How Much Does Dry Cleaning Cost?

Even with the best washing machine in your home, more often than not, you will find yourself needing dry-cleaning services for your most delicate fabrics. Although the upfront cost of dry cleaning is not much, it can quickly pile up and take a significant chunk of your budget. That’s why you need to know how much you’re going to pay for dry cleaning services and possible methods to cut down on the cost where possible.

In this quick and short blog, you will get to know the factors that affect the cost of dry cleaning and what you can do about it. How Long Does Dry Cleaning Take?

What’s Dry Cleaning?

While regular cleaning involves using water and soap to remove stains, dry cleaning uses a chemical solvent and no water to clean clothes and other items around the house. Contrary to popular opinion, dry cleaning still uses fluids, but not water.

After soaking and cleaning in the solvent, the solvent is extracted from the garments and placed in a dryer.

What Can Affect the Cost of  Dry Cleaning?

Now that you know what dry cleaning entails, it’s also essential to understand why the costs might differ each time you visit the dry cleaner.

Business Overheads

One of the leading factors of varying costs of dry cleaning is the running cost of the business. The dry cleaner has to buy the chemicals, pay rent and licenses, and also pay the employees. Depending on your locality, the operating costs for the business can be high or low. It plays a significant role in how much you pay to have your clothes dry cleaned.

Type of Chemicals Used

In the past, dry cleaners have used chemicals and solvents that are highly flammable, and even some are toxic. However, some are switching to eco-friendly products either out of their goodwill or as a requirement by the state.

Regardless of the reason, eco-friendly dry cleaning products are more expensive. That also means you pay more if your clothes are dry cleaned by a business that uses eco-friendly products or has adopted green practices.

Type of Service

Some dry cleaners have a premium or express service. The express service is perfect for customers who cant wait long. It’s also perfect for rush orders like a last-minute tuxedo cleaning.

In most cases, you should have your garments ready on the same day after a few hours. This convenience comes with a price tag. On average, you could pay up to three times the standard rate if you decide to go for the express services.

There are also premium services offered by some dry cleaners. These provide a variety of benefits to the customer, which include a multi-stage cleaning process, hand finishing, minor repairs, and even insurance coverage for those utterly essential garments.

Premium services are perfect when you’re taking your most prized garments like wedding dresses, tuxedo, or designer clothes to the dry cleaner. Expectedly, the premium service also comes with a premium price tag to match.

Material and Type of Garments

Some garments are easier to handle than others. Others require meticulous handling and precise cleaning to avoid disaster. Other household items like duvets take up more space and reduce the load in the dry cleaning machines. Each of these has to be considered carefully when the dry cleaner is setting up your bill.

Can I Save Money on My Dry Cleaning?

After careful consideration, you must have noticed how expensive dry cleaning can be. The truth is, it’s almost impossible to do without dry cleaning and buying the equipment for use in your home is not practical.

But, there are a few tips you can implement that will help you save money without compromising your clean and sharp look.

Conclusion

The burden of dry cleaning doesn’t have to wear you down. There are easy tips and tricks you can use to minimize the budget and understanding the different costs also goes a long way in helping you save money.

Don’t forget! You don’t always have to take all your clothes to the dry cleaning. If you can throw it in your washing machine or hand wash, do that. Only use the drycleaner for clothes with labels that recommend dry cleaning.