Your Dry Cleaning

For those of us lacking domestic staff or the time to wash delicates by hand, dry cleaning is a necessity of modern life. But nowadays, it doesn't have to be a necessary evil: Although 85% of  U.S. drycleaners still utilize the highly toxic solvent known as perchloroethene (or "perc"), greener choices are becoming readily available, especially since the state of California, ever the national leader in environmental health legislation, has ordered perc to be phased out by 2023.

What exactly is wrong with perc? It's a volatile organic chemical, meaning it vaporizes readily and is easily inhaled. Perc fumes are responsible for the pungent, sickly sweet smell that greets you when you enter a conventional drycleaner's or walk past an outdoor vent. Symptoms of perc exposure can include dizziness, headaches, nausea, and skin and lung irritation, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The chemical has been known to cause cancer in lab animals, and studies of dry-cleaning workers suggest perc poses a higher risk of some cancers. The International Agency for Research on Cancer lists perc as a "probable human carcinogen," and California classifies it as a chemical known to cause cancer.

The insidious thing about perc: This volatile chemical is found in our air and drinking water nationwide, according to the EPA. Even if you've never visit a dry cleaner's, you're probably getting a low dose of perc. "If you work in or live next to a dry-cleaning facility, you might be exposed to higher levels and may have cause for concern," states the EPA in a fact sheet. If you smell perc-y fumes in your home or workplace, the dry cleaner may not be following regulations; call your city or state's health department to request an inspection, or contact your state or regional Public Interest Research Group.

5 Greener Dry-Cleaning Choices

1. Cold-water washing by hand or on delicate cycle

One of the safest, greenest alternatives is washing delicates carefully at home—it's the cheapest option, too, barring clothes-destroying disasters. We've successfully washed some clothes labeled "dry clean only" in our washing machine on the cold water, delicate cycle. It works great for woolens and cashmere (if you reshape sweaters, say, and dry them flat on towels).

Although Consumer Reports offers home-washing tips for practically everything, it does advise dry cleaning certain ultra-sensitive fibers such as rayon/viscose, unless the care label specifically permits washing. Several shrunken and shredded dresses later, including a gold brocade (what were we thinking? We weren't…), we decided that enough was enough. Sometimes you gotta go to a pro.

What follows is a list of alternative commercial methods, starting with the greenest and least toxic kinds. While all of these alternative methods are less toxic than perc, some are still far from green or healthy. And, if you want dry cleaning that's healthier for you and the planet, don't fall for "organic," "earth-friendly," and other "green" claims. Such terms are meaningless because they're unregulated, according to Consumer Reports' Greener Choices website.

2. Wet Cleaning

The EPA recommends wet cleaning, which uses water and mild detergent, as the most nontoxic and green cleaning choice.  "Wet cleaning is the safest and least expensive method," says Rick Hind, legislative director of Greenpeace, who has researched the perils of perc and campaigned for the conversion of traditional dry-cleaning shops to wet cleaning.

Although wet cleaning used to have a reputation for shrinking and pilling, as well as causing the collapse of "structured" garments such as suit jackets with shoulder pads, it can usually handle anything labeled "dry clean only," according to Thomas C. Davis, Jr., proprietor of Greensleeves Garment Care in Glen Cove, New York.

Although Davis' business is a member of the Green Earth Cleaning network, which uses silicone as a solvent (see below), he, like a growing number of conventional and alternative shops, also offers wet cleaning, which uses a separate set of machines. "It's not as simple as dry cleaning; you have to know what you're doing," says Davis, who took a wet-cleaning course at the National Cleaners Association. "The temperature of the water and the agitation of the machine has to be precisely controlled for the type of garment, and the detergent is a mild soap that's pH-controlled. The drying process also has to be precise," Davis says, predicting that, once people better understand it, "wet cleaning will probably take over in the future."