surface while ensuring that the fibers and colors are not affected. Therefore, laundry staff must clearly understand that not all clothes can be dry cleaned, nor can all clothes be water washed. For some clothes that can be both dry cleaned and water washed, we should choose based on the characteristics of dry cleaning and water washing.
Compared to dry cleaning, water washing has three main advantages:
First, water washing costs less. Water washing uses water as the main raw material, adding some detergents during the washing process, while dry cleaning uses and consumes dry cleaning agents such as perchloroethylene and petroleum solvents. Comparatively: a ton of water costs only a few yuan, while a kilogram of dry cleaning agent costs at least a few yuan.
Second, water washing has a higher cleaning power. Although water itself does not wet as well as dry cleaning agents, it has a stronger dissolving ability and can dissolve detergents mainly composed of various surfactants, which play roles such as wetting, emulsifying, and foaming during washing, effectively removing dirt. Dry cleaning agents can only dissolve a small amount of surfactants.
Third, water washing is the most environmentally friendly. Nowadays, green laundry is advocated, and water washing, recognized as ecological washing, is more environmentally friendly compared to dry cleaning. Whether it is petroleum dry cleaning machines or fully enclosed perchloroethylene dry cleaning machines, they are relatively older dry cleaning machines that reduce some pollution indicators, because petroleum and perchloroethylene are organic solvents that affect both the environment and human health.
The advantage of dry cleaning is that it can clean some clothes that cannot be water washed. Mainly, clothes after dry cleaning do not shrink, fade, bubble, or deform. For some protein fibers and viscose fiber clothes, water washing causes severe shrinkage, making the clothes smaller after washing. Most clothing colors are dyed under high temperature conditions using some water-soluble dyes, so water washing easily causes fading. Dry cleaning agents are insoluble in water, so dry cleaning clothes are less likely to shrink or fade. Some clothes have shaped glue interlinings; if water washed, the water-soluble resins in the glue cause the clothes to delaminate and bubble after washing.
In summary, the choice of washing method for clothes should be based on the type and nature of the fabric fibers, the characteristics of the clothing, and the laundry's own conditions to select an appropriate washing method. The scope of water washing by fabric fiber includes: cotton, linen, and synthetic fiber fabrics. For example, cotton fibers are bundle fibers with strong stain absorption and relatively low shrinkage, so water washing can be chosen. Down jackets can only be water washed, not dry cleaned; dry cleaning wastes solvents and does not clean well. The main reason is that petroleum dry cleaning causes the down to clump and harden. Dry cleaning applies to viscose fibers (such as rayon), wool, and silk clothing. These clothes shrink severely if water washed; for example, silk clothes fade easily with water washing, and artificial leather clothes tend to crack and harden with dry cleaning. Plastic items (such as buttons) should be removed from clothes before perchloroethylene dry cleaning.
In short, as a qualified laundry worker, one must not only have skilled techniques but also rich work experience to complete the washing of clothes with guaranteed quality and quantity.
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