Case studies: Curtains and household textiles

25 January 2022



Our experts on all things textile, Roger Cawood and Richard Neale, deal with common problems associated with household items


Well, here we go again, Spring will soon be upon us and shortly cleaners can look forward to a welcome increase in curtains and household items. So, we are taking a look at several common problems you need to anticipate.

For most, but not all, curtains and furnishings, drycleaning will be the safest option. Many items do not have any aftercare information and, due to the attendant risks of shrinkage, distortion and colour fastness issues, wetcleaning and water-based processing frequently pose unacceptable risks. Drycleaning shares similar risks, but to a much lesser extent.

As a general rule of thumb, curtains from the small windows found in many modern homes present the lowest risk of complaints of shrinkage, while at the other end of the spectrum very large items such as stage curtains are best left to cleaners who specialise in this kind of work and who have the necessary specialised equipment. Over the years, household textiles and furnishings have frequently presented difficult problems for the industry, often due to the fact that many items are made to order (perhaps by a local tailor or seamstress) and items such as pelmets and trims, are sometimes stuck together or are not made with aftercare processing in mind.

The cleaner also needs to bear in mind that some fitted suite and cushion covers are a very tight fit from new, leaving no room whatsoever for even slight shrinkage. These might withstand only surface cleaning, for which special charges apply, to reflect the extra time involved. Once again, such items are best left to specialist cleaners.

One of the most common issues with curtains is degraded linings, a fault known as photochemical degradation.

Curtains are inevitably exposed to long periods of sunlight and over time this causes a gradual weakening of the yarns in curtain lining materials. In the case of south facing windows the effect can be dramatic, with the linings becoming so weak that they may start to tear when the curtains are pulled (or the package is opened in the drycleaners).

Cleaners need to, when accepting curtains, check the linings to ensure they are robust enough to withstand cleaning. Look for vertical faded areas and check the strength in these by stressing the fabric between the thumbs and forefingers. While the cleaner is not normally held to be responsible if weakened linings fail in cleaning, the customer will not be happy about the unexpected cost of replacement linings.

However, if the linings are very badly degraded, they may disintegrate during cleaning into small pieces of fabric which block the button trap restricting the flow of solvent from the cage. During high-speed extract this can cause severe fabric damage to all the items in the load, for which the cleaner would have to accept responsibility. Also bear in mind that the curtain fabric itself may be adversely affected by sunlight as well.

Shrinkage and staining

Normal retail specifications should allow for up to 3% shrinkage in drycleaning, which the cleaner can neither predict accurately nor avoid. While this is not normally a problem for personal wear, in the case of long curtains and some suite covers, 3% relaxation is likely to lead to a complaint. In many cases, curtain manufacturers will allow for shrinkage by providing a generous selvedge at the hem, so that it can be let down. However, when accepting curtains, cleaners should always measure them accurately and warn the customer of the risk of up to 3% relaxation. Some cleaners use a figure of up to 5% - which in the case of litigation could not be supported in the event of any shrinkage in excess of 3% (which is the maximum allowed in the British Standard for curtain fabric).

Cotton curtain linings, in particular, are often stained by condensation, leaving deep seated and very obvious marks. In the case of larger stains or more widespread marking, it is often impractical to consider treatment and customers should be advised accordingly at reception. This is because of the need to remove the linings for water-based processing and the additional cost to the customer (with no guarantee that the stains will be removed).

  • If you have problems you would like the authors to examine please send with a good quality, high resolution (300dpi/1MB at least) pic of the item to
    kathy.bowry@laundryandcleannnews.com

Unremoved wear creases

Fault: the customer complained of marks remaining in the pile of several cushion covers after drycleaning.

Technical cause: these acrylic pile suite covers had random, deeply set wear creases, which were particularly obvious in the seat covers. The warmth from body heat, coupled with compression from being sat on over extended periods of time, has distorted the acrylic pile fibres where the fabric was creased. Acrylic textile fibres are thermoplastic and extremely heat sensitive and in pile fabrics the new pile is very symmetrical; the slightest distortion is very noticeable. In this case the drycleaning process had probably resulted in a considerable improvement in the appearance of the wear creases, but they are still there.

Responsibility: the customer is responsible for the wear creases and no blame can be directed at the cleaner for their incomplete removal here. However, a professional cleaner should have recognised the problem associated with the wear crease pile distortion and warned the customer during reception.

Rectification: acrylic pile fabrics should not be finished and in this case any attempt at steam finishing, or ironing could easily cause irreparable damage to the pile for which the cleaner would have to accept responsibility. Although some cleaners have tried brushing whilst lightly steaming, this is too risky to recommend and the present result should be considered the best achievable.

Damage in normal use is revealed in cleaning

Fault: after briefly inspecting a pair of silk curtains, the cleaner processed them in perc, together with several satin cushion covers, using a reduced cleaning cycle. On removal from the machine, both curtains had broken lines of fabric damage in the same position and parallel with the top and bottom of the curtains.

Technical cause: inspection under the microscope revealed that in the affected areas the surface yarns and some of those below had been removed and the fibres/yams adjacent to the damaged area showed surface damage consistent with abrasion. The height of the damaged area was found to correspond with the back of the customer's sofa, which was in front of the window. The continual opening and dosing of the curtains, in contact with back of the sofa, had resulted in abrasion damage. The weakened fibres have been flushed away by the normal mechanical action of cleaning in perc, to reveal the fault now seen.

Responsibility: silk fibres are particularly susceptible to abrasion, which often shows up as whitish areas when the fabric is viewed obliquely across the surface. The cleaner did not see any evidence of this, but in some cases, it can be difficult to observe. However, the responsibility for the abrasion damage to the curtains lies firmly with the customer in this instance.

Rectification: it might be possible to seam out the damage, but this would leave a visible horizontal seam across the curtains.

Curtains fade in cleaning

Fault: following cleaning in perchloroethylene the customer complained that her curtains and the gold printed pattern on them, had faded. The unlined cotton curtains were about four years old and had been hung in two south facing windows. No fading or faded areas were noticed when the curtains were checked and measured during reception and there was no care label or aftercare instructions.

Technical cause: careful inspection of the curtains revealed a slightly darker narrow vertical stripe to the inside edge of each curtain consistent with them being in the shade of the wall when hung. There were also barely perceptible vertical stripes down all the curtains. An offcut from the original material compared with the curtains showed the extent of the fading and printed on the selvedge was the instruction "Dry Clean Only" with no care symbols. However, when the gold, surface printed design, on the offcut was vigorously tested with perchloroethylene solvent some of the gold came away!

Long exposure to sunlight had weakened the bond between the blue dye and the cotton fabric allowing some of the dye to be flushed away during cleaning. There is also a risk that some loss of shade intensity can occur when cleaning deep dyed shades and floral prints on cotton fabrics, particularly when cleaned in perc. The high solvent power of perc and the high levels of mechanical action it imposes are responsible for the fading of the gold pattern.

Responsibility: the absence of any restrictions in the cleaning cycle, the words try Clean Only' imply that the curtains should withstand a normal cycle in perc, which is clearly not the case here. The responsibility for this should be taken by the manufacturer and retailer. However, there are many problems of this type on curtain fabric and a good professional cleaner would have double-checked the inadequate label on the fabric selvedge with a simple rub test.

Tip for the future: in the event of a claim, the cost of furnishings can be financially crippling, and it is in the cleaner's best interest to ensure that, where appropriate, all household items are accurately measured and properly assessed during reception. This should include rub testing of the colours (including metallic colourways) to establish fastness to solvent. It is well worth the time and trouble.

SUN DAMAGE: This lining became severely weakened by sunlight and had no more strength than soggy newspaper
NO GO: Drycleaning could’nt remove the wear creases remaining here
SOFA SURFING: The customer was horrified when drycleaning revealed this abrasion damage
FADE OUT: Original fabric, above, but oth blue and gold have faded in drycleaning
FADE OUT: Original fabric, above, but oth blue and gold have faded in drycleaning


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