You took your clothes to the dry cleaner, but afterward noticed an unpleasant, sharp odor? On top of that, the smell of food or sweat may still linger. What could be causing this? How can this unwanted side effect be avoided?

What causes unpleasant odors during dry cleaning?

In traditional dry cleaning, clothes are cleaned not with water, but with a solvent. Perchloroethylene (PERC) is a common solvent used at home. It cleans clothes very well, but it can leave a strong odor. This is a powerful chemical. It removes grease and oil very well. It cannot remove existing odors. If clothing smells like food or sweat, that smell will remain. The solvent’s own smell can linger. This is more common in thicker fabrics.

What does the dry cleaning process look like?

Since this solvent can cause cancer, the clothes must dry inside the dry-cleaning machine. This helps the solvent evaporate. This is where the technology gets its English name: dry-cleaning. The garment is placed in the machine “dry” and also comes out “dry.” However, even with drying, the smell of the solvent cannot be completely removed. This is why a dry-cleaned garment may not smell fresh afterward. Instead, it can have a “kerosene-like” odor.

The simplest and healthiest solution is to avoid taking your delicate clothes to a traditional dry cleaner. With us, wet cleaning is available, a process that does not use aggressive solvents. This method allows all garments—even wool and other delicate fabrics—to be cleaned in water. Besides preventing harsh chemical odors, the clothes come out pleasantly fresh, and you also protect the environment.

+1 Useful Tip: Never take children’s clothing or blankets to a dry cleaner! A knowledgeable professional wouldn’t even accept them. Even solvent residues below the legally allowed limit can be life-threatening for a child.

What to do if the smell lingers?

If your clothes have already gone through traditional dry-cleaning and that unpleasant smell lingers, here are some ways to deal with it:

• Air them out: Hang your clothes outside for a while so that the chemicals can evaporate.
• Bring them to us: If lingering food or sweat odors bother you, the garments can still undergo wet cleaning, which restores a fresh scent and vibrant colors.
• Traditional perchloroethylene dry cleaning is now mostly outdated. It cannot operate in residential buildings or most shopping centers. Wet cleaning is currently the best alternative, and the good news is that we have Hungary’s first AquaTouch system.

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