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An eco-conscious choice for dry cleaning
Illustration by Greg Silva
Traditional dry cleaning uses a wealth of toxic chemicals—a bad choice for our health and the earth. But a newer method of dry cleaning known as “wet” cleaning has been tested safe and certified green by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The differences in quality and environmental impact are substantial.
Traditional dry cleaning is done using a chemical called perchloroethylene, which was tested by the EPA as harmful to the environment and to human health, because some of the chemical remains in a garment’s fibers after cleaning. According to Peter Xu, who owns Nature’s Best Cleaners in Sunnyvale, perchloroethylene is not a very efficient cleaning agent to start with.
“The chemical molecules are bigger than the fiber molecules,” Xu says. “Traditional dry cleaning only cleans the fiber on the outside. It cannot penetrate to the inside of the fiber, and body smells or perfume cannot be removed.”
In an ironic twist, wet cleaning is the new dry cleaning. As the name implies, this process uses water as the main cleaning agent, plus a mild detergent. The key to efficiently wet-clean a garment is all in the washer. High-tech washers are used to control the water level, temperature, time, and agitation of each wash cycle. After washing, the garment is placed into a vacuum dryer that uses very low heat. Before it is completely dry, the garment is moved to a tension machine where it is strapped on and filled with air to gently blow out any wrinkles and remaining water. Finally, the garment is pressed, just as in traditional dry cleaning. Because each step is so precisely controlled, even fragile garments like beaded or lace wedding dresses can be wet cleaned.
Xu says wet cleaning is the most efficient cleaning method—green or otherwise. “Eighty percent [of stains] are water-based stains,” he says. “If we use the wet cleaning, we remove all the water-based stains. Twenty percent are oil-based stains.
Traditional dry cleaners only clean the oil-based stains. There is a water-based oil remover that, just before we do the wet cleaning, we spray on the oil-based stain, and then after wet cleaning, it is gone.”
South Bay green dry cleaners
• Aqua Cleaners, 325 First St., Los Altos, 650.917.8400
• Green and Fresh Cleaners, 580 N. Rengstorff Ave., Mountain View, 650.967.8899
• Nature’s Best Cleaners, 1281 W. El Camino Real, Sunnyvale, 650.969.0469
• Next Gen Cleaners, 1574 Branham Lane, San Jose, 408.832.2227
• Royal Cleaners, 1192 N. Capitol Ave., San Jose, 408.272.1888
