Iron it’s all art. Uncomfortable art, especially in summer. That is why many people have joined (or convinced) in the fashion that wrinkles are beautiful, and decided to live without it. However, there are still brave people who continue to accumulate mountains of clothes and then spend hours ironing and conditioning them. If they do it, they do it well, so they have tricks like wet wrinkles with a cloth or a spray bottle so that they can be removed better. Even if you are one of those who do not iron, you have probably seen how someone does it, but do you know what water is for?
The truth is that this custom has a very simple scientific explanation. Water helps to eliminate wrinkles, as they they remain more attached to the fabric after drying. But to understand this, you also need to understand the ironing process. That is, what happens to the folds in the fabrics when we run a hot iron over them.
On the other hand, when we understand this, we may think that it is best to iron the clothes immediately after they have been taken out of the washing machine. But it’s not that easy. Here, as in many other matters, dose is key. And there shouldn’t be too much water either.
What happens when ironing clothes?
Textile fibers are made up of polymers. That is, large molecules are formed as a result of the repetition of smaller molecules called monomers. They usually behave like solid bodies. However, as he explained RTVE in 2013 Professor of Polymers at the University of the Basque Country. Juan José Iruinwhen heated above a certain threshold, they become moldable.
Therefore, the steam used by irons heats them above this threshold. But it’s not just about keeping them warm. With the help of an iron, we grind the fibers and push them in the same direction. Thus, if there were wrinkles on them, they are smoothed out and the surface remains smooth. That is, we sculpt them to our liking.
Why do we use water?
The above is a simplified version of what happens when ironing. Anyone who has ever done this knows this. It’s not so easy. There are really complex wrinkles that do not disappear even after several passes with an iron. For this reason, they are usually preferred to be watered with a small amount of water.
This is because polymers become more ductile when heated. when they are wet. When it dries, the crease will fix, but if it gets wet again, it is easier to reshape it.
So we don’t dry clothes?
Wet clothes mold much better. In fact, when grandmothers say that if you know how to hang clothes, you will save a lot of time ironing them, they are not mistaken. The fibers tend to trap how do they dry. Therefore, the more stretched our clothes are, the better.
However, this does not mean that for various reasons we should iron it so that it drips. First, there are fabrics such as silkwhich are damaged if ironed very damp. But besides, if we do not dry the clothes completely when ironing, then they will be of little use, because wrinkles can form again. For this reason, the most useful thing is that it is almost dry, or, as we have seen, it wets only stubborn wrinkles.
This is a trick that we all knew, but it’s worth understanding why this is happening. We still don’t feel like ironing, but at least we will learn one more curiosity.
Source: Hiper Textual
