Method and device for wet treating laundry items

Abstract

An inline washing system to be formed from a tunnel-type washing machine ( 10 ) which both rinses and removes water from the items of laundry. However, rinsing and simultaneously also water removal can also be performed in the downstream spin-dryer ( 18 ) or water-removal press. It has been found that the rinsing performance is better and fresh water can be saved on account of the invention. By virtue of the invention, it is possible to wash relatively small amounts of laundry using a tunnel-type washing machine ( 10 ) in an economical manner. The tunnel-type washing machine ( 10 ) can be designed to be shorter and also simpler if it is designed without a rinse zone.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An apparatus for the wet-treatment of items of laundry, comprising a tunnel-type washing machine ( 10 ) and at least one water-removal device, wherein the tunnel-type washing machine ( 10 ) has only a prewash zone ( 15 ) and a main-wash zone ( 17 ). 
     
     
         2 . The apparatus as claimed in  claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of successive chambers ( 14 ) formed in a drum ( 12 ) of the tunnel-type washing machine ( 10 ), a main wash zone ( 17 ) and prewash zone ( 15 ), with the main-wash zone ( 17 ) having a greater number of chambers ( 14 ) than the prewash zone ( 15 ). 
     
     
         3 . The apparatus as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the or each water-removal device is a spin-dryer ( 18 ). 
     
     
         4 . The apparatus as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein the spin-dryer ( 18 ) is a high-power spin-dryer which can subject the items of laundry to a centrifugal acceleration of more than 600 times the acceleration due to gravity at least during the water-removal operation which is performed after rinsing. 
     
     
         5 . An apparatus for the wet-treatment of items of laundry in a tunnel-type washing machine ( 30 ), wherein the tunnel-type washing machine ( 30 ) has a prewash zone ( 15 ), a main-wash zone ( 17 ) and a final-treatment zone ( 31 ) for combined water removal from and rinsing of or rinsing of and water removal from the items of laundry. 
     
     
         6 . The apparatus as claimed in  claim 5 , wherein the prewash zone ( 15 ) and the main-wash zone ( 17 ) are formed in a common drum ( 12 ), which can be driven in rotation, of the tunnel-type washing machine ( 30 ), and the final-treatment zone ( 31 ) is formed in a separate drum ( 33 ) of the tunnel-type washing machine ( 30 ), in an end region of said tunnel-type washing machine. 
     
     
         7 . The apparatus as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein the main-wash zone ( 17 ) has one chamber ( 14 ) more than the prewash zone ( 15 ).