How Steam Ironing Can Prolong the Life of Your Garments?

The concept of wearing clothes to protect the human body from varied weather conditions is as old as mankind. Clothes offer protection but also impose certain constraints. Garment construction, suitability, recluse and settlement, and appearance of garments are essential for a person and play a vital role in day to day life. Garments require care to uphold hygiene, to be adequately fitting and as an aesthetic additional factor must be looked after by the wearers. Maintenance of garments includes washing, cleaning, ironing, steaming, unfolding, mending, and repair [1].

Garments become wrinkled and need ironing after washing. Conventional ironing is a tedious job and cannot be undertaken to remove wrinkles from garments before wearing by each of the family members. Steam ironing is a new type of ironing acquired by some of the housewives. In this research project, a comparison study on the performance of steam ironing and conventional dry ironing in ironing cotton garments was undertaken. Results of the study indicate that garments can be ironed faster with steam ironing as a potential alternative in wielding ironing operations. Further, steam ironing of garments is found to be best in condition for maintaining garment attributes and prolonging garment life.

Background and Significance

The modern age has gifted humans with advancements that span from the hallways of education to the heights of architecture. Inside of every man or woman’s house lies a pristine collection of garments, which eventually have to be ironed, in order to keep them looking good. But as time goes on, even the most pristine garments eventually wilt or fade, making them lose their touch. Nevertheless, in this narrative on the scientific aspect of ironing, it will be discussed the impact of steam ironing on prolonging the life of garments.

Ironing is a process that involves heating and pressing the cloth fabric of garments with the sole intention of removing creases, thus making them look pristine again. Ironers use numerous machines to iron garments, the most common includes the electric flat iron or press iron, which uses heat to remove creases. The pressing process may involve wetting the garments with spray water before application of the hot iron. More humid conditions are said to facilitate the removal of creases. Nevertheless, the study involves the investigation of effects of steam ironing and ironing on garment shrinkage and thus breathability.

Damaged garments due to dye shade variations are said to have improper finishing, which is the treatment given to garments after dyeing to eliminate unwanted chemical effects. However, shade variations during proper finishing can be due to improper dyeing. Many garment finishing and dyeing processes damage the dye of garments. Investigating the impact of such processes on the alteration of garment fabric properties may help in improving the dyeing and finishing stages of garments, thus helping the garment industry as a whole. A garment is made of a fabric of complex structure that determines the properties of the garment.

A woven fabric is made of interlacing of yarns running in two directions (warp and weft). A knitted fabric is made of interlocking of loops of yarns in any direction or both. Irrespective of the manufacturing process, a fabric is designed and constructed from the yarn, which themselves are composed of fibers. Dent or reed, the number of threads in a cloth, is expressed per 1-inch width, also referred to as the picks or ends per inch. This can be used to calculate the porosity or air permeability of a fabric which determines its breathability, as well as other fabric property calculations such as yarn count, thickness and weight.

Understanding Garment Fibers and Fabrics

An understanding of the different fibers and fabrics used in garments is valuable, both in understanding what is being discussed in terms of steaming, and in providing a general education on the things that people wear. There are four basic fibers in widespread use today; they are cotton, wool, silk, and synthetic. Cotton fibers are composed of cellulose. Cotton comes from the cotton plant. Cotton fabrics or garments are cool, absorbent, comfortable, and easily washed. The chief disadvantages in cotton are wrinkling and soiling. A cotton fiber is also combined with others to produce a cotton blend, a fabric that requires special attention. Wool fibers are composed of keratin. Wool fabrics come from the fleece of sheep or from the fur of other animals; these fibers are longer and coarser than others. The fibers are knitted or woven into scarves, sweaters, coats, and suits. Wool is a warm, resilient, durable, and flame-resistant fiber with anti-static properties [2]. The chief disadvantages in wool are soiling and shrinkage. A wool fiber is also combined with others to produce a wool blend, a fabric that requires special attention.

Silk fibers are composed of protein. Silk fabric comes from the cocoon of a silk worm. Silk is light and lustrous in appearance. The silk fabric drapes well and takes color beautifully. The silk garments produced are blouses, dresses, and evening dresses, among others. The chief disadvantages in silk are weakness, soil build-up, and abrasion. A silk fiber is often combined with others to produce a silk blend, a fabric that requires special attention. Synthetic fiber is made from man-made substances such as oil or coal products. Fibers made in this way are strong, resistant to mildew, moths, and insects, crease-resistant, flame-resistant, and resilient [1]. However, they lack the breathable quality of natural fiber and some are prone to accumulate static electricity. Synthetic fibers are often combined with one or more of the natural fibers to produce a fabric that requires special attention as well.

Types of Fibers and Fabrics

Fabrics used in garments can be classified based on fiber content. Broadly, fabrics can be classified as 100% cotton, cotton rich (more than 60% cotton but less than 100% cotton), polyester rich (more than 60% polyester but less than 100% polyester), 100% polyester, blended fabrics with cotton and polyester (mixture of cotton and polyester fabrics in various proportions), and poly/viscose fabrics (mixture of polyester and viscose fabrics in various proportions). Fibers used to make fabrics can be classified into natural fiber (cotton, linen, jute, silk, wool, etc.) and man-made fiber (polyester, viscose, nylon, acrylic, etc.) [2].

The nature of the fiber and fabric decides the steam ironing effect on the garment life. 100% cotton and cotton-rich fabrics are more prone to damage due to steam ironing compared to polyester-rich fabrics and 100% polyester fabrics. Garments made from cotton and cotton-rich fabrics consider a higher risk in garment life than those made from polyester-rich fabrics, 100% polyester fabrics, blended fabrics, and poly/viscose fabrics. On the contrary, polyester-rich fabrics, 100% polyester fabrics, blended fabrics, and poly/viscose fabrics are more prone to damage than garment life due to washing than garments made from cotton and cotton-rich fabrics. Thus, the type of fiber and fabric decides the extent of risk in the garment life due to steam ironing and washing.

Mechanics of Steam Ironing

Steam ironing has become popular among the elite, and the majority of people in India do it at least occasionally. But few people understand its technical details. Steam is water vapor. It is in a gaseous state and contains latent heat. When steam comes into contact with a cold body, it gets condensed and turns into water, releasing heat in the process, which raises the temperature of the cold body. There are two kinds of heat: the calorific heat gained by the cold body and the latent heat. Steam ironing adequately utilizes both to remove wrinkles from garments.

In ironing, all the wrinkles from garments are turned into two-dimensional sights. The fated wrinkles should be drawn, stretched, and pressed flat. The finer the wrinkles, the more carefully the above operations should be performed. There are three more or less independent motions in steam ironing for this purpose. The body of the garment is moved in two orthogonal directions along which its wrinkles would be turned into two-dimensional sights and these motions are easily performed by a human. The smooth heated soleplate of the steam iron provides the other motion with which the body is pressed straight [2].

How Steam Irons Work?

The steam ironing process combines heat, moisture, and pressure with a special surface treatment to restore clothes to their original appearance. Research has shown that steam ironing has a major effect on the life expectancy of garments, primarily through the density, thickness, and appearance of garments. In order to understand steam ironing’s effect on garments and fiber properties, it is important to understand steam ironing’s basic principles and equipment. A steam iron comprises three main components: a heater, a boiler, and a soleplate. Each is described briefly below.

Firstly, a steam iron heater heats steam in the boiler, creating a pressure difference between the interior and exterior of the boiler. “What is a boiler?” is a common question, with the response being that it is a container that holds boiling water. Hot, pressurized steam escapes the boiler and enters steam channels in the soleplate. These steam channels direct the hot steam under pressure through the holes in the soleplate, which are the visible side of the steam channels. The steam emerges as a jet from the holes in the soleplate, satisfying the same principle used to generate a fountain of water through holes in a pipe.

Secondly, the steam produced in the soleplate flushes through the soleplate in a time constant equivalent to about seconds prior to direct contact with the fabric. During this time, the steam escapes the holes of the soleplate, cooling and condensing. The condense caused by heat transfer from the soleplate cools is a “wet” steam, the temperature being less than the saturation temperature corresponding to the operating pressure in the steam channels. Consequently, this wet steam further condenses out, and liquid water flows to the holes in the soleplate, moistening the fabrics.

Thirdly, the condensing flow is affected by the pipe’s arch effect, as the curvature reversal enhances the flow’s inertial weight, side flow, and energy loss. Properties such as the vapor condensation rate, current density, and hole constrictions are considered critical in describing the heat transfer process.

Benefits of Steam Ironing

Steam ironing is an important step in garment care, which is well-known by housewives. Steam ironing can remove wrinkles in the garments, in addition to giving shine. Sanitization from the steam itself is another factor that cannot be ignored. On the whole, steam ironing has a positive effect on prolonging garment life.

A simple experiment was conducted to observe the effect of steam ironing on the garments. Sample shirts of the same items (with the same quality, color, stitching, shade, etc.) were selected and divided into two groups. One group was subjected to routine wash and steam iron and the other group was washed and dried only. Both groups of samples were then exposed to different effects like sunlight, dust, perspiration, etc., [1]. Gradually the effect of specimen (only washed and dried) samples was greater than the effect on the specimen samples which were washed and steam ironed. After a particular time span, the specimen samples (only washed and dried) became unserviceable whereas the others are totally free from any defects. For any kind of garments washing and ironing is an essential part and considered as a routine job. In Bangladesh, steam ironing can be considered as a new topic especially in this context.

Wrinkle Removal

Steam ironing is a common practice in garment care that is often regarded as a simple tool for wrinkle removal. However, a close examination reveals that steam ironing contributes to the preservation of a garment’s pristine appearance and prolongs its life. Wrinkle removal is the primary role of steam ironing, yet more than just flattening the fabric, it is important to understand how steam ironing works. A steam iron is equipped with a water tank and nozzle that sprays vaporized water onto the fabric [1]. The water vapor is able to permeate into the fabric because it is in a gaseous state, unlike liquid water. As a result, treating the fabric with steam can involve larger amounts of water without leaving it too damp. If the dampness dries out quickly, the wrinkle can be removed successfully. Although water vapor can be generated using other approaches, the common use of a steam iron in daily life is because it is easy to operate and effective in wrinkle removal.

Creasing, which is the opposite of flattening, can be caused by unbalanced stress on the fabric during usage, such as sitting, bending, or armpit action. These actions generate larger stress on the parts of the fabric that become wrinkled, and the original state without the force is recovered when these stresses are released. When the stress is stable, the fabric remains wrinkled. This stable system is equivalent to a free energy minimum position, and thus the wrinkle persists. The progression of the crease to a heavier condition is not reversible in common fabric. Using steam ironing to straighten the fabric actually requires extra work on the state in equilibrium, which increases the free energy of the system. The energy supplied to the fabric should be larger than a threshold value, and this value can be lowered either by treating the fabric with water or by using heat.

The effect of water is straightforward for fabrics made of hydrophilic materials, such as cotton and linen, as the wrinkle removal is more effective when wet. It is less obvious that water would work for synthetic fabrics like polyester, which is hydrophobic. In fact, the wrinkle recovery of polyester can be greatly improved by using the steam iron, which is neglected in the prior studies. It is shown that the effectiveness of steaming is also due to the vaporization of water within the fabric layer. The success of steam ironing lies in that this process supplies both heat and moisture to the fabric in a simple but efficient way. The involvement of both dampness and heat suggests that there is an optimum condition for successful wrinkle removal, which invalidates many wrong practices in daily life.

Sanitization and Odor Removal

Steam ironing is a popular technique used to remove wrinkles, freshen, and sanitize garments. However, there is still a lack of scientific data on how much this technique contributes to prolonging the life of garments. A quick investigation into the common usages of steam ironing is carried out first, followed by several short studies to quantify several side effects of steam ironing. The side effects selected for this study are the removal of residual chemicals from washing, the sanitization of garments, and the removal of odors. These side effects are chosen based on their direct effects on the longevity of garments. Other side effects that might be interesting include the redesign of garments, improvement of the hand feel of fabrics, and dyeing or re-coloring garments [3].

Aging in textiles is primarily a result of deterioration in hygiene and/or odor control. Research shows that repeated washings and/or use of too low a temperature lead to a gradual increase of growth in bacteria and fungi. Both of these microorganisms may grow on deposits built up on clothing from sweat, skin cells, oily and greasy compounds, soil, and others that were not sufficiently removed during washing. When present in high enough quantities, bacteria and fungi become pathogenic and lead to infections in the skin. The build-up of such residues also enhances the development of certain odors that take a long time to come off with regular washing [4].

Precautions and Best Practices

Low-cotton fabrics (with polyester content) should be started at the low setting, silk fabrics next, and high-cotton fabrics last. When ironing, lower the ironing board to a comfortable height to prevent upper back, neck and shoulder fatigue. Posture is important for good ironing. To train for correct posture, stand with feet slightly apart, knees straight and comfortably, belly tight, and shoulders back and down. This will give good balance and allow freedom of movement [5].

Temperature Settings: 1. Synthetics (Polyester, rayons and other poly-blends) Melt / ruin easily. Use LOW (Synthetic Setting). If scorching occurs: 1. Hold iron a bit higher than fabric. 2. Go slowly. 3. Move out. If polyester has developed white patches, steaming through paper towel may help. Prevent by: 1. Pre-ironing garment at time of purchase. 2. Remove before it’s dry. 3. Steam setting will ruin.

2. Silk and Silk Blends Can scorch and burn easily. Use LOW (Silk Setting). If scorching occurs: 1. Dampening & rolling can help. 2. Steam through towel. Prevent by: 1. Steam setting will ruin.
3. Wool Knits Use LOW / MED. setting (Wool Blend Setting). If scorching occurs: 1. Steam through towel. 2. Should not show scorch. Prevent by: 1. Avoid contact with iron.
4. Wool and Wool Blends Need moisture and hot air. Use MED (Wool Setting).
5. 100 % Cotton, Blue Jeans & Denim Use HIGH (Cotton Setting). 6. Always go dry; steam will ruin (but will not scorch).

Proper Temperature Settings

A steam iron is easy to use for most people. Nowadays, the steam iron is a household appliance in every family. A few simple rules for the proper use of the steam iron could enhance the brilliance of the fabrics and prolong the life of garments. Every fabric has a specific heat settings because it is made of different kinds of fibers. The basic guidelines for temperature settings: setting 1 is for nylon, acrylic and silk; setting 2 is for polyester, olon, Dacron, and Terylene; setting 3 is for wool; setting 4 is for cotton; setting 5 is for linen [2]. High temperature should not be used for any fabric, which is not recommended, because it will shine, burn, and destroy the fabric. It is best to use a low temperature to test the fabric and see if it has a reaction to heat. If it does not have a reaction, it is safe to use a higher temperature. Fabrics should be steamed carefully and not hold the steam iron too close to any part of the fabric for more than a second.

 

Wrapping It Up and Looking Ahead

This study shows how steam ironing can be a better way to care for your clothes compared to traditional ironing. Using steam irons not only makes it easier to get rid of wrinkles but also helps your clothes last longer by maintaining their quality after washing. In the future, more research could explore how steam ironing works on different types of fabrics and stains, potentially making it even more effective.

Steam ironing isn’t just useful at home; it’s also becoming important in the industry for handling clothes at high temperatures and pressure. By understanding how steam ironing works, we can make better tools and techniques to ensure that your clothes always look their best. As research continues, we’ll learn more about how to improve steam ironing and use it to keep garments in top shape, both at home and in professional settings.

 

Hate Ironing or Simply Don’t Have the Time? Let So Fresh Dry Cleaners Take Care of It!

In the fast-paced world we live in, finding the time to iron your clothes can be a real challenge. Whether it’s juggling work, family, or other responsibilities, ironing often ends up being the last thing you want to do—or even have time for. And let’s face it, for many of us, the very thought of ironing can be daunting. The endless cycle of pressing, folding, and trying to get those stubborn wrinkles out can turn into a time-consuming and tedious task. But don’t worry! So Fresh Dry Cleaners is here to rescue you from the drudgery of ironing. Our team of professionals uses state-of-the-art steam ironing technology to ensure your clothes not only look crisp and fresh but also have their lifespan extended through proper care. We understand that your time is valuable, so why not leave the ironing to the experts? At So Fresh Dry Cleaners, we take the hassle out of garment care, allowing you to focus on the things that truly matter. Whether it’s a special occasion outfit, your everyday workwear, or those delicate fabrics that need extra attention, we’ve got you covered. Let us handle the wrinkles while you enjoy a perfectly polished look every time. So, if you dread the thought of ironing or simply can’t fit it into your busy schedule, let So Fresh Dry Cleaners take the burden off your shoulders. With our meticulous attention to detail and commitment to quality, you’ll wonder why you ever bothered ironing at home in the first place!

 

References:

[1] N. Dudley, “Our Ironing : Extension Circular 11-09-2,” 1951. [PDF]

[2] T. Thompson, “HEG77-76 Pressing Methods (Revised April 1981),” 1977. [PDF]

[3] B. Neral, S. Gorgieva, and M. Kurečič, “Decontamination Efficiency of Thermal, Photothermal, Microwave, and Steam Treatments for Biocontaminated Household Textiles,” 2022. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

[4] S. E. Abney, M. Khalid Ijaz, J. McKinney, and C. P. Gerba, “Laundry Hygiene and Odor Control: State of the Science,” 2021. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

[5] N. Dudley, “Our Ironing : Extension Circular 11-09-2,” 1951. [PDF]

[6] H. Goworek, L. Oxborrow, S. Claxton, T. H. Cooper et al., “Managing sustainability in the fashion business: challenges in product development for clothing longevity in the UK,” 2020. [PDF]