Dear Customer,
Thank you for allowing Curtain Clean to clean and groom your curtains. Now you have them returned we have some tips for their rehanging and care.
When the curtains are returned it is advisable to either rehang them as soon as practical or if storage is required remove them from the plastic wrap and either hang them over a rail or lay them flat.
Thermal backed curtains and curtains with thermal lining can be subject to the backing sticking together if stored improperly. We powder the thermal to help prevent this (with ordinary baby powder) but storing, either in plastic or with any weight on the curtains, can result in damage. We cannot be responsible for this.
Before hanging the curtains we suggest that you spray the back of the tracks and the front of the gliders with silicone spray. This is available from most hardware type stores and is in a spray can. This helps the gliders to whisk along the tracks with little or no effort and saves the pulling hard on your curtains. It can be done after the curtains have been rehung as well.
A really good thing to do is to reduce the Mould bacteria that is attached to your tracks, window frames and windows and sometimes the walls behind the curtains. Frames, particularly around the rubbers will have mould on them. You can help prevent the mould continuing and reinfecting your curtains 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.
Another tip is to ensure there is plenty of space between the curtain and the wall, especially with blackout linings. This helps the airflow and allows the curtains to cool on warm days.
Can we put something on the curtain to prevent the mould in the future?
We know of nothing that remains viable in the sunlight that will prevent mould growing. Just good housekeeping.
Rehanging.
When rehanging the curtains it pays to reverse the order of the curtains on a window where possible. Most sets are the same width so by swapping them you can hide the fade caused by the sun or expose new fabric to the sun for a longer life in your curtains. The fade is always in the center when you remove the curtains. By swapping them over, the fade goes to the outside and the good edges will come to the middle when you close the curtains.
Once hung curtains can take some days days to acclimatize to your environment. This may seem odd but remember we have washed and dried the curtains so the fibers are different and it may take some use for them to loosen up. Some curtains can appear to be shorter because of this and use will free them up.
Occasionally there will be materials that actually rise and fall according to the temperature and the humidity and that’s normal for those materials.
To assist with keeping your curtains clean it helps to occasionally vacuum the dust off the heads using a soft brush.
What causes curtains to go mouldy?
Warm houses and the warmth of the sun causes curtains to warm up and as they do so the material absorbs the moisture from the air. The curtains then behave like a incubator with the result that any bacteria on the material will thrive in the warmth and humidity around the curtain. With modern houses being kept warmer and without the benefit of cool fresh ventilation, the conditions are ideal. Moisture on the window does not cause the mould, although it will contribute to the humidity around the curtain when the sun/room warms up. Rooms with en-suites are especially susceptible because of the higher humidity in the rooms. The warmer the air the more moisture it will hold.
We hope these tips will be useful for you. If you would like further information you can email us at here at Curtain Clean and we will endeavor to answer your questions.
Thank you again for choosing Curtain Clean to clean and restore your curtains.
P.S. If you are happy with the result the ladies do like to know and please tell your friends. The ladies here enjoy getting testimonials about their work, which you can email as above.
Thank you.
P.P.S. If you have something that you are not sure of or are unhappy about then we like to know so we can do better in future.
Guarantees and Disclaimers.
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, dye run, compromised material and damaged thermal or block-out lining. 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 splashes nor the damage they can cause, prior to the curtains being sent for cleaning. Much of this damage does not become apparent until the curtain is being washed.
We will do our best to ensure your curtains are returned to the right length at which we receive them provided that sufficient hem is available to do so 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.