Solvair is Truly Green, Plus it Really Cleans

 

Image from Solvaircleaning.com 

Many months ago I blogged about dry cleaning chemicals and the need to ensure the dry cleaner you are using actually does use green and/or eco-friendly cleaning solvents (as many promote they do, but actually don’t).   Recently, Brandon from Nu Yale Cleaners tipped me off to the Solvair process which is promoted as being truly green, plus providing exceptional cleaning quality.  Well, it caught my interest.

So what is the Solvair process?  Let’s run through their cleaning process:

• Your clothes are placed in the machine.  Note they don’t need to be separated like at most places (or even like in your own washer) into different categories eg colors vs whites, etc.  You could even put a suit in with a silk shirt and tie.
• Then an “environmentally friendly cleaning liquid” (although I didn’t catch what exactly it was), is used to remove stains and dirt.  The cleaning liquid is drained, purified and reused after use…well that’s good.
• Now comes the drying process.  Unlike most dryers that dry using heat, the Solvair process uses a pressurization process and liquid CO2 (you know, like what gives soda their bubbles) to rinse off the cleaning liquid.
• Basically the Solvair machine is pressurized and uses reclaimed CO2 (they state the machine doesn’t create new CO2) to attract the cleaning liquid and remove it from the clothes.  At the end of the drying process, the pressure in the machine is reduced until the CO2 goes from a liquid to a gas resulting in completely and instantly drying the clothes.  Wow!
• As a result you end up with clean, bright, odor-free and dry clothes.

I think the main thing I like about this whole process is it isn’t just a new cleaning solvent….it’s a whole new greener system.  It uses biodegradable cleaning products, re-uses the CO2 so it isn’t generating more greenhouse gases and recycles the liquid, CO2 and water as part of the process.  That sounds pretty good.

Maybe one day they’ll even make a car that can recycle it’s own CO2 emissions too.  Of course I guess you can always get a hybrid, electric car or use a proven fuel additive while you wait for that to happen.  But seriously, if it is as green as it seems, plus cleans the clothes as well as they state, it sounds like a winner.  Now they just need to get more dry cleaners to use the system.