When it comes to the maintenance of our professional wardrobes and particularly our suits, how we care for them and who we entrust with their care is crucial. In fact, choosing to dry clean your suits is as essential as choosing which quality suit to buy in the first place. Dry cleaning services lend a professional touch that cannot be achieved at home, and through the use of high-quality washing material and the experienced know-how of an expert, the lifetime of a suit can be extended substantially.
But how does dry cleaning actually extend a suit’s life, and what specific benefits lay behind such a broad claim? From the dry cleaning professionals at Burke Cleaners, here’s all you need to know about extending the life of your suit with professional dry cleaning.
Dry cleaning is a special cleaning process conducted by specialists that utilizes solvents instead of water. While the name is slightly misleading, dry cleaning is not actually a “dry” process, as the solvents used (namely perchloroethylene, i.e. “perc”) are in liquid form. It is only because there is no water involved that it receives the name ‘dry cleaning’. Using the solvent instead of water is what makes it so important for suits, but more on that later.
Waterless methods of cleaning clothes date back thousands of years to the ancient Greeks and Romans, but the modern iteration of dry cleaning uses a machine very similar to that of a domestic washing machine and clothes dryer. Clothes are placed in the core of the machine and subjected to several cycles of rotation and solvent exposure. The solvent is filtered out and returned to the clothing chamber several times as impurities are washed free, then a drying cycle ensues which includes the garments being tumbled in a stream of warm air that circulates in and through the central chamber. Finally, the finished dry-cleaned clothes are cooled, aired, and often steam-pressed to completion.
It is not uncommon for suits to be labeled as “dry clean only”, which means, of course, that dry cleaning should be the only method used for cleaning your suit. This is usually because the materials and particular construction of suits, such as silk, wool, and delicate linings, may not withstand the rough process of regular, water-based cleaning methods. Water-based cleaning methods can cause shrinkage, color bleeding, and other types of damage to these finer fabrics, and furthermore, tailored suits can easily lose their precise shape when exposed to water-based cleaning and traditional drying methods.
For these reasons, the lifetime of a suit can be greatly extended if it is cleaned using dry cleaning instead of common water-based techniques, and it will maintain its original quality, color, and shape longer. Dry cleaning can also help by removing tough stains, such as oil and grease-based stains that are not easily removed during a water-based cleaning process. Suits, therefore, do not only benefit from an increased lifespan, but they can benefit from the stain-saving power of dry cleaning as well.
Beyond the strict dry cleaning process itself, there are several secondary benefits that extend the life of a suit, including:
Professional dry cleaners are experts at what they do. These individuals and companies have experience working with high-quality garment fabrics along with the highest-quality washing material that is not normally available for use at your home. Moreover, they are aware of how and where to use the cleaning material for removing stains. Between having optimal experience, training, equipment, ingredients, and techniques, professional dry cleaning services give your suit the best possible chance at longevity.
Precise attention to detail on all parts of your suit goes that extra mile in conserving the quality and integrity of its fabrics. Your suit will be immaculately cleaned, stains are quickly and accurately addressed, and each of the surfaces and crease lines are carefully and precisely ironed. Our clothes are representative of the image we carry, so ensuring your suit is cared for and intentionally extending its lifespan are important parts of ownership.
Dry cleaners are especially effective at removing odor from suits by making use of special cleaning products. It’s likely that such professional-grade cleaning products are unavailable for you to use at home, so entrusting your suit to professional dry cleaning services will ensure that their smell is well-maintained in coordination with its extended lifespan.
In addition to the highest-quality cleaning methods that use solvents and drying techniques inherently designed to preserve your fabrics, professional dry cleaning services have experts who can restore your suit and mend flaws that may not be immediately visible to you. It’s obvious that delicate clothes like your suit need special care. As such, they should be handled and preserved by the experts that can do it better than anyone else.
There is no set rule around how much your suit needs to be cleaned, but we recommend getting your suit dry cleaned every three to four times it is worn. If the suit is stained, gets a spot, or begins to smell, you can certainly have the suit cleaned more frequently. However, if you’re ever unsure about the best way to care for your suit, we recommend consulting your tailor or dry cleaner to get a more personalized answer based on how frequently and how long you use the suit on a day-to-day basis.
Dry cleaning is the most important factor that will extend the life of your suit. Due to its gentle solvents and drying methods along with the expertise and care provided by dry cleaning professionals, dry cleaning is imperative for the best possible care for your suit. If you’re in the Northern Colorado area, consider reaching out to the expert dry cleaners at Burke Cleaners in order to put your suit in highly capable hands.
