CARA'S TIPSCare labels (ISO 3758), laundry, stain removal, dry cleaning, repair, renovation, remodelling and storage
WAECNECO
What the syllabus asks
WAEC: Care and maintenance of clothes: care labels; stains (types, agents, removal); laundry (steps, washing cotton, linen, wool); dry cleaning (home sponging, commercial); repair and customising (mending, renovation, remodelling); storage and packing. Extends he9.
NECO: Care and maintenance of clothes: care labels; stains (types, agents, removal); laundry (steps, washing cotton, linen, wool); dry cleaning (home sponging, commercial); repair and customising (mending, renovation, remodelling); storage and packing. Extends he9.
What you will learn
- Interpret care labels and symbols.
- Describe the steps in laundry.
- Wash cotton, linen, wool, silk and synthetics correctly.
- Classify stains and stain removers.
- Remove common stains safely.
- Describe home and commercial dry cleaning.
- Repair, renovate and remodel garments.
- Store and pack clothes correctly.
Key points
- Read care labels before buying and washing.
- Symbols: tub, triangle, square, iron dots, circle.
- Laundry steps from sorting to storage.
- Cotton/linen: hot, sun; coloured: cool, shade, inside out.
- Wool: lukewarm, squeeze, dry flat; silk: gentle, shade.
- Stain classes and suitable removers.
- Protein stains: cold water first.
- Dry cleaning: home sponging safely; commercial with solvents.
- Repair: mend, darn, patch; renovate and remodel.
- Store clean, dry, mended; pack heavy items at bottom.
Start here: Care labels
A care label is a permanent label sewn into a garment or household textile giving instructions for washing, bleaching, drying, ironing and professional cleaning. Labels may also state fibre content, size, country of origin and the manufacturer.
The international care symbols
- Washing (tub): the number inside gives the maximum water temperature in °C (30, 40, 60, 95); a hand in the tub means hand wash only; bars under the tub mean a gentler cycle (one bar: synthetic/permanent press, two bars: very gentle, wool). A crossed tub means do not wash.
- Bleaching (triangle): an empty triangle allows any bleach; a triangle with two diagonal lines allows only oxygen (non-chlorine) bleach; a crossed triangle means do not bleach.
- Drying (square): a circle inside means tumble drying (dots for heat: one low, two normal); a curved line at the top means line dry; three vertical lines means drip dry; one horizontal line means dry flat; diagonal lines in the corner mean dry in shade.
- Ironing (iron): one dot cool (about 110 °C: acrylic, nylon, acetate), two dots warm (about 150 °C: polyester, wool, silk), three dots hot (about 200 °C: cotton, linen). A crossed iron means do not iron; steam may be forbidden by lines under the iron.
- Professional cleaning (circle): letters show the solvent the dry-cleaner may use (P: perchloroethylene and others; F: hydrocarbon solvents only); W in a circle means professional wet cleaning; a crossed circle means do not dry-clean.
Importance of care labels
- Prevent damage such as shrinking, fading, melting and stretching.
- Save money by extending garment life.
- Guide the choice of detergent, temperature and ironing.
- Help when buying: avoid “dry clean only” garments if dry-cleaning is too costly for your budget.
- Protect consumers: the manufacturer is responsible if the garment fails when the label was followed.
Rules
Read labels before buying and before every wash; do not cut labels off (cut carefully along the seam if itchy and keep the information); follow the most cautious instruction when washing mixed loads.
Worked example: reading a label
A label shows a tub with 40, a crossed triangle, a square with one horizontal line, an iron with two dots and a circle with P. Meaning: machine wash at a maximum of 40 °C; do not bleach; dry flat; iron warm (about 150 °C); may be professionally dry-cleaned. This combination is typical of a wool-blend knit.
Worked example 11.C (reading a care label) A label shows: washtub with “40” and one bar underneath; triangle crossed out; square with a circle and one dot; iron with two dots; circle with “P”. Translate it.
- Washtub 40 with one bar: machine wash at a maximum of 40 °C, mild (synthetic) process. (Under ISO 3758 the temperature is written as a number in °C; dots in the washtub are used on North American labels.)
- Crossed triangle: do not bleach.
- Square with circle and one dot: tumble dry at low heat.
- Iron with two dots: iron at medium temperature, maximum about 150 °C.
- Circle with P: may be professionally dry cleaned with perchloroethylene or hydrocarbon solvents (normal process).
Answer: Wash 40 °C mild; no bleach; low tumble dry; iron medium (150 °C); dry clean P.
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Practice questions
- maximum water temperature in °C
- number of rinses
- spin speed
- minutes of washing
Show answer
A: maximum water temperature in °C
E.g. 40.
- bleach freely
- dry flat
- iron hot
- do not bleach
Show answer
D: do not bleach
Bleaching symbol.
- 200 °C
- 250 °C
- 150 °C
- 110 °C
Show answer
C: 150 °C
Medium setting.
- hand washing
- professional dry or wet cleaning
- tumble drying
- ironing
Show answer
B: professional dry or wet cleaning
Professional care.
- cold water
- boiling water
- hot iron
- chlorine bleach on silk
Show answer
A: cold water
Heat sets protein.
Key words
- Care label
- Permanent label of care instructions.
- Sorting
- Grouping laundry by colour, fibre, soil.
- Blueing
- Adding blue to make whites look whiter.
- Colour fastness
- Resistance of dye to running or fading.
- Stain
- Mark not removed by ordinary washing.
- Absorbent
- Powder that draws out grease.
- Solvent
- Liquid that dissolves grease or paint.
- Oxalic acid
- Poisonous rust remover.
- Enzyme detergent
- Contains protein-digesting enzymes.
- Dry cleaning
- Cleaning with organic solvents.
- Home sponging
- Spot cleaning at home.
- Perchloroethylene
- Common dry-cleaning solvent.
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