What does Professional Wet Clean mean?
Quick Answer
The professional wet clean symbol (a circle with a W inside) means the item should be taken to a professional cleaner who uses the wet cleaning process — a water-based alternative to solvent dry cleaning that uses specialised equipment, controlled temperatures, and gentle mechanical action. Wet cleaning is an eco-friendly option that avoids solvent chemicals while achieving excellent results on delicate garments.
Also known as: W in circle, W circle symbol, wet clean symbol, professional wet cleaning sign, W care label symbol
Detailed explanation
The professional wet clean symbol (a circle with a W inside) designates an eco-friendly alternative to solvent dry cleaning using controlled water-based processes. Unlike home washing, professional wet cleaning employs specialist computer-controlled machines with precise temperature, mechanical action, and rinse parameters; specialist pH-controlled detergents; and professional tensioning and blocking equipment to restore the garment's shape. The results are comparable to dry cleaning without solvent chemicals and is gentler on many fine fabrics. This symbol is growing in prevalence as consumers and manufacturers seek alternatives to PERC-based dry cleaning.
How to follow the Professional Wet Clean symbol:
- 1
Professional wet cleaning is an eco-friendly alternative to dry cleaning
- 2
Find a cleaner that offers wet cleaning service
- 3
Uses water-based process with specialized equipment
- 4
Gentler than traditional dry cleaning
When does this symbol appear on care labels?
- Take to a professional cleaner that specifically offers wet cleaning — not all cleaners have this equipment; call ahead to confirm
- For fine wool, silk, and cashmere garments where solvent dry cleaning is undesired
- When the garment carries both a wet clean symbol and a do-not-dry-clean symbol
Tips and Best Practices
- Search for "professional wet cleaning" or "green dry cleaning" in your area — the service is available in most cities
- Point out stains to the wet cleaner as you would with dry cleaning — pre-treatment matters
- Confirm the cleaner has specific experience with your fabric type — wool and silk require different wet cleaning protocols
What happens if this symbol is ignored
Home washing a garment rated for professional wet cleaning only will cause the same damage as any unsupervised home washing of a professional-clean-only garment: shrinkage, loss of structure, and colour change.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Confusing professional wet cleaning with careful home hand washing — the professional equipment, controlled parameters, and expertise are essential to the process
- Taking a W-symbol garment to a solvent dry cleaner — the W does not mean dry clean; some W-symbol garments specifically must not be dry cleaned
Common Materials
Not sure which symbol you have?
Use our free AI image search to identify laundry symbols from a photo. Snap or upload a picture of a care label and our AI will match it against 79+ symbols — including this one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Dry Clean Symbols
Dry Clean - Any Solvent
Dry clean using any solvent
Dry Clean - Petroleum Solvent
Dry clean with petroleum solvent only
Dry Clean - Gentle/Petroleum
Dry clean with petroleum solvent only - gentle process
Do Not Dry Clean
Do not dry clean - solvents will damage the fabric
Dry Clean - Any Solvent (A)
Dry clean with any solvent - standard process
Dry Clean - Gentle (A with bar)
Dry clean with any solvent - gentle process
Bookmark this page or add to favorites so you can find it from your laundry room.