AATCC 124-2005 Appearance of Fabrics after Repeated Home Laundering.
2. Principle
2.1 Flat fabric specimens are subjected to standard home laundering practices. A choice is provided of hand or machine washing, alternative machine wash cycles and temperatures, and alternative drying procedures. Evaluation is per- formed using a standard lighting and viewing area by rating the appearance of specimens in comparison with appropriate reference standards.
3. Terminology
3.1 ballast, n.—in procedures for pro- cessing or testing of textiles, material that is used to bring the total weight or volume of the textiles to an amount specified in the procedure.
3.2 dryer creases, n.—sharp folds or lines running in any direction in a laun- dered or dried specimen. NOTE: Dryer creases are an unintended result of restricted movement of specimens in the washer or the dryer.
3.3 durable press, adj.—having the ability to retain substantially the initial shape, flat seams, pressedin creases and unwrinkled appearance during use and after laundering or drycleaning.
3.4 laundering, n.—of textile mate- rials, a process intended to remove soils and/or stains by treatment (washing) with an aqueous detergent solution and normally including rinsing, extracting and drying.
3.5 smoothness appearance, n.—in fabrics, the visual impression of planarity of a specimen quantified by comparison with a set of reference standards.
4. Safety Precautions NOTE: These safety precautions are for information purposes only. The pre- cautions are ancillary to the testing procedures and are not intended to be all inclusive. It is the user’s responsibility to use safe and proper techniques in handling materials in this test method. Manufacturers MUST be consulted for specific details such as material safety data sheets and other manufacturer’s recommendations. All OSHA standards and rules must also be consulted and followed.
4.1 Good laboratory practices should be followed. Wear safety glasses in all laboratory areas.
4.2 The 1993 AATCC Standard Refer- ence Detergent may cause irritation. Care should be taken to prevent exposure to skin and eyes.
4.3 All chemicals should be handled with care.
4.4 Manufacturer’s safety recommen- dations should be followed when operating laboratory testing equipment.
5. Uses and Limitations
5.1 This test method is designed to be used only for evaluating the appearance of washable fabrics after repeated home laundering.
5.2 The test procedure is designed to reflect the capabilities of home laundry equipment which is currently used by consumers. In general, it is preferable to conduct the test under relatively severe laundering conditions.
5.3 Prints and patterns may mask the mussiness present in fabrics. The rating process is, however, based on the visual appearance of specimens including such effects.
5.4 The small specimen sizes used for fabric tests occasionally will cause wrin- kles or creases (dryer creases) to develop which are not considered to be characteristic of fabric performance in use. Pre- cautions are given in the text of the method to reduce the occurrence of dryer creases.
5.5 The interlaboratory reproducibility of the results of this test method depends upon mutual agreement by users of the method on the washing and drying conditions as outlined in 8.1.AATCC 124 pdf download.