1 .Will my curtains shrink?
Many curtain materials will shrink in both hot and cold water. The same materials will also shrink during dry cleaning. At Curtain Clean we measure your long curtains for length and once they have been washed and dried we then re-hem the curtains back to the original length provided that there is sufficient hem allowance to do so.
2 .Can you get all the mould out?
On most fabrics we can, but occasionally on thermal backed curtains and Roman Blinds,because of the dyes used in the fabrics, we will only be able to fade the mould stain, although the curtains will be clean. On normal lined curtains the lining will always be ok. Until we test a piece of the material in the curtain we don’t know if a curtain is made of a non colour fast material. All curtains are tested before cleaning.
The cleaning process will sanitize the fabric so any bacteria on the fabric will be neutralized.
3. Dry Cleaning or washing? Which is best?
Many fabric labels say dry clean. But, in our experience this means little. We wash all curtain fabrics with care. There is a big difference in the cleaning process. We wash the dirt and grime out of the fabric whereas Dry Cleaning just evens it out. We see many disappointed people who have had their curtains dry cleaned only to find that the result is less than satisfactory. Dry cleaning will not remove the Mould stains on the fabric.
4. Do you clean on site?
No. We clean not steam your curtains. We wash the curtains so that all the curtain including the heads and ruffles are properly cleaned. Steaming the curtains doesn’t remove all the dirt and grime and “cooks” some of that back to the fabric depending on the grime.e.g cooking oils.
5. Does cleaning affect the colours?
We find generally the whites are whiter and colours brighter.
6. How long does it take?
You should allow four to five working days from receipt of the curtains at our workshop. We can advise on timing at the time.
7. Can I use a household cleaner on the mould on my curtains?
There are two major problems with doing that. Many of these sprays contain chemicals that will remove the colour from the material. Long term damage can result from the spray being left to dry and not being washed out of the fabric with the result the fabric can rot. An example of colour loss is here.
8. Can you remove cat spray, dog urine, wine stains, greasy hand marks, nicotine, smoke smell from a fire, road film, and kitchen grease?
Yes. We can also remove many other stains. (please ask) It is helpful to know what has caused the stains. We cannot reinstate patches of colour where the colour has been destroyed by the offending material. We can also deodorize the curtains where they have been tainted by smells such as fire or cooking smells.
9. What curtains should I clean?
Because all curtains gather dust etc. we find it is usual to clean all the curtains in a room. There will be a discernible difference between clean and not clean.
10. How old can the curtains be?
There is no age limit and we have cleaned curtains that were well over 40 years old. Provided the material still has integrity to it then we can wash them.
11. How big can the curtains be?
At Curtain Clean we can handle curtains up to 5.5 meters high and 6.0 meters wide in a normal day. For curtain sizes greater than that please contact us.
12. What causes curtains to go mouldy?
The warmth of the sun causes curtains to warm up and to act like a glass house with the result that any bacteria on the material will thrive in the warmth and humidity around the curtain. Moisture on the window does not cause the mould, although it will contribute to the warmth and humidity around the curtain when the sun heats it up. See here.
13. Can we put something on the curtain to prevent the mould in the future?
No, there are products that claim to do this but they only delay the mould and once it gets into the fabric make it a lot harder to clean. You can help prevent the mould by thoroughly cleaning the windows and frames and then going over the cleaned surfaces with Janola bleach or a similar product. Care should be taken not to get these products on curtains or carpets, as damage may result. See here. Keeping the sun off the curtains and allowing plenty of air space behind the curtains will help.
14. Do you repair curtains?
Yes we do. Minor repairs are taken care of as part of our cleaning and curtain care process. Major repairs are priced separately, please ask. If a curtain is found to be in need of major repair we will always contact you first.
We can also alter your curtains and make replacement linings.
For more information about our Repair and Alteration Service, please go here.
15. Do you restring Roman and Austrian Blinds?
Yes we do. Often when doing this we find it necessary to replace the eyelets that the strings run through as the become rusty and chew the strings out.
16. Do you clean roller blinds, venetian blinds and vertical blinds?
Yes we do.
Venetians Go here for information.
Vertical blinds Go here for information.
Roller Blinds Go here for information.
17. Do you clean Swags and Valances?
Yes we do. Because they vary so much in construction we need to price these separately.
18. Do you clean other types of window treatments?
There is a wide variety of window treatments used and we can clean most of them. If you are unable to find your window treatment on this site then please email us and ask us about the cleaning of the product. Please note we do not give out cleaning advice.
19. Guarantees.
Because we are dealing with so many and varied fabrics and those fabrics have been exposed to all sorts of environmental situations such as sun damage, sometimes for many years, it is not possible to give any guarantees about shrinkage, stretching, dye loss/colour loss and damaged thermal. These things are inherent in the fabric used for the curtains.
We cannot guarantee to remove all stains, especially permanent stains such as paint, but we will do our best to do so.
We cannot take responsibility for damage caused by application of various cleaning products, spillages of drinks or other splashings nor the damage they can cause, prior to the curtains being sent for cleaning.
We will do our best to ensure your curtains are returned to the right length at which we receive them unless notified that they need to be altered.
The staff at Curtain Clean are well trained in all aspects of the curtain cleaning process and are trained to assess the requirements for all types of materials. Additionally we test all fabrics so that we can determine types of cleaners that can or cannot be used on them.
While we take utmost care we cannot always make your curtains new again. We will give it a good try.
Our Mission is to clean your curtains and return them to you looking the best we can make them at a reasonable cost.
If you have other questions not covered here then please contact us by using this contact form or Ph. 0800 5790501
or email: Curtain Clean