Over the last few years, there have been a fair number of companies offering stain blocking/resisting technology for or on clothing. But very few of them were able to satisfy people/customers. But now, there’s a new fabric softener technology called Sofft that never lets your cloths have stain.
Retired chemist Greg Van Buskirk has created this new fabric softener technology. Buskirk has mentioned that Sofft, which is a play on the words “soft” and “off,” can prevent both water- and oil-based stains from sticking to clothing fibers.
Here’s how it works:
Washer
Positively charged molecules seek out the fibers of the clothes rather than detergent molecules, as do traditional fabric softeners.
These positively charged molecules form a “soft ionic bond” with the negatively charged fiber molecules creating a “co-operative attraction”.
Dryer
Thermal energy in the dryer activates the molecules and causes them to “face outward” and soften fabrics, repel stains, reduce wrinkles and leave a clean, fresh scent.
Please note that Sofft’s protection does not last forever. Clothes still have to get washed as the coating wears off, but most users would be able to get a few more wears in between trips to the laundromat. Plus, fewer loads in laundry machines could also ease the strain of detergent chemicals and water consumption on the environment.
Vinod Nair, founder and CEO of the Sofft company, calls the technique “prevention based laundry.” If Sofft succeeds, he says, “we would expect an ecosystem change. The washing machine would have to change.” We would all do laundry less often, he argues, because our clothes would stay fresh longer. His company calls this imagined world “Laundry 2.0.”
Right now, this project is collecting funds via Kickstarter. The team wanted to collect a fund of $25,000 by 7:00 am (+06:00), Oct 29, 2014. But as of writing, 747 backers have pledged $46,611.
So now, the future of Sofft (and the future of laundry, according to Nair) is now in the hands of the Kickstarter-funding public. If you back the project now, you can snag yourself a jug of Sofft for around 25-35 bucks. Here’a video.
Barring any roadblocks in the manufacturing process, they expect to ship the first production batch as early as February of 2015. For more details, hit the link below.
Anatol Rahman is the Editor at TheTechJournal. He loves complicated machineries, and crazy about robot and space. He likes cycling. Before joining TheTechJournal team, he worked in the
telemarketing industry. You can catch him on Google+.
