As mentioned above cleaning your upholstered sofa or chair is a tricky business. Before start cleaning make sure to know what kind of material you are cleaning. The main materials used for upholstering are leather and fabric. At this stage it must be relatively easy for you to make the difference between them. Unfortunately, here the simple part ends.
As a rule of thumb most furniture producers put a label with a cleaning code on the frame of your piece of furniture. Read it carefully because it is really easy to damage your furniture beyond repair. If you can not locate the label, well then it is a good idea to call the producer or the store you purchased the sofa from. If you locate the label, there are four basic fabric codes:
- X- it is a very rare code. You should not try to clean it in any way. Never apply any homemade or commercial cleaning solution. Vacuum clean only and brush with non – metallic brush.
- W- you can use water with this kind of fabric. You can use moisture and clean it with water – based cleaning agent, but do not over wet. Strictly forbidden to use solvent based cleaners to remove stains.
- WS- it stands for dry-foam. It is safer than “S”. You can use shampoo to clean it. Be careful and better apply dry cleaning solvent instead.
- S- this means solvents only. You can brush the piles to restore their appearance but do not apply water or wet it in any way or you risk ruining it.
A regular deep clean is a must for every house. To save time,effort and money devise a strict weekly cleaning plan. That way you will greatly decrease the build up of dust and soil. When cleaning your sofa remove your cushions and clean throughly seams, edges and recesses. On the spot action when a spill occurs will prevent lots of headaches later. Be advised to blot a liquid spill, never to rub as it only makes stains worse. Direct sunlight damages any fabric, making it fade and tear easier. Put your furniture out of direct sunlight.