Conditioning the drycleaning fluid
rycleaning suede,
leather and fur items can be as easy and simple as drycleaning
cloth items by chemically conditioning the perc, petroleum or
Exxon 2000 drycleaning fluids with an additive like the
Royaltone detergent plus conditioner.
By adding a detergent plus conditioner in
the recommended concentration to the drycleaning fluid to
chemically condition it, the color and suppleness of suedes,
leathers, furs and trim on cloth can be protected and preserved
so that no color loss or stiffness will occur in the
drycleaning leather procedure.
 | ||
The conditioned drycleaning fluid that
comes in contact with the skins and furs being cleaned must
contain the proper percentage charge or concentration of the
detergent plus conditioner.
Specifically, light colored suedes and
leathers and light textured furs like rabbit require a lower
concentration of the detergent plus conditioner, while dark and
bright colored skins and heavy textured furs (all except
rabbit) require a higher concentration.
Light colored suedes and leathers include
beige, tan, oyster gray and light pastels. Dark and bright
colored suedes and leathers include black, blue, brown, red,
green, purple, maroon, orange and rust.
The minimum concentration of the detergent
plus conditioner required for dark and bright colors is six
percent of the drycleaning fluid. This means that every gallon
of perc or petroleum drycleaning fluid that touches the dark
and bright colored suedes or leathers must contain at least
7.68 ounces of the detergent plus conditioner to protect the
color and prevent dye bleeding and stiffening of the skin.
This concentration can significantly
exceed six percent with no adverse effect. However, if the
concentration falls below the minimum six percent charge, color
loss and stiffening will begin to occur and will become more
pronounced as the concentration falls to lower values.
The minimum concentration of the detergent
plus conditioner for light colored suedes and leather is two
percent. That means that every gallon of perc or solvent
drycleaning fluid that comes in contact with the skins must
contain at least 2.56 ounces of the detergent plus conditioner.
This concentration can exceed two percent
but must not be lower or stiffening and drying out of the skin
will occur. However, any color of suede, leather or trimmed
cloth can be cleaned in drycleaning fluid containing a six
percent concentration of the detergent plus conditioner.
This gives great flexibility to the
operator. It also makes it possible to successfully clean
multi-colored suede or leather garments, where the
concentration of the detergent plus conditioner required is
determined by the darkest colored panel on the multi-colored or
cloth trimmed item.
Combinations of suede, leather, fur and
cloth
A popular trend is to trim cloth garments
with suede or leather. The outfit may consist of two or three
pieces with only one of the pieces trimmed in leather or suede.
The customer may bring only the suede or leather trimmed piece
for leather drycleaning.
As in regular drycleaning, it is not good
practice to run only one piece of a multi-piece outfit because
of the possibility of a slight change in the color due to the
variations in drycleaning fluid conditions that occur from one
load to another.
However, with the modern detergent plus
process of leather cleaning, which contains no fatty acid fat
liquors and prevents color bleed by chemically conditioning the
cleaning fluid, the result of not cleaning all of the pieces of
the multi-piece outfit at the same time will be superior to
that experienced in regular drycleaning.
Just as in regular cleaning it is good
practice to (1) clean all pieces of the multi-piece suede
and/or leather outfit at the same time if they are to match in
color after being leather cleaned; and (2) clean all pieces of
a multi-piece suede and leather trimmed cloth outfit in the
detergent plus conditioner leather cleaning system to eliminate
redeposition of fatty acid animal or vegetable fat oils and dye
bleed from the leather.
Drycleaning items made of combinations of
suede, leather fur and cloth can be as easy as drycleaning
cloth items. Just add the recommended concentration of the
detergent plus conditioner to the drycleaning fluid to
stabilize the colors and to preserve the suppleness of the
suede, leather or fur trim portions of the cloth items being
cleaned.
In addition, there will be no fatty acids
to redeposit on the cloth. As a result, all combinations of
suede, leather or fur on cloth items can be drycleaned in the
same way as cloth items are drycleaned.
However, if the leather cleaning process
is an archaic fat liquor high fatty acid animal or vegetable
fat system, the result of not cleaning all of the pieces of the
multiple-piece outfit at the same time will produce a very
noticeable change in color when the pieces are compared. In
fact, the change in color of the cloth portions of the outfit
will be significant even if all pieces are cleaned together in
a fat liquor leather cleaning system.
The reason for this is that the vegetable
or animal fat oil system utilizes fatty acid oils in the
drycleaning fluid. This high level of fatty acid, along with
the dye loss from the leather that occurs in the wheel in this
archaic system creates a different color in the cloth portions
of the outfit due to redeposition of fatty acids and dye bleed
non-volatile residues. The lighter the color of the cloth and
the darker the color of the suede or leather trim, the more
marked is the change in the color of the cloth portion of
garment in such a system.
The bottom line is that (1) all pieces of
the multi-piece suede and/or leather outfit should be cleaned
at the same time if they are to match in color after being
leather cleaned and (2) all pieces of a multi-piece suede and
leather trimmed cloth outfit should be cleaned in the detergent
plus leather cleaning system to eliminate redeposition of fatty
acid animal fat or vegetable fat oils and dyes bleeding from
the leather. Drycleaning items made of combinations of suede,
leather fur and cloth can be drycleaned as easy as drycleaning
cloth items when the detergent plus conditioner is added to the
drycleaning fluid. The concept and procedure is the same as
that followed for cleaning items made completely of suede.
Frank Lucenta is president of Royaltone
Co., Inc., a firm that manufacturers the products he developed
to make it possible for any cleaner to safely and profitably
dryclean, wetclean and finish any suede, leather, fur and
trimmed cloth garment. He also wrote related instruction books
that document the process, entitled “Handling Leather and
Suede” and “Cleaning and Finishing Leather and
Suede.” He also teaches small groups of plant owners and
managers how to identify, accept, spot, dryclean and wetclean,
press and recolor suedes, leathers, and furs using his
Royaltone procedures and products. The next Royaltone Leather
training session is scheduled for June 10-11 and Sept. 9-10 at
the Royaltone Suedemate Leather Cleaning Center in Tulsa, OK.
For more information on training sessions or on spotting charts
in either English or Korean, call (800) 331-5506, (918)
622-6677, fax (918) 665-6017, or e-mail frank@royaltone.com. Information is also available on the Royaltone
web site, www.royaltone.com.
 |