All too often, just the idea of taking stuff to the laundromat brings hassle to mind. Many make the pilgrimage because the machines at home have suddenly refused to work, and the resulting instant mountain of laundry that springs up is too overwhelming to wait for the hit-or-miss schedule of a repairman. The image that comes to mind is a dimly lit room filled with noisy machines and questionable characters lurking in the shadows. In these places, dropping a newly laundered item on the floor goes hand in hand with the immediate urge to reach for the disinfectant. One business owner in Camden is changing these stereotypical images, one load at a time. Welcome to the Clean Bee Laundromat, Camden’s cleanest solution to dirty laundry.

Owners Broo Temple and Jennifer Moore Temple have redefined laundry day from a laborious chore to an anticipated joy. Together, they infuse globally conscious values in each load of freshly laundered clothes. Newly painted walls, family friendly ambiance and scrubbed white floors brighten the place in such a way that one wouldn’t hesitate stretching the five second rule for a wayward sock. Spare change is donated to Safe Passage, a non-profit that works with the poorest at-risk children of families working in the Guatemala City garbage dump. The change jar fills up quickly, and as of February 2010, Clean Bee donated $120 to Safe Passage.

As business owners, the Temples are content with small moves if it means measurable progress. The business started as the Temples pondered ways to diaper with cloth and positively impact the environment after the birth of their oldest daughter, Liefe. For the last 5 years, the Temples have promoted a healthier environment from the bottom up through the mid coast’s only cloth diaper service, Buzzie Bee Diapers.

Liefe, age 7, assists at the counter while Haydee shows off a drawing by the Aqua Wing washers.

As one of thirty Women, Work and Community participants profiled in “Creating the Future,” Jennifer maximized what she learned in WWC’s New Ventures Program into a business that serves the whole in positive ways. Adding Clean Bee Laundry to the business portfolio has allowed the Temples to broaden the scope of their passion for a greener, cleaner Midcoast while simultaneously reaching out to improve the lives of children in a country a world away.
The Temple’s values are also reflected in the array of services provided for local businesses in the hospitality, restaurant and health industries. The first order of business for the laundromat was to purchase two large capacity Aquawing Aquafusion Ozone washing machines. A contained thunderstorm in a rotating steel drum, these environmentally friendly washers charge clothes with electricity, just as lightning charges the air during a storm.

The Aquawing Ozone washer

The difference between chlorine bleach and an ozone cleaning process is speed and strength. Ozone relaxes fabrics, killing bacteria immediately so they do not survive the wash process. Relaxed fabrics require less drying time, which also saves energy and extends fabric life. Ozone is 150% stronger than chlorine, reducing the chemicals necessary to clean by up to 30%. Ozone works best with cold water, reducing the energy required per load up to 80%. In contrast, bleach slowly melts bacteria, allowing organisms to build up immunity and stay in the fabric long after washing. Thus, an ozone cleaning process results in cleaner laundry, smaller amounts of detergent, reduced wear and tear for fabrics, and a significantly lessened environmental impact.

Clean Bee Laundry offers personal service and delivery to commercial accounts and shut ins in the Midcoast region within a 15-mile radius of Camden. Restaurants, B & B’s, rental properties, health practitioners and individual customers can take make use of these revolutionary machines that also come with Clean Bee’s hassle-free, quality service and the owners’ cheery grins.

Offering different levels of service allows for flexibility. Customers can bring in their basket of laundry for the same day wash, dry and fold service, or start their wash loads and leave to run errands while utilizing the changeover service from washer to dryer.

For the time-frazzled, a starter service is also available for a mere buck. Forgot your detergent/softener or non-chlorine bleach? No problem. Charlie’s Soap Laundry Powder, non-chlorine bleach and fabric softener sheets are on hand. Need your shirts pressed and hung up or boxed? These services are also available, as well as drop-off dry cleaning with a twice-weekly turnaround. Alterations, down and synthetic comforter washing and rug cleaning also extend the level of convenient service at Clean Bee.

For those who prefer to do their own laundry, Clean Bee offers many options. Eight single loaders, six triple loaders and four giant machines that will hold the contents of an entire suitcase, make the washing choices plentiful. All the machines are ultra high efficiency, most washing loads in 25 minutes or less. Brightly painted walls, well lit areas and a book nook for children make the time spent waiting for laundry to wash and dry a more pleasant experience. For those wishing to check email or keep up with friends on Facebook, wireless internet service is a perk. Curb-free access from the parking lot provides ease of entry, eliminating the dangerously blind search for the step while lugging an overstuffed laundry basket inside.

The book corner at Clean Bee holds plenty of stories to keep young ones busy.

Customers have positive things to say about the new Clean Bee. Laura van Orsdall splits her time between North Carolina and Camden. She shared, “With four kids and many guests visiting our home, my laundry burden is cumbersome. I hate to fold sheets, so taking my linens into Clean Bee really lightens my workload. It feels good to hand over this chore, and to see a closet full of neatly folded, stacked and bagged linens waiting for the arrival of my next guest.”
Clean Bee is open Mondays 8:00 am to 8:30 pm, Tuesday through Saturday 8:00 am to 7:00 pm, and Sundays 12:30 pm to 5:30 p,. Hours are longer during the summer months. Whether you’re in the mood to do laundry yourself or drop it off and run errands, Clean Bee is there to make it a pleasant experience any day of the week.
Jennifer Moore Temple, Clean Bee Laundry, 83 Elm Street Suite 3, Camden, Maine (207) 236-2530.

References:

Aquawing Ozone Washers: http://www.decequip.com/equipment/ozone/ozone.html
Charlie’s Soap: http://www.charliesoap.com/
Safe Passage: www.safepassage.org
Women Work and Community: http://www.womenworkandcommunity.org/

Services: • Pick up Service • Commercial Laundry • Wash Dry Fold • Alterations •Dry Cleaning Drop Off Site • Shirt Drop Off Site • Self Service Laundromat • Rug Cleaning • Laundry Change Over Service • Tanning and Tanning Products • Drop off Comforter Cleaning • Wireless Internet.

This content also appears in the ezine The Valley Voice.

L. Jaye Bell brought herself off of disability from Fibromyalgia by focusing on what she loves: whole foods, music, art, photography and writing about the things that inspire her. She writes about travel, arts, music, food and healing. She is the producer and host of Tribal Vibe, an spiritual, indigenous music show online. She also produces new media press releases for businesses. Her website, http://sites.google.com/site/gypsyblondereport/