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Here's something you can use for starting cocktail party conversation: the Greeks documented the earliest known dry cleaning process. How do we know this? The ancient Myceneans, ruled by King Agemmemnon, kept written records of government using clay tablets on which historians found the occupation of "dry cleaner" listed after translating some tablets dating to between 1600 and 100 BC. Linen, wool, hemp and silk were all known fibers for clothing, dating from approximately 4000 BC. In ancient times, textile workers known as "fullers" were responsible for washing (using their feet as agitators in a stream bed), then brushing the air-dried new cloth to clean it and to "fill in" the weave. To remove stains, the fullers used simple chemicals and natural products. Lye (made from wood ash) and ammonia (from stale urine) were good minor stain removers but "fuller's earth" (diatomaceous earth) was used, along with a good brushing, for greasy stains. Fuller's earth was a combination of absorbent clays and other soils, thus your clothes might be clean and contain "dirt" at the same time!
Starting in the late 1800's, chemical companies worldwide began research to develop a non-flammable cleaning solvent. In 1920, trichloroethylene was introduced in Germany. It was a very good cleaner for wools (and machinery) but it wasn't good for the newly developed synthetic materials such as cellulose-based rayon and the polymer-based nylon. In the 1930's the next generation chemical cleaning agent was introduced: perchloroethylene ("perc") and it provides gentle cleaning for all types of fabrics. "Perc" isn't a perfect solution: it isn't biodegradable except through remediation processes. Though no definitive clinical studies offer proof, "perc" is suspected of being a human carcinogen and is listed by the E.P.A. on the U.S. Government's list of "possible human carcinogens." Today the dry cleaning industry has something new: a patented "green earth" solvent that is non-toxic and safe to handle. The chemistry not based on carbon, such as those previously mentioned, but on silicone. The new product provides a clean and odorless outcome with no known human or environmental harm. Two large companies, General Electric and Proctor & Gamble, are part of a worldwide joint agreement to market the product. Arrow, in keeping with its efforts to provide customers with superior services, has licensed the technology to clean leather and suede clothing. Do as thousands of Arrow customers have done. Trust your garments and household items to the loving and protective care of Arrow Fabricare. Every day...with every piece...Arrow cares. FOR ANSWERS TO FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (click below):  |
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Arrow Fabricare Services - 3838 Troost Avenue - Kansas City, MO 64109 | 1-800-54-ARROW/ Fax: 816-931-0300 Customer Service E-mail |
In
France 1716, an accidental spill of turpentine oil revealed it
as an agent for removing greasy spots from silk. In 1830, benzene
was found to clean as well as turpentine and it didn't leave
a nasty smell. Sometime around 1845 a Parisienne, named Jean-Baptiste
Jolly, opened the first dry cleaning plant and by 1879 the concept
had come to America. By 1910, dry cleaning establishments were
fairly common in America. Fires were a big hazard because the
cleaning agents of the time were hydrocarbons: gasoline, naptha,
camphene, kerosene, and benzene all highly combustible
and explosive.