Experience the hardships of a laundry worker during the changing seasons
Release Time:
2012-10-31 13:40
Source:
Beijing Evening News
Our reporter (center) removes yellow stains from clothes using a high-pressure steam iron under the guidance of a master.
Our reporter (right) wraps the buttons of a mink coat with aluminum foil.
The weather is getting cooler, and it's time to change clothes for the season. Many citizens find that after a summer, some clothes start to yellow, and some even emit a musty smell when organizing their wardrobes. These days, the busiest people are the laundry technicians. Like doctors, after diagnosis and treatment, they can always save these "sick" clothes.
What are the common mistakes when organizing seasonal clothes at home? What are some laundry tips? With these questions in mind, I entered the time-honored Chinese laundry shop Prand and worked as a laundry worker to experience a different life in the laundry shop.
Numbers
Laundry orders increased by 30%
"Look, these clothes are all yellowed, can they be cleaned?" Before 9 a.m., Ms. Zheng hurriedly took out a white suit from a paper bag after entering and pointed to the large yellow stains on the collar and underarms, asking the service technician. Ms. Zheng had worn this suit last time but never washed it, just hanging it in the office. It was only after the recent drop in temperature that she discovered her beloved clothes had yellow stains.
"No big problem!" Veteran technician Chen Qingli at Prand glanced and touched it, already confident. Ms. Zheng left with a smile, leaving five pieces of clothing. Then, under the guidance of staff member Wang Guiyin, I began to look for a water wash label on this piece of clothing but found none.
Wang Guiyin took a sewing kit from the counter, skillfully threaded two thick threads through the tag on the collar, tied a slip knot, then threaded the size tag through. With a "click," she finally stapled both ends. "These days, the clothes we receive are 30% more than usual, so we have to work faster, but of course, the work must be meticulous!"
By now, the room was already filled with washed clothes hanging everywhere. There are particular rules for sorting clothes: wool coats, cashmere coats, and silk clothes that easily shrink or deform must go into the dry-cleaning basket; jeans, shirts, T-shirts, etc., must go into the water-washing basket...
Witness
Washing a mink coat is like conducting an experiment
Among all the thick clothes, I found a mink coat. This garment also enjoyed "VIP treatment": the entire dry-cleaning machine washed only this one. Before dry cleaning, I wrapped each rhinestone button with aluminum foil.
After putting this mink coat into the dry-cleaning machine, I found it was like a small physical "laboratory": while the front drum was rotating to wash clothes, the distillation box and oil-water separator at the back were also working continuously.
Chen Qingli smiled and told me that the dry-cleaning agent operates in such a closed environment, achieving filtration, distillation, condensation, and reflux, thus recycling the agent. This is both environmentally friendly and ensures that the detergent used for each batch of clothes is clean and uncontaminated.
Tips
Treat "sick clothes" with the right remedy
At the current season change, veteran technician Chen Qingli most often deals with "symptoms" caused by sweat stains resulting in yellow spots on clothes. I learned to assist him in rescuing the yellowed suit Ms. Zheng just brought in. Under Chen Qingli's hands-on demonstration, I took a high-pressure steam iron and sprayed it fiercely on the yellow stains.
"Oh, it's gone!" I was pleasantly surprised to find the yellow stains faded instantly. Chen Qingli smiled and said this was far from enough. He then took a cotton swab, dipped it in chlorine bleach, and began "applying medicine," and sure enough, the yellow stains were completely removed!
Chen Qingli said that every time he receives a piece of clothing, the first thing he does is "observe, smell, ask, and examine." Because he must prescribe the right treatment based on the fabric, washing label, and specific stains. Generally, white clothes made of silk and linen can be treated with chlorine bleach like this, while colored clothes require oxygen bleach. The application time must not exceed 15 minutes, and the amount must be controlled to prevent side effects like "color biting."
Trends
Clothes stain removal is becoming more difficult
Chen Qingli has been in the industry for ten years. He told me that in recent years, more people live in apartment buildings with increasingly ventilated and dry environments, so mold and moth damage on clothes have become less common. But the stain removal work has increased. Why is that?
It turns out that nowadays, clothing fabrics are more complex, often mixed with various synthetic fibers. The knit patterns are very different from before. Many fashion items also feature designs combining multiple colors and materials, all of which increase the difficulty of stain removal.
Therefore, when citizens find stains on clothes at home, they should not handle them blindly. Using the wrong detergent not only fails to clean but may cause chemical reactions that make it even harder to clean when sent to the laundry shop later.
Misconceptions
Seasonal laundry has its rules
So, what should citizens pay attention to when washing clothes at home during seasonal changes? Does using neutral detergent mean clothes won't be damaged? Does soaking in disinfectant overnight completely disinfect?
Chen Qingli shook his head and told me that first, washing clothes depends on the fabric; neutral detergent is not always better. Compared with traditional alkaline detergents like washing powder, neutral detergents have weaker stain removal power and are generally only used for delicate fabrics like silk that easily fade. Secondly, soaking clothes in disinfectant for a long time is unscientific because prolonged soaking causes dirt and dust dissolved in water to be reabsorbed. Finally, the best disinfection method after washing clothes is steam ironing because "high temperature kills bacteria best."
Chen Qingli said the most scientific method for seasonal laundry is to soak clothes for 15 minutes first so that "clothes can be washed thoroughly." After washing, it's best to disinfect with high temperature. Then, clothes must be stored in a ventilated environment to prevent yellow stains and mold from forming the following year.
Photo by Jing Yiming
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