I don’t know about you, but if I want clean clothes that means fabric free of gunk not fabric doused with chemicals.
But chemicals are key to dry cleaning, and those chemicals are toxic to humans and the environment. Recent research has shone a spotlight on this problem. The good news is that federal legislation has recently addressed banning these chemicals.
And most of the time, simple alternatives to dry cleaning work just as well. To wit: I cleaned a suede winter jacket in my front-load washer on gentle cycle with cold water and a touch of gentle detergent, then dried it on a flat rack. It looks and fits like new, even though the label says “dry clean only.” I’ve done the same with formal dresses and wool sweaters.
If that sounds too risky to you, other options exist. But first let’s take a look at what dry cleaning is and why you should red-light it.
How do clothes get dry cleaned?
Dry cleaning is a misnomer. Your clothes get wet when they’re dry cleaned — wet with industrial solvents. The most common chemical is perchloroethylene, also called PCE or perc. Tetrachloroethylene, or TCE, might also be used.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency considers perc a probable human carcinogen that’s known to cause liver, kidney, brain and testicular cancer and to generally damage the kidney, liver and immune system. Symptoms associated with exposure to perc include confusion, impaired memory, dizziness, headache and drowsiness. Eye, nose and throat irritation can occur too, along with dermatitis from repeated exposure.
The EPA calls TCE “an extremely toxic chemical” that’s known to cause liver cancer, kidney cancer and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. It also damages the central nervous system, liver, kidneys, immune system and reproductive organs and causes fetal heart defects.
You might wonder why toxic substances with extensive adverse health effects would be used to “clean” fabric that rests on your skin or that you spend nights sleeping with (down comforters with “dry clean only” labels I’m looking at you). So did the EPA, finally, after years of shouting from environmental– and health-advocacy groups.
In 2024 the EPA started work toward phasing out both chemicals. The rules banned all TCE uses, an action that was waylaid under the new administration. They also banned perc from dry cleaning, a process expected to take 10 years. The agency said it’s doing so “to eliminate the risk to people who work or spend considerable time at dry cleaning facilities.” Using dry cleaned items can harm your health too, though the risk is lower.
Why do people get clothes dry cleaned if it’s dangerous?
To many of us, dry cleaning has always seemed repulsive based on its chemical underpinning. Still, some people like the convenience, regularly dropping off business clothes, for example, even when labels don’t mention dry cleaning. This is perplexing, given full-service laundromats can clean clothes if convenience is your aim.
In other cases, clothing labeled “dry clean only” makes people think dry cleaning is their only option. Read on to learn why it’s not.
How can I avoid dry cleaning?
First, buy fabric items whose labels say that they can be machine or hand washed.
And even when items warn that they are “dry clean only,” if you’re savvy, you can find ways to wash them in a machine or by hand. Bear in mind that front-load machines are more gentle than machines with agitators. Put the internet to good use and pull up reliable sources that divulge strategies for washing items labeled off-limits. That’s how I figured out the best ways to wash mine, along with using common sense.
Then air dry items. If a hanger will deform them, get a flat mesh drying rack (which you can also use to dry laundered items not included in the scope of this piece).
Steaming is an option for items that are slightly dirty. The steam kills bacteria and foils funky smells — but it’s not going to wash away oil or remove stains.
Finally, spot-cleaning can work, but not for something you sweated in, which, you know, needs to actually be washed.
What if I must get something dry cleaned?
Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit organization focused on environmental safety, suggests you:
Find out which solvents the dry cleaner uses. Don’t be shy about asking the business outright. Try to avoid cleaners who use perchloroethylene under any of its names — perc, PCE, sometimes even tetrachloroethylene — siloxane and hydrocarbon solvents.
Patronize cleaners that use liquid carbon dioxide or the wet-cleaning method.
And if your only option is a dry cleaner that uses perc, leave dry cleaned items outdoors for as long as you can after picking them up so that vapors can disperse. Don’t leave dry cleaned items in a small closed space such as your car.
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