At Ideal, it is our passion to be a completely environmentally friendly operation.
We have a strong heritage and a proud history.
We want to make sure that we are around for many generations to come working and living on this beautiful planet. That’s why we are continuously improving our dry cleaning and laundry technology to ensure we have the most efficient and environmentally friendly organisation as possible.
In 2018 we launched our Green Pledge. After our first year, we have been able to make some positive changes for the better. However, there is still a lot more we have to do to be able to be a completely environmentally friendly operation.
The changes we are making for the better in 2022: - Planting tree's to reduce our carbon footprint - Removing polythene from our commercial laundry packaging - Ozone technology - for more info about our Ozone
We use Ozone laundry technology that has won The Queens Award 2021
In 2021 we invested in Ozone laundry technology. Ozone is a revolutionary laundering process that uses a powerful oxidizing gas called ozone, which we produce on site at Ideal, on Pound Lane, Exmouth. The ozone is then dissolved in the washing water. When the ozone water comes into contact with organic materials in your cleaning laundry, it oxidizes (or "destroys") it. That includes bacteria, viruses, mould, or other microorganisms.
Ozone is such a powerful oxidant that it kills microorganisms 3,000 times faster than bleach and standard hot water laundry processes.
We use Ozone in our laundry and wet cleaning processes
Ozone gas is used on all our laundry and wet cleaning processes. This means that all your garments that we clean are guaranteed 100% sanitised, killing all bacteria and virus'.
Here is Green Pledge 2021 to continue to make us Devon's foremost environmental Dry Cleaners & Laundry:
1. Reduce our plastic consumption and waste - Paused 5th January 2021
In 2021 we will be introducing a 20p “polythene tax” on all orders where a customer wants polythene packaging. This 20p will be donated to local charities throughout the year!
We will encourage our customers to use our reusable eco cotton bags or our recycled paper bags, instead of polythene packaging.
Purchasing a reusable eco cotton bag for your dry cleaning or laundry, will dramatically reduce your plastic consumption and waste. All you need to do is a one off purchase of our bags, bring in all your dirty garments in your bag. We clean your garments and the bag at no extra cost. We will then return your clean garments in the clean bag!
Customer can also choose to not have any packaging whatsoever for their laundry or dry cleaning, or use their own if they wish.
2. Buying our chemicals in larger containers
In 2021 we will be purchasing our chemicals in 200 Litre drums instead of the standard 20 Litre drums.
The 20 Litre plastic drums can’t be recycled – so we have been told by numerous different companies. Meaning they have to go to landfill!
The empty 200 Litre drums will be used for laundry storage and or laundry trolleys.
3. Zero toxic and carcinogenic chemicals used in our dry cleaning and laundry processes
We’ve made Perc a thing of the past. We continue to ensure that we do not use any toxic and or carcinogenic chemicals in our production processes.
4. Zero Sodium Hypochlorite Bleach to be used to launder our bed linen, duvets and towels this year
We do not use Sodium Hypochlorite Bleach to artificially whiten our bed linen, duvets and towels. Sodium Hypochlorite Bleach is an extremely dangerous chemical for our environment.
5. Reduce our consumption of environmentally hazardous laundry chemicals
We use EU Ecolabel accredited ECOLAB Oxyguard laundry chemicals. Which have been certified as the most environmentally-friendly commercial laundry chemicals currently available.
6. Reduce water, gas and electricity consumption
To continue to invest in new machinery and upgrade the machinery that we have will reduce our water, gas and electricity consumption for 2021.
In 2021 we will be looking to use all the steam that we generate a day in Ideal. This year we will be using our steam to heat the water in our washing machines, to iron/press/finish all our dry cleaning and laundry garments and to dry our towels, duvets, etc in our new steam heated tumble dryer.
Using all the steam that we produce, will make our production process even more energy efficient. No longer will we heat the washing machines using electricity and we will be less reliant on gas to dry our tumble dried garments.
7. Zero to landfill
All waste at Ideal is recycled. With the help of our waste partners Devon Contract Waste, none of our waste goes to landfill.
8. Reuse and recycle – where we have to use polythene
At Ideal, we try everything to make our processes as environmentally-friendly as possible. After months of research in 2018, we discovered that the best way to help the planet, was not to use bio-degradable bags (See below). But instead it was to reuse our polythene bags.
In 2019 we launched incentives for our customers to reuse or return all their used/old Ideal garment bags, so that we can recycle the polythene.
9. Using recycled paper throughout the business, to cut down on waste
All advertising material and paper used at Ideal will be made from recycled paper.
We will do everything we can to ensure our business is as environmentally friendly as possible – and will continue to improve wherever we can. Follow our progress on social media!
Here are the results of how we did in 2018, 2019 & 2020:
Removal of all toxic and carcinogenic chemicals from our dry cleaning and laundry processes
We’ve made Perc a thing of the past. We successfully removed and stopped using all toxic and carcinogenic chemicals from our production process. In both our dry cleaning and laundry processes.
Reduce our consumption of environmentally hazardous laundry chemicals
Standard laundry chemicals are environmentally unfriendly. That is why we use EU Ecolabel accredited ECOLAB Oxyguard laundry chemicals. Which have been certified as the most environmentally-friendly laundry chemicals currently available. Since 2018 we have only used 1 environmentally unfriendly chemical in our processes. This chemical is Sodium Hypochlorite Bleach.
We’re reducing our Sodium Hypochlorite usage
We reduced our dependence on Sodium Hypochlorite by over 90% in 2018.
In 2019 we reduced this figure to zero! We do not use hypo bleach to launder our bedding and towels. We realise that we do not need to use this extremely environmentally hazardous chemical.
Reduce water and electricity consumption
The small things make all the difference, LED light bulbs and fixing leaks helped us to reduce our water and electricity consumption in 2018. in 2019 we used our steam that is generated for all of our presses and irons, to efficiently heat all of our laundry machines. Also in 2019 we added a water pump that now fills our machines with water in seconds rather than in previous years where it would take minutes to fill a machine.
Zero to landfill
All waste was recycled in 2018, 2019 and 2020
Proud to be Green
In 2020 we were awarded the accreditation or "Proud to be Green" for our efforts in making our dry cleaning & laundry process as environmentally friendly as possible!
We are part of a community who work together for the better of the planet!
All polythene that is used for our packaging of hanging dry cleaning and laundry garments to be packaged in biodegradable polythene
This was not possible in 2018. After months of research, we were not able to find an environmentally friendly alternative to our traditional polythene garment bags. Below is a very accurate account of the issue with biodegradable plastics from Exeter City Councils, Denis the Dust Cart.
“Most of it will only break down at a fairly high temperature. If you’re buying it as a reaction to seeing plastic pollution in the oceans, bear in mind that the ocean isn’t really very warm at all. Biodegradable plastic also needs sunlight to break down, but it sinks in water, so….
It’s designed to break down faster in the right conditions. It isn’t designed to last. It isn’t made from a non-renewable source, which is good, but it uses a lot of land, energy and water to grow and to process the crops into the right compounds. The associated carbon emissions are high, and additives used in the processing become an issue if the material becomes waste.
Moreover, it isn’t very recyclable. It can’t be taken from your home with the rest of your plastic. If you have a food waste collection, it can usually go in there, but it is still waste. It isn’t being reused. It is another disposable material, not designed for reuse.”
In 2019 we encouraged our customers to use our polythene packaging to bring their dirty garments back into us, so that we could recycle to polythene. This was a success, with many of our regular customers doing so.
In 2020 we introduced our Eco reusable Cotton bags. We saw 90% of our regular van collection & delivery customers use our eco reusable bags.
Reduce our consumption of disposable non-recyclable coffee cups
2018 was a start of this challenge. In 2019 we moved to biodegradable coffee cups. This along with a range of incentives to our customers, allowed us to use no non-recyclable disposable coffee cups.
Using recycled paper throughout the business, to cut down on waste
All advertising material and paper used at Ideal was made from recycled paper.
We also use scrap paper for all our internal memo's, laundry lists and collection orders. Paper is only recycled when it is used on both sides.
Dry Cleaning
As the first company in the U.K. To be specifically selected to use Lagoon Advanced Care Wet Cleaning back in 2014, we realised that cleaning with water was the way forward; better for your clothes, better for your skin, better for our staff, and better for our planet. In our 51 years’ experience of using perchloroethylene, we have advanced our cleaning process onto Lagoon Advanced Care Wet Cleaning system as the superior alternative to the tradition perchloroethylene dry cleaning process.
At Ideal, we had been dry cleaning with perchloroethylene since 1966. The process hasn’t changed much over the 51 years that we’ve been using it at our Pound Lane cleaning facility here in Exmouth. Dry cleaning with perchloroethylene is a known carcinogenic toxic chemical and is extremely dangerous to the environment.
Laundry
In 2018 we upgraded our laundry chemicals ECOLAB’s OxyGuard 40. These chemicals are the most environmentally friendly laundry chemicals available today. OxyGuard 40 chemicals carry the EU Ecolabel accreditation.
The EU Ecolabel ensures that the best decisions for the environment are made at every point of the product’s life cycle, while delivering high-performance products and value for money. When you see the EU Ecolabel logo, on a product, it means less waste, less pollution and products that are better for the planet. The EU Ecolabel makes green choices easy.
OxyGuard 40 allows us to use less dangerous and harmful traditional laundry chemicals, such as sodium hyperchlorite bleach, which is extremely dangerous to aquatic life – but until recently, was the only way in which laundries could ensure garments stayed white.
Another bonus with OxyGuard 40 chemicals is that we are able to use less water and less energy to heat the water. We can now wash bed linen at 40 degrees Celsius and still guarantee the removal of all bacteria and a far superior wash results and finish than when we were washing at temperatures in excess of 65 degrees Celsius!