Dry cleaning can increase household expenses significantly. However, there are several ways to cut the cost of professional dry cleaning services by doing it manually or by machine at home. Not all clothes that are labeled dry should use the services of a professional. If you're dry-cleaning clothes at home, take the time to find out the type of fabric or fabric mix and use a detergent and method that's appropriate for your fabric.
Step
Method 1 of 3: Manually Cleaning Clothes
Step 1. Read the label
Look at the label for clothing care instructions, which are usually on the inner seam. If the label says, “Dry Clean Only”, consider hiring a professional. If the label only says “Dry Clean”, you can clean it at home.
If your clothes are made of silk or wool, you can clean them manually instead of using a professional
Step 2. Test a small section of the garment to see if it can be dry washed at home
Look for parts of clothing that are not visible when worn. Drop some water on this part. Use a cotton swab to rub the water along the surface of the garment. See if any color has faded on the cotton. If it fades, you need to use the services of a professional. Otherwise, please wash it manually.
Step 3. Wash the silk with cold water
Fill a tub or sink with cold water and a small amount of mild detergent, or if you have one, silk detergent. Wash your silk garments manually in less than 30 minutes as silk should not stay in the water for too long. Air dry the silk garment.
- Silk is more difficult to clean at home. If you want to wash it yourself, always use a silk detergent, which can be designed to clean underwear or silk fabrics.
- You can also clean silk fabrics using the hand wash cycle in the washing machine.
Step 4. Clean the woolen garment with cold water
The main challenge in washing woolen fabrics at home is felting, which occurs when the wool fibers rub against each other during washing. To avoid this, you need to manually wash woolen clothes with a gentle touch in a bath of cold water. Use a wool cleaning product, such as Woolite, to clean cashmere, angora, or other wool garments.
- Avoid putting clothes in the washing machine as agitation of the machine cycle will cause felting and shrinking of the clothes.
- Avoid using detergents that contain lots of chemicals when cleaning carmires. Instead, choose a completely natural cashmere detergent.
- Always spread woolen clothes out to air dry.
Step 5. Wash the linen in cold water
Put a mild detergent in a tub of cold water to wash linens manually. After washing, clothes should be ironed. Clothes can get wrinkled if you don't press them immediately after hand washing.
- You can air dry the linens.
- Linen can also be washed on the delicate cycle in the washing machine.
Method 2 of 3: Using the Washing Machine
Step 1. Determine if you can machine clean the clothes
If the clothing label says “Dry Clean” instead of “Dry Clean Only” and is made of cotton, polyester, nylon, or spandex, you can use a machine wash. While it is usually recommended for wool, silk, and linen garments, you can also use a hand-wash cycle in the washing machine.
- If you have clothes made of several materials, assume they are made entirely of the most fragile of materials.
- Luxury clothes that are made of several materials and have complex designs should be cleaned using a professional dry cleaning service.
- Sequined tops are usually difficult to wash at home.
- Rayon and viscose materials should always be dry cleaned.
Step 2. Put clothes in fragile clothes pockets
Turn your clothes over and put them in a gauze bag designed for washing fragile clothes.
Step 3. Choose cold water
You should always choose the cold water setting when using the washing machine to clean clothes that normally require a dry cleaning service. Warm temperatures will cause problems with clothes such as shrinking or deforming.
Step 4. Choose the shortest cycle
Fragile fabrics, such as silk, should not be exposed to water for too long. Therefore, we recommend choosing the shortest wash cycle.
Step 5. Turn it on to the softest cycle
Washing machines have a range of speed and power options that are used to clean clothes. Choose a “delicate” or “slow” cycle.
Avoid using the “regular” and “permanent press” cycles, which are not gentle enough
Step 6. Pay attention to the load of the laundry
It's a good idea to wash silk clothes with silk, and wool with wool, instead of mixing them all together. Put all your fragile clothes in one load, instead of adding towels or other clothes with your fragile clothes load.
Don't forget to wash bright colors with other bright colors, instead of mixing dark and light colors
Step 7. Air the clothes
You should avoid using a tumble dryer as the clothes may shrink or deform. So, air the clothes on a rope or clothesline to dry.
- If you're drying wool, don't forget to lay it flat so it doesn't deform.
- It's best to air dry wool in a place away from hot areas, as wool can shrink when exposed to excessive heat.
Step 8. Use a home dry washer
If you want to avoid the hassle of washing clothes manually and save the cost of a professional dry cleaning service, a home dry cleaning machine can help you. Keep in mind that a home dry cleaning machine is not as effective as a professional service. Usually this machine is used to freshen clothes between visits to a professional dry cleaning service.
You can buy a dry washing machine for around IDR 5 million-24 million
Method 3 of 3: Getting Rid of Dirty Spots and Stains
Step 1. Do a spot clean on the clothes
Use a microfiber cloth and a detergent for sensitive clothing, such as silk detergent or a brand that says delicates on the package. Dampen a microfiber cloth with warm water and a little detergent. Twist the cloth to remove most of the water. Then, pat it on the dirty part of the clothes.
Step 2. Steam clean clothes
If you have fragile silk, acrylic or wool clothes that are slightly soiled, you can try steam cleaning. Put some detergent labeled delicate in the steamer. Steam the garment, then lay it on a flat surface to dry.
Step 3. Use sparkling water to get rid of red wine stains
If you spill red wine on one of your favorite clothes, use a cloth dampened with sparkling water to clean it. Blot the red stain with a cloth, adding sparkling water if needed. This method is best done immediately after the stain occurs.
