Just going through my van and checked behind the curtains. Unfortunately I have noticed a small amount of spotting back dots on the lining fabric. This is only on the front window curtains. There is no damp (12%) is the highest reading throughout the van.
My question is can I just wash them in a 40degree wash?
The day my son got married, it really rained heavily during the morning and my new daughter-in-laws wedding dress got really muddy around the hem plus she spilt cola down it during the evening. The prices they want for 'dry clean' only wedding dresses are huge!!! So she asked me to wash it I very reluctantly agreed (and practically made her sign a waiver should it all go wrong, LOL) It was an expensive dress, white silk, layered, with a gathered bodice, about 3 underskirts and hundreds of tiny swarovskoi crystals sewn on to it...... Anyway I googled it, and to cut a long story short, most dry clean stuff is washable (as most wedding dress hire places point out,and they put all their hire dresses in washing machines)
Guided by my googling, we bought a really, really cheap white double duvet cover, I went over the muddy hem with a vanish bar, put the dress in the duvet cover and put it in the machine on a gentle warm wash, using Persil silk and wool liquid detergent. I then sat and prayed for an hour As soon as the machine stopped I got it out, out of the duvet cover and put it straight outside onto the line. It came out more or less spotless
So to me anything that says dry clean only, goes in the washing machine!!!
We washed ours with now problems. I think front curtains are prone to spotting due to moisture forming on the inside of the widows and then drying out again etc whilst van is layed up. But as others, ours washed with no problems.
I have washed jackets that said dry clean only. Just make sure you choose a very low temp (30 degrees max) and a very gentle spin. I hung them on a coat hanger in the airing cupboard and they came up like new.
I have used fungicidal spray with a cloth, then waited for them to dry, then used anti bacterial spray to get rid of it, then whilst still a bit damp I put the curtains in a 30degree slow spin wash. I must say you would be hard pressed to see where the marks were.
I am very pleased with the results.
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Topic: Mold on curtains
As soon as the machine stopped I got it out, out of the duvet cover and put it straight outside onto the line. It came out more or less spotless
