Is Dry Cleaning Safe for Sensitive Skin? What Every Allergic Family Should Know

If your child has come home with an angry red rash on the back of the neck after wearing a freshly dry-cleaned uniform — or if you’ve ever pulled a “clean” dress off a hanger and broken out by lunchtime — there’s a good chance it isn’t the fabric.

It’s what the cleaner used to clean it.

The chemical most dry cleaners still use

About 70% of dry cleaners in Massachusetts still use perchloroethylene — usually called “PERC” or “perc.” It works. It cleans grease and oil well. It’s also classified by the EPA as a likely human carcinogen, and by the State of California as a known reproductive toxin.

For sensitive skin, the residue PERC leaves on clothing is enough to trigger:

•Contact dermatitis (red, itchy rash where skin meets fabric)

•Eczema flare-ups, especially in kids

•Asthma symptoms in people with airway sensitivity

•Headaches from off-gassing in a closet or car

The fabric looks fine. It smells fine after a few hours. But the skin knows.

How to tell if your dry cleaner is safe

Here’s what to ask the next time you drop off a load. A safe cleaner can answer all three:

1.“What solvent do you use?” Acceptable answers: GreenEarth (silicone-based), wet cleaning (water-based), liquid CO₂. Not acceptable: PERC, perchloroethylene, hydrocarbon, DF-2000, or “we don’t know.”

2.“Is your wash-and-fold detergent fragrance-free and dye-free?” Most commercial laundries use harsh detergents loaded with optical brighteners that irritate skin.

3.“How do you sanitize without harsh chemicals?” Look for ozone-sanitized aqueous cleaning. It kills bacteria and viruses at the molecular level with no chemical residue.

What Lan’s Lapels uses (and why we switched)

When Lan opened the first location 16 years ago, we used PERC. Everyone did. Then a regular customer’s daughter started having seizures her doctors couldn’t explain. They eliminated everything — and ended up identifying the dry-cleaning solvent in her school uniforms.

We switched the next month.

Today, every garment that comes through any of our three locations is cleaned using:

•GreenEarth silicone-based technology — odor-free, non-allergenic, non-irritating

•Ozone-sanitized aqueous wash for our wash-and-fold service — kills bacteria with no detergent residue

•Fragrance-free, dye-free detergent by default (scented available on request)

No PERC. No hydrocarbon. No mystery chemistry.

The trial that doesn’t gamble with your skin

If you’ve been afraid to try a new cleaner because the last switch caused a flare-up, here’s a low-risk way to test ours:

•Drop off one item at any of our 3 locations

•Wear it

•If your skin reacts in any way, bring it back. We’ll re-clean it free under our Double Money Back Guarantee.

Learn more about our eco-friendly cleaning process →

Your skin shouldn’t have to negotiate with your dry cleaner.

Lan’s Lapels has been a PERC-free dry cleaner since 2014. Family-owned, locally operated in Wilmington, North Andover, and Concord MA.