City of East Orange, NJ Chapter 165 Laundromats and Dry Cleaning Establishments, Coin-Operated

[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of East Orange 3-25-1968 by Ord. No. 20-1968 as Ch. 6, Art. II, Div. 3, Secs. 6:2-8 through 6:2-15, of the 1968 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]

GENERAL REFERENCES

Air pollution — See Ch. 94.

Uniform Construction Codes — See Ch. 125.

Fire prevention — See Ch. 146.

Licenses and fees — See Ch. 170.

§ 165-1 Definitions.

For the purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section:

COIN-OPERATED DRY CLEANING

The cleaning of textiles, fabrics, garments or other articles by the use of any solvent other than water in a dry-cleaning unit designed to be used by the general public. For the purpose of this definition, the term "used by the general public" shall be deemed to refer to the insertion of such textiles, fabrics, garments or other articles into a dry-cleaning unit or the removal of the same from such unit by a person other than any employee of a dry-cleaning establishment or person owning and operating such establishment.

CUSTOMER AREA

That portion of the establishment to which the general public is permitted access.

LAUNDROMAT

Sometimes commonly known as "launderette," "automatic laundry" or "self-operating laundry." A place of business containing automatic washing and drying machines, conducted for the purpose of laundering, washing and drying wearing apparel, household linens and other washable household fabrics, which items are brought to such place by the customer to be laundered and dried in automatic machines, coin-operated or otherwise, and wherein a majority or all of the manual operations are performed by the customer or under his control.

MAINTENANCE AREA

That portion of the establishment to which the customer is not permitted access and which is used for general maintenance and storage purposes.

PREMISES

Any place, whether self-service or otherwise, maintained for use of and by the general public for the dry cleaning of clothing, apparel or other fabrics or household articles by or in automatic or coin-operated machines.

SOLVENT

Any cleaning fluid which is free of additives to mask the odor, classified by the National Board of Fire Underwriters or American Insurance Association as nonflammable at ordinary temperatures, and not more toxic than the generally accepted threshold limit value for perchlorethylene as promulgated by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists.

§ 165-2 License required.

It shall be unlawful for any person to establish, maintain, conduct or operate a coin-operated dry-cleaning establishment or laundromat without first obtaining a license therefor.

§ 165-3 Attendant required on premises; supervision.

All coin-operated dry-cleaning establishments shall have an attendant on the licensed premises at all times when the premises are open for business or public use. No coin-operated dry-cleaning machine shall be used by the general public except under the continuous, direct supervision of an employee or the owner of a coin-operated dry-cleaning establishment who has previously been examined and certified in writing by the Chief Building Inspector as competent to handle such machines.

§ 165-4 Operating restrictions and requirements.

A. No licensee of a coin-operated dry-cleaning establishment shall permit or allow such machines to be used by any person who is less than 16 years of age. A suitable sign indicating such age restriction shall be prominently posted and maintained on the premises.

B. The public shall only be permitted access to that portion of coin-operated or self-service dry-cleaning machines which is necessary for the use of such machines. The remaining portion of each machine shall be separated from the customer area by a partition in which there are grills or similar ventilation devices. This partitioned-off area shall be called the maintenance area. The access door to the maintenance area shall be self-closing and locked to prevent access by the public.

C. No person other than the licensee, his representative or the City inspector shall enter the maintenance area.

D. The maintenance area shall not be interconnected with that of heating devices requiring air for combustion, such as gas dryers, water heaters and comfort-heating devices.

E. Heating devices requiring air for combustion shall be installed in such fashion as to obtain air for combustion from the outside atmosphere.

F. Ventilation of establishments shall be effected by the drawing of air from the customer area through grills or other openings in the partition by means of an exhaust fan or fans operating in the maintenance area. Exhaust fans shall have a rated capacity of 400 cubic feet per minute per machine for normal use and 1,000 cubic feet per minute per machine for use in emergencies. The rated capacities of exhaust fans shall appear on this equipment or its nameplate. If air is being constantly exhausted as a built-in feature of the equipment, the rated capacity of the fan can be reduced by this amount.

G. Each coin-operated or self-service dry-cleaning machine shall be equipped with an exhaust system that maintains a minimum of 100 cubic feet per minute velocity through the loading door whenever the door is open. The ductwork connections to this system shall be sealed (soldered or taped) and the discharge outlet extended to a minimum height of five feet above the roofline and shall be located so that the effluent may not reenter the premises.

H. A concrete dike or metal pan or similar facility shall be installed at the location of each machine to collect and contain spillage. This facility shall be constructed of a material impervious to the solvent used.

I. The floor covering in the customer area shall be made of a material resistant to the solvents used in such machines.

J. All coin-operated dry-cleaning establishments shall have two exits, which shall be at least 25 feet apart from each other and shall lead directly to the outside.

K. A respirator approved by the United States Bureau of Mines as affording protection against organic solvent vapors shall be provided for and used by maintenance personnel during correction of leakages, cleaning of the system, removal of lint and muck bags and at all times when the odor of solvent is noticeable.

L. The customer and maintenance areas shall be equipped with a fire extinguisher approved for use against electrical or flammable liquid fires as to type, size and quantity for such use by the National Board of Fire Underwriters or American Insurance Association classification on portable fire extinguishers for this occupancy.

M. A step-by-step, readily legible instruction list for operation of machines shall be posted in a conspicuous location near the machine in the customer area. These instructions shall include a list of items not to be dry-cleaned in coin-operated or self-service dry-cleaning machines, such as those made in part or completely of plastic, rubber, leather, paper, fur, angora or urethane.

N. Each establishment shall post in a conspicuous location, readily visible from the outside of the premises, the telephone number or numbers to be called in the event of an emergency.

O. Each machine shall be provided with an interlock system to prevent the loading door from being opened during the normal cycle or in the event of a power failure. This system may be either electrical or mechanical, or both.

P. No machine shall be permitted to be operated in a coin-operated or self-service dry-cleaning establishment which in normal operation fails to eliminate all vapors from the cleaned items upon completion of the dry-cleaning cycle.

Q. Immediate action shall be taken to eliminate solvent odor in the customer area, and said area shall be immediately cleared of customers. Failure to take such action shall be just cause for closing the establishment. Vapors or odors from establishments shall be exhausted in such manner as not to constitute air pollution, as defined by statute.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 26:2C-2.

R. No person shall use spotting equipment containing flammable material in a coin-operated or self-service dry-cleaning establishment.

S. Each machine shall be inspected each day it is in operation and kept in good repair by maintenance personnel. A record shall be kept in the maintenance area of all inspections and repairs made. Any machine which is out of order shall be so marked and shall not be used until properly repaired.

T. Solvents shall be kept in closed airtight containers and handled in such manner as to prevent the escape of odors and shall be stored in such a manner as to conform to the National Board of Fire Underwriters or American Insurance Association requirements for closed containers inside of buildings. (Chapter 3, NBFU-Flammable Liquids.)

U. Each day or after the specified number of cycles recommended by the manufacturer, dry-cleaning machines shall be serviced, including but not limited to:

(1) Adding "charged" solvent to restore the main supply.

(2) Cleaning the button trap and the lint bag, trap or screen.

(3) Cleaning the tank sump and removing the sludge.

(4) Adding filter aids to dispersers.

(5) Resetting the cycle counter, if one is provided.

(6) Emptying the water from the separator.

V. All installations shall be equipped with a water-conserving device for recirculating the water used in the dry-cleaning operation. No such water shall be discharged into the sanitary sewer system of the City.

W. Only the solvent as defined in § 165-1 and specified by the equipment manufacturer, or its equivalent, shall be used.

X. Coin-operated dry-cleaning plants shall utilize only solvents classified as nonflammable or as nonflammable at ordinary temperatures and uses.

Y. All coin-operated dry-cleaning establishments shall prominently display lighted indoor signs warning the general public of the danger of excessive solvent vapor inhalation and skin irritation from unevaporated dry-cleaning solvent.

§ 165-5 Hours of operation.

[Amended 7-8-1968 by Ord. No. 41-1968]

No coin-operated dry-cleaning establishment or laundromat shall operate or be open for business between the hours of 12:00 midnight and 7:30 a.m. nor 10:00 p.m. and 12:00 midnight except on Sunday, when such hours shall be 12:00 midnight to 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. to 12:00 midnight.

§ 165-6 Compliance with other regulations.

All coin-operated dry-cleaning establishments and laundromats shall meet the requirements of all established state and local laws, codes, ordinances and regulations, including but not limited to air pollution, electrical wiring, plumbing, fire prevention, waste disposal, sanitation, solvent storage, food or beverage vending and hours of operation.

§ 165-7 Violations and penalties.

[Added 11-10-1980 by Ord. No. 15-1980[1]]

Any person, persons or firms violating any provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to a fine not exceeding $2,000, imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days and/or 90 days of community service.

[1] Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).