Fall 2010 issue — Ever open a freshly finished dry-cleaned package and get embraced by a toxic smell, then thought, “Wow. That can’t be good!”? Well it’s not, and that is the result of the solvents used in dry cleaning today. That is why modern cleaning businesses, such as Clothes 2 You, with locations in Milford, Rehoboth Beach and Bethany Beach, Delaware, are acting to make a difference.
Dry cleaning has been available since the mid-19th century, initially using petroleum-based solvents, such as gasoline and kerosene, to remove stains from certain fabrics. Chlorinated solvents, such as perchloroethylene – also known as “PERC” – came into play once gasoline became too much of a flammability risk.
According to the EPA, the Environmental Protection Agency, PERC is also a chemical that is considered to be a carcinogen, and that carcinogen is still used in dry cleaning today.
There is a solution to bring this health risk to an end, and that is wet cleaning. A local wet cleaner is Clothes 2 You, established by Fernando N. Guajardo, now with three locations. Clothes 2 You is an eco-friendly wet cleaning business and the complete opposite of dry cleaning in many ways.
According to the EPA, PERC counts for 85 percent of all dry cleaning fluid used. Well, there is no PERC used at Clothes 2 You.
Guajardo summed up the major differences between the two cleaning businesses, saying, “A traditional dry cleaner uses a chemical called PERC. It involves one machine that you throw all the clothes into at the same time, and it also dries the clothes. Then you take them out, press them and give them back to the customer.
“Wet cleaning uses water, because it’s good at removing stains, but it has to be heated. Dry clean-only garments will be damaged by hot water. So, what we do is sort all the clothes, pre-treat and use special bio-degradable soaps that can be used in cold water and put them into computerized machines that will agitate the clothes, ring and rinse. Then we decide how to decide how to dry the clothes: dry, hang, blot or tension. Then we press the clothes and give them back to the customer.”
Wet cleaning sounds a lot more complicated, but it’s well worth it for those who want to avoid the use of PERC. Avoiding the dry cleaning benefits benefits one’s health, clothes and the environment in the long run.
According to the EPA, PERC enters the body when breathed in with contaminated air or when consumed with contaminated food or water. Breathing PERC for short periods of time can adversely affect the human nervous system. Laboratory studies show that PERC causes kidney and liver damage and cancer in animals exposed repeatedly by inhalation and by mouth. Repeat exposure to large amounts of PERC in air may likewise cause cancer in humans.
Guajardo explained the machinery filtration system used by dry cleaners: “They have a filtration system that is supposed to purify it. Those filters are considered toxic waste, along with the sludge that is created from it, and they’re supposed to pay somebody to come pick it up. Well, what happens is they want to save money, so they throw it in the trash, which goes in the landfill. Rainwater hits it and then soaks into the ground water and poisons the environment.”
Cleaning dry clean-only garments with water seems like an oxymoron, doesn’t it? There is an explanation.
According to Guajardo, “What really tears clothes up that say ‘dry clean only’ is the chemical agitation, the soap being abrasive and the water temperature. If you control all three, you can clean items with water, and we’ve been able to do that.”
Dry cleaning is extremely unhealthy for clothing, Guajardo said. “If you have ever used dry cleaning, you will notice a toxic smell. The chemical you smell is not necessarily the toxicity but the bacteria built up in your clothing from using the same chemical over and over again in the clothes.”
Wet cleaning really puts a lot more work and care into cleaning clothing then dry cleaning does. Dry cleaning cleans all clothing at one time, all together, but wet cleaning requires the time to sort out the clothing according to different materials and textiles, Guajardo said.
“See how we sort all the clothes here and there, and use different loads? [Dry cleaners] just take all the clothes and shove it in the machine. So, what happens over time is the same chemical is being used over and over again on all your clothing.”
Once Clothes 2 You properly treats and cleans the garments, they then decide the proper drying method for each piece, unlike dry cleaning, which dries all the garments the same way and at the same time.
“This is the wet cleaning process. We use environmentally friendly detergents, we use water, we clean the clothes, and it’s going to come out wrinkled. So we figure out whether to dry it, hang it, etc.,” Guajardo noted.
Because wet cleaning puts in the extra work and care into garments, it results in customers getting their money’s worth and a healthier outcome for one’s health and clothing, in comparison to dry cleaning.
Wet cleaning has not become a popular solution in a lot of areas yet because many consumers are still unaware of the problems involved with dry cleaning. With “dry clean only” printed right on the tag of many garments, it only makes sense to take a garment straight to a dry cleaner.
Wet cleaning is a beneficial alternative, and dry cleaning traditionalists may want to give it a try.
“One of the biggest hurdles I run into is that people are so used to doing things the same way,” Guajardo said. “It’s an education process. When people hear ‘wet cleaning,’ they think laundry service.”
He has to explain, “We’re professional cleaners that use a process – wet cleaning – which is a way to clean clothes in an environmentally friendly way. Your clothes can get wet and we’re using a better process for you.”
Wet cleaners, like Clothes 2 You, receive most of their customers due to the fact that they are an eco-friendly alternative.
“A majority of people use us because we are environmentally friendly,” Guajardo explained. “And when they come in and say, ‘You’re the eco-friendly place, right?’ and I say, ‘Yes!’ – I do have some people who don’t care, but I have a larger amount of people who do.”
While one would think that owners and employees of dry cleaning businesses would want to transfer to wet cleaning because they witness the toxicity of the process firsthand, that isn’t the case for many dry cleaning businesses, according to Guajardo. He shared one example.
“You have the industry who’s fighting the government, and they’re saying, ‘Hey, we’ve been cleaning with PERC for years! How come you want to take it away from us?’ The EPA comes back with, ‘Because it causes cancer, you idiots!’ So why fight it? Look at alternatives now and invest in the future.
“No, they would rather fight it. They decided to come up with their own scientists so they could fight the EPA because they believed PERC does not cause cancer. Then, their own panel ended up concurring with the EPA!”
Another problem, he noted, is that many small dry cleaning businesses are a perfect example of “mom-and-pop” kinds of stores – a very traditional style.
“There are a lot of ‘mom-and-pop’ shops. Generation after generation, they start letting things go. They don’t invest in technology, as far as servicing the equipment and the customers, making it better for the employees, and for the environment. That’s where we come in,” he said.
According to the EPA, California has already issued a ban on PERC cleaners and required a phase out of PERC cleaners by 2023. Guajardo said wet cleaners have taken a stand in assisting the ban on PERC through their environmentally friendly and non-toxic method to clean “dry clean-only” garments, through the use of calibrated machines, water, soap and conditioners to clean all garments safely without risk of damage.
Besides the health benefits, the wet cleaning process eliminates the “dry clean” smell, removes most stains without utilization of specialty spot cleaners and prolongs the useful life of garments.
“It’s going to end one day. The government is coming down on [dry cleaning],” Guajardo said. “For example, California gave drycleaners a time frame to stop using PERC cleaners and either use wet cleaning or something else.”
Guajardo makes a dramatic point when saying, “Dry cleaning is like pouring gasoline on a garment and then taking it and pressing it. To me, that’s not getting a good cleaning. “We like wet cleaning, it works!” he said. “It provides a really nice fresh laundry smell. It takes care of everything. It makes your clothes last longer and you avoid all those harsh chemicals!”
That’s reason enough for many to give wet cleaning a try, with the potential to get more for the money, and to benefit health and eliminate any risks for the environment.
