When you wash clothes at home in thewashing machine , water is the solvent used to do the cleaning . Many type of material , however , do not handle piddle very well . For example , woollen and water just do n’t meld . There are also many types of stain that water is not particularly good at dispatch .
The term teetotal cleanup is a little misleading , in that it is n’t actually wry . or else , it mean that instead of using max and water , dry cleaning employs chemical solvents that absent dirt and grease and eliminatestains . One of the earliest solvents used was kerosene , which had the downside of being flammable . After World War II , dry cleaner begin to use a solvent calledperchloroethylene , also known as perc , which became the industriousness standard because of its effectuality . Once clothes are cleaned with the result , the chemical itself is distill and reused , and the wearing apparel are iron to eliminate wrinkling . The clothes are washed in this solvent , and then the solvent is recovered in anextractorso it can be reprocess ( and so that it does not vaporize into the line and have pollution ) . Once the clothes are cleaned , they are pressed so they look like new .
Perc has a serious downside , in that it ’s been tie in to a stove of different health risks . In 2020 , the EPAphased outthe usance of perc in cleaner shops locate in building where hoi polloi also live , and the state of matter of California is in the procedure of phase out its utilization in all . Though perc is still being widely used , other more environmentally well-disposed solvents have been developed in an drive to reduce risks to workers and the consumer . In addition , a mental process holler wet cleaning , which utilizes water and biodegradable detergents in special computer - controlled car , is advocate by the EPA and environmental organizations .
