In daily operations, laundry shops often have after-sales problems, such as dye transfer, fabric damage, dull appearance after washing, and stiff linen. Most issues are not garment quality defects. They are caused by improper laundry procedures and washing mistakes. To reduce rewash rates and customer complaints, as well as extend garment service life, laundry shops should avoid the following common mistakes.
No Color Sorting
Color sorting is a recognized basic standard in the laundry industry. It is also the first line of defense against a large area of dye transfer accidents. Some laundry operators wash garments without color sorting by subjectively judging that garments are colorfast. Bulk garment dye transfer is more likely to occur.
In terms of fabrics, no textile is fully colorfast. Garments show stable colorfastness under common dry conditions. However, during wash cycles, several reasons may accelerate the release of dye. For example, the water temperature may increase. Garments soak in the alkaline wash solution. Wet fabrics stack and contact for a long time. The soaking time is excessive. Even well-worn garments washed many times also release hidden dyes.
Garments received by laundry shops have various colors, such as light shirts, dark uniforms, and colored bedding. If they are washed together, loose dyes will quickly adhere to the surfaces of light fabrics. White garments turn gray after washing. Shirts are dyed locally. Their rewash and restoration costs are extremely high. Do not subjectively judge the garment colorfastness performance. During the sorting stage, strictly classify garments into four categories: white, light color, dark color, and bright color. Following this standard, laundry shops can reduce the risks of dye transfer.
After correct sorting, choose the corresponding wash cycle in the Kingstar wet cleaning machine. Dark and light garments require different main wash temperatures. Kingstar uses a high-sensitivity temperature sensor. It precisely controls the main wash temperature. This achieves the ideal washing performance while ensuring safe washing.
No Size Sorting
To maximize the load capacity per cycle, some laundry shops put large garments (coats, windbreakers, and long jackets) together with small textiles (socks and kerchiefs). During hand washing, this hardly has any impact. However, if they are washed in an industrial washer, strong mechanical action and tumbling will cause many issues. During the operation, large and heavy items constantly tangle the small textiles. Small items are wrapped inside the large garments. Water flow and detergent cannot completely reach the soiled areas. Finally, residual oil stains and dust remain in some areas. Meanwhile, due to friction and compression, dyes and stains transfer to each other.
The correct way is separate washing. Pay attention to leaving room for tumbling. This not only ensures even washing but also reduces the risks of fabric wear and dye transfer caused by tangling.
No Material Sorting
Cotton, linen, silk, wool, synthetic fabrics, and blended fabrics vary in fiber structures. They also have great differences in alkali resistance, bleaching, and mechanical agitation. Without material sorting, one-size-fits-all detergent dosage directly causes irreversible fabric damage.
Cotton and linen have high alkali resistance. They are suitable for regular alkaline washing powders. They can also tolerate low-temperature oxygen bleaching. However, wool, silk, and protein fibers may stiffen, shrink, and suffer fiber breakage when contacting high alkali. They only adapt to neutral detergents. Nylon and elastic synthetic fabrics should be protected from chlorine bleach. Otherwise, this may cause fabric embrittlement, broken holes, and loss of elasticity.
Laundry shops can identify fabrics based on garment care labels. Choose proper wash cycles and detergents. A Kingstar wet cleaning machine stores fully automatic washing programs for different fabrics. It can connect to chemical dispensers. Automatic chemical dosing avoids incorrect operation and garment damage. Do not use the same detergents and high-temperature wash cycles for all fabrics.
Soiled & Clean Mixed Washing
Washing garments with different soiled levels together causes similar issues as mixed washing without color sorting. Heavy oil stains, dust, and food stains generate suspended soiled particles in the washing water. During the tumbling, they evenly adhere to the surface of clean and lightly soiled fabrics. This causes the dull appearance of light linen and clean uniforms. After multiple mixed washes, the fabric’s original color constantly becomes dull. Regular washing fails to restore its brightness.
For heavily soiled linen and oil-stained uniforms, laundry shops should pre-treat the heavy stains separately. Then perform the main wash after drainage. During the daily sorting, strictly classify heavily and lightly soiled garments. Put them into different washing machines. Set special washing parameters for heavily soiled garments. Separate washing improves overall cleanliness as well as reduces secondary contamination. It also shortens the main wash time, which increases the overall operating efficiency.
Excessive Detergent Dosage
Many operators misunderstand that more detergent makes fabrics cleaner. To quickly remove stains, they blindly increase washing powders, emulsifiers, and bleach dosage. This often causes washing accidents. Excessive detergents cannot be removed by the limited rinse water. Detergent residues penetrate into fiber gaps. Garments may become stiff and yellow. High-concentration chemicals damage fabrics. This accelerates color fading and transfer. Besides, excessive foam may affect cleaning performance. Oil stains and dust easily adhere to fabric surfaces.
Dose laundry additives (emulsifiers, neutralizing acid, and bleach) based on the rated load and water capacity. Overdosing does not deliver better cleaning results. Kingstar wet cleaning machine can connect to peristaltic pumps and Venturi chemical dosing systems. It supports signal ports for dispensers from various brands. It can precisely control chemical dosage through the wash cycle. It also achieves cleaning performance and fabric protection.
Prolonged Unattended Soaking
Moderate soaking pre-wash for heavily soiled garments is often used to improve cleaning efficiency. But the soaking time must be strictly limited. Do not soak fabrics for a long time or overnight. Do not leave them unattended. If fabrics are soaked in water containing detergents for too long, fibers are continuously corroded by chemicals. The dye bonding strength will gradually decline. The rate of color fading and transfer significantly increases. Due to prolonged soaking, protein and colored fabrics may have localized water marks, fabric thinning, and reduced strength.
The pre-soaking time should be within 10-20 minutes. During the soaking, regularly turn fabrics to avoid localized prolonged soaking. Upon reaching the limited time, put them into the washing machine. Prevent prolonged soaking during unattended operation to reduce chemical damage.
For example, in a Kingstar wet cleaning machine, keep the water temperature at a certain level to improve stain removal performance. During the tumbling in the inner drum, chemicals completely penetrate garments. During the soaking time, the machine automatically enters the wash cycle. This avoids prolonged soaking issues caused by operator neglect.
Random Pause During the Process
During the entire wash cycle, do not stop the machine regardless of sorting and receiving garments as well as handling accidents. Fabrics are in a wet environment containing detergents. Their dye fastness is lower than that under dry conditions. If the drum stops tumbling, fabrics will stack and compress together. Free dyes and suspended soils quickly cause localized penetration and dye transfer. They develop irregular color stains, which are difficult to restore later.
Complete the entire washing process in one cycle. In an emergency, immediately drain wash water. Use clean water to rinse fabrics before stopping. This prevents fabrics from prolonged soaking in the wash water.
Conclusion
In laundry shops, the key to standardized washing is proper pre-sorting and operational details. These major misconceptions seem to be small things in daily life. However, they directly relate to customer complaints, compensation, linen damage, and store reputation. Laundry shops should build unified sorting, dosing, soaking, and machine washing standards. Regularly perform staff training about fabric and detergent compatibility. These help avoid various issues (dye transfer, fabric damage, and dull appearance after washing) at the source. Therefore, laundry shops can deliver stable washing quality and reduce operational losses.
Q&A
Q1: What is the entire process of receiving and delivering garments?
A1: Garment Receiving → Scanning → Disinfection → Recheck → Sorting → Pre-treatment → Washing → Drying → Ironing → Lint Removal → Quality Inspection → Packing → Barcode Labeling → Finished Garment Storage → Pickup
Q2: What is the difference between a form finisher and a common ironing table?
A2:
- Form finisher:
Hang the garment on the human body model. This machine shapes garments with internal steam and external airflow. It is mainly used for suits, coats, and windbreakers.
– Advantages: efficient, excellent shaping, no ironing shine marks.
– Disadvantages: insufficient treatment for details (neckline and cuffs).
- Ironing table:
It is often used with an iron. It is used for shirts, trousers, and dresses.
– Advantages: flexible and sufficient treatment for details.
– Disadvantages: relies on operator skills, low efficiency.
Q3: What is the function of a spotting table?
A3:
- Pre-treatment
Before dry cleaning, remove localized oil, blood, and pigment stains. It can improve overall cleaning performance.
- Targeted use
Stains should be removed with different stain removers (acidic, alkaline, neutral, solvent-based). Perform precise treatment with steam guns and spray guns.
- Protect garments
It protects garments from over-treatment. This reduces fabric damage.
- Improve average order value
It can remove special stains that conventional washing may not remove completely. It is a key competitive advantage of high-end laundry shops.
A professional spotting table often includes hot and cold spray guns, steam guns, extraction tables, stain remover shelves, and lights. Stain removal technology is the core skill of dry cleaners. Equipment is the foundation, while technology is the key.
