Reference
Fabric Care Glossary
C
Colourfastness
A fabric's resistance to losing dye during washing, rubbing, sweat or sunlight exposure. Poor colourfastness shows first as dye transfer onto other garments or onto skin.
What causes clothes to fade →D
Dust mites
Microscopic arachnids that live in soft furnishings and feed on shed skin cells. Their droppings are a common household allergen, and warm humid conditions favour their populations.
Unwashed curtains and allergies →G
GSM
Grams per square metre — a measure of fabric weight and density. Higher GSM generally means a thicker, more absorbent textile, which also takes longer to dry.
H
Hard water
Water with a high dissolved calcium and magnesium content. These ions react with detergent surfactants before they reach fabric, reducing cleaning performance and leaving soap scum.
Hard water vs soft water →M
Microplastics
Plastic fragments under 5 mm, including the synthetic fibres shed by polyester and acrylic garments during washing, which pass through most wastewater treatment.
Microplastics from synthetic washing →O
Optical brighteners
Fluorescent compounds added to detergents that absorb UV light and re-emit it as blue, making fabric appear whiter without removing any soil.
Optical brighteners explained →P
Perchloroethylene (perc)
The chlorinated solvent used in most conventional dry cleaning. It dissolves oil-based soil without water, and is classified as a hazardous chemical under Indian waste-management rules.
Perchloroethylene in dry cleaning →Phosphates
Builders once common in detergents that soften water so surfactants work better. Their discharge contributes to nutrient loading and algal growth in waterbodies.
Phosphates in detergents →Pilling
Small balls of tangled fibre on a fabric surface, formed when short or broken fibres migrate outward under abrasion. Blends of staple fibres pill most readily.
Why clothes pill →Protein stain
A stain from blood, milk, egg or sweat. Heat sets protein stains by coagulating them into the fibre, which is why cold water is the correct first response.
Protein stains and cold water →S
Surfactant
The active cleaning molecule in detergent. One end binds oil and soil, the other binds water, allowing soil to be lifted from fabric and rinsed away.
The chemistry of stains →T
TDS
Total dissolved solids, measured in mg/L or ppm — the combined mineral content of water. It is the figure most commonly published for Indian municipal supply and is used as a proxy for hardness.
City water hardness index →W
Wet cleaning
A professional water-based alternative to solvent dry cleaning, using specialised detergents and tightly controlled mechanical action, temperature and drying.
Greener dry cleaning in India →