Curtains filter the air that comes in round the window, and on a bus route they filter a lot of it. On Battersea Park Road, Queenstown Road and Lavender Hill, the side facing the glass turns grey long before the room side does, and the folds hold a fine dust that shows when you draw them in bright sun.
Cleaned on the rail
Wherever the fabric allows, we clean curtains hanging. Dust comes out first: the whole drop is vacuumed top to bottom with a soft brush on both faces, with extra time on the pleats and the heading, where dust lies along every fold. Pencil pleats and pinch pleats both hold dust in the top few inches, so the heading gets a second pass with a narrow brush. Then a low-moisture clean with the upholstery tool follows, again from the top down, lining included. The curtains dry where they hang, and their own weight keeps them straight while they do.
Tests before any moisture
Some curtains should not get wet at all, so we read the label and test a hem first. Silk and heavy interlined drapes can mark, as can any fabric with water rings already in it, and those belong with a dry cleaner. Nets and voiles cost less to wash in your own machine on a cool cycle; we will say that on the phone.
Is it dirt or sun?
Kitchen curtains pick up a film of cooking grease, and a smoker’s curtains go yellow. Both come out, and the colour lifts with them. Sun fading along the leading edge is another matter: the dye has gone, so there is nothing to clean back. To tell which you have, pull a pleat open and compare. A brighter colour hidden in the fold means the sun has faded the face.
What a pair costs
A short pair costs £35 and a long pair £42. We count a curtain as long once it reaches the floor or close to it. Mansion flats such as those on Prince of Wales Drive and Albert Bridge Road usually have high ceilings, so their living room curtains tend to be long drops. A bay with three separate pairs is priced pair by pair.
| Clean | Price |
|---|---|
| Two-seat settee | £57 |
| Armchair | £33 |
| Mattress clean | £35 |
| Dining chair | £13 |
| Curtains, short drop | £35 |
| Curtains (long drop) | £42 |
Airing them afterwards
Open the window behind the curtains while they dry, and draw them fully closed so the folds hang open to the air. Moving air dries them in a few hours, and an afternoon of street air adds very little next to the dust we have just taken out. If the room is carpeted, book the carpet clean on the same visit so both dry together; a living room plus a long pair comes to £85. The sofa uses the same tool, marks on any of it are handled as stain work, and everything else is on the full list.
Questions we get asked
Our bay window has three pairs of short curtains. What will that cost?
Each pair is priced separately, so three short pairs come to £105. That is already over the £67 minimum, so nothing else needs adding to the visit.
Will cleaning on the rail leave water marks?
Not on fabrics that pass the hem test, because the fabric never gets soaked. Water rings come from one patch drying at a different speed from the rest, so we work the whole drop evenly from top to bottom. Anything that fails the test goes to a dry cleaner.
How often do curtains on a main road need cleaning?
When the window side looks grey next to the room side, and on a busy road that can happen within a year. On a quiet street it takes much longer. Running the vacuum brush down them every few weeks slows the build-up.
Is it safe to clean curtains with blackout lining?
Usually. Blackout lining has a coated back that dislikes heat and heavy wetting, so we keep moisture low on that face and test first. If the coating is already cracking or flaking, the lining is past its best, and cleaning will not change that.