About Green Earth Cleaning
Earth Friendly
Our name means a lot.
GreenEarth is a dry cleaning process that is completely safe. It
has no hazardous chemicals. No perchloroethylene. No petroleum.
So there’s no risk to the air, water or soil.
Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream.
GreenEarth cleans with pure liquid silicone. In essence, liquefied
sand. The same natural sand the earth has been creating for over
six billion years. It is clear, odorless and gentle. In the environment,
silicone simply returns to its three natural elements: sand (SiO2)
and trace amounts of water and CO2.
Petroleum-free. Regulation-free.
GreenEarth is so safe, the EPA doesn’t regulate it. Neither
does OHSA, RCRA or CERCLA. In contrast, the petroleum-based solvents
most dry cleaners use are heavily regulated. That’s because
they can be extremely hazardous to the earth and people when they
aren’t handled properly.
Most dry cleaners (about 85%) use a synthetic chlorinated hydrocarbon
solvent known as perc (perchloroethylene). It has been classified
by the EPA as a toxic air contaminant, a hazardous, potentially carcinogenic
substance and one of the top four contaminants found in drinking
water. It can enter your body when you inhale its vapors or touch
it. Perc can irritate your skin, eyes, nose or throat, and affects
your brain much like alcohol does (e.g. dizziness, headache, nausea,
loss of balance or coordination, etc.). California has recently banned
the use of perc; other states have proposed similar legislation.
Beware of “green washing”!
The second most common type of solvent used in dry cleaning is hydrocarbon,
also petroleum-based. Hydrocarbon is sometimes marketed as “organic”.
Beware! From a chemistry standpoint, anything with a chain of carbons
can be labeled “organic”. That doesn’t mean it’s
environmentally friendly or chemical-free. Gasoline is organic,
but you wouldn’t want to wash your clothes in it.
Breathe easy.
Hydrocarbon solvents are classified as volatile air contaminants
(VOCs), meaning they can vaporize into the atmosphere and contribute
to smog and global warming. But GreenEarth is not classified as
a VOC by the U.S. EPA. It’s good for the clothes you wear
and for the air you breathe.
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