Several Misconceptions About Laundry Consumption
Release Time:
2010-05-27 14:54
Source:
Guangdong Laundry
In recent years, it has become increasingly common for consumers to send clothes to laundries for cleaning, and issues with laundry quality have also increased. According to the latest statistics from the Provincial Laundry and Dyeing Industry Association, there have been 39 complaints and cases of laundry disputes handled this year. Although most have been resolved through negotiation with customers, the underlying problems are thought-provoking.
What are the reasons for the frequent laundry quality issues?
The reasons for the frequent laundry quality problems are as follows:
First, due to the low entry barriers to employment in the industry, skill levels are also low. There are countless laundry factories and shops scattered throughout the province, but only about 2 to 3% of employees have obtained the laundry industry skill certificate (Laundry Master) issued by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security through formal training. In other words, very few employees are certified. Anyone can open a laundry shop, which has led to disorderly development. Many operators lack long-term vision and do not value employee training. Additionally, the recent shortage of skilled personnel in the industry and difficulty in recruiting have caused a decline in skill levels.
Second, the fabric combinations of clothing are often unreasonable, and color fastness is poor. Some garment factories, in pursuit of fashionable, beautiful clothes, use fabrics with large color differences and low dye fastness, resulting in unreasonable color matching (such as white fabric paired with black, dark blue, bright red, etc.). They also do not conduct washing tests. During washing, fabrics in red, brown, dark green, purple, black, and other colors often experience color bleeding, color transfer, or dye runoff.
Third, disputes arise due to problems with clothing washing labels. For example, cotton, linen, silk, down jackets, or cold-proof clothing generally require water washing (wet cleaning), but a considerable portion of such clothing sold in the market is labeled "dry clean" on the washing instructions. Currently, most clothing washing labels are not standardized. Garment factories, to enhance the grade of their clothes, mark them as dry clean only and not water washable. Some consumers believe that dry-cleanable clothes are high-end and good quality, so non-standard, exaggerated, or false washing labels are used (e.g., labels stating "do not dry clean," "do not water wash," "handle with care"). Additionally, lower-grade fabric components are passed off as better quality. Clothes that cannot be dry cleaned are labeled as dry cleanable. Ignoring washing standards, dry-cleanable clothes may have buttons, decorations, artificial leather, printed patterns, coatings, linings, or fabric with adhesive layers that require water washing only.
Fourth, some operators and consumers believe that petroleum dry cleaning is more environmentally friendly than perchloroethylene?
This is not comprehensive. Currently, the main dry cleaning solvents in the laundry market are perchloroethylene and petroleum solvents. They have different functions and characteristics, and the choice depends on the fabric texture. Their cleaning effectiveness (KB value) differs: perchloroethylene has a KB value of 90, while petroleum solvents have a KB value of 30 to 33. The higher the KB value, the better the cleaning effect. Therefore, clothes cleaned with perchloroethylene are cleaner. However, it has a strong degreasing effect, and some clothes are not suitable for cleaning with perchloroethylene solvent. Conversely, petroleum solvents are suitable for cleaning (less degreasing), such as dry cleaning leather clothes and wool sweaters. There is basically no issue of which is more environmentally friendly; the key is whether fully enclosed dry cleaning equipment produced by reputable manufacturers is used.
Fifth, consumers believe that any problems with clothes sent for cleaning are the responsibility of the laundry company (shop). This view is somewhat unfair and reflects a misunderstanding of laundry consumption disputes. Laundry quality is affected by many factors such as textile fabric, garment manufacturing, and actual wear. Due to the material and composition of the clothes, sewing methods and material combinations, wearing environment, habits, duration of wear, number of washes, washing methods and processes, temperature, and detergents or solvent components used, all can affect washing results. Many problems are latent and not detected before washing but only appear after washing.
Sixth, some consumers have overly high expectations for washing, believing that clothes should be returned as if newly purchased, with all stains removed. We say this is actually impossible. Some customers often say, "I just bought it recently and wore it only a few times; how did it become old after washing?" This feeling is understandable, but in reality, every time clothes are worn and washed, their color inevitably fades a bit compared to before. Our washing process involves a cycle of "wear, stain, wash, wear again, stain again, wash again," which is a gradual aging and wear process. Therefore, each wash causes some color fading and makes clothes look older. Moreover, only 90% of stains can be removed by washing; 5% require special stain removal treatment, and the remaining 5% are stubborn stains that cannot be removed, similar to late-stage cancer in humans, which is incurable.
Therefore, we must objectively and comprehensively understand laundry quality disputes. Under market economy conditions, laundry enterprises, regardless of strength or size, have equal status as operators. They are closely related to people's lives, providing services for hotels, restaurants, medical systems, group units, and the general public. Operators and consumers should strengthen information communication so that consumers have ways to understand laundry information and eliminate tension between operators and consumers.
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