How to Clean Sofa at Home in Easy Steps

Sofas are an important part of your house. You use these to sit with your family watching TV or to lie down and take a quick nap. The frequent use of sofas leads them to get stained and dirty often.

From drinks and coffee spills to chip crumbs falling into the cracks, and from your pets tracking mud all over these to the popcorn kernels getting trapped between the cushions and gaps, there are so many things that can get a sofa dirty.

For a couch fabric to last long and keep looking fresh for years, you must clean it regularly. Experts recommend surface-level cleaning of your couch every 2-3 weeks and deep cleaning every 4-6 weeks.

But the question is, how do you go about cleaning this expensive piece of furniture? According to expert sofa cleaning services, cleaning a sofa is not like cleaning regular fabric and there are so many things to consider. But worry not, because this is what this article is all about.

Here is how you can clean your sofa at home using a few easy steps

• Read the Manufacturer’s Cleaning Tag
• Steps for Cleaning Fabric and Microfiber Sofas
• Steps for Cleaning Leather Sofas
• Steps for Cleaning Velvet Sofas
• Steps for Cleaning Sofa Cushions

Read the Manufacturer’s Cleaning Tag

Before you go ahead and use any random cleaner on your sofa that can potentially ruin it forever, we suggest you take the time to read the cleaning tag provided to you by the sofa manufacturer.

The codes written in these tags give you key information regarding the cleaning products or methods you can use.

Here are some common codes written on these tags and the information they contain

WS – This code means you can use both water and a solvent-based cleaner for cleaning purposes.

S – This sign means you can only clean the sofa with a solvent-based cleaner. Using water alone will not be that effective on such sofas.

X – This letter indicates that you need to avoid using any sort of cleaner on this sofa. For cleaning only vacuum or brushing the fabric is allowed.

W – This letter means you can clean the sofa with any water-based cleaner without any worry.

Remember that there are many reasons why you should get your sofas cleaned by professionals. It can save you time, hard work, and hassle. Moreover, their knowledge and expertise minimize fabric damage risks and give your sofas a new look every time.

Still, you can do it yourself if you just know the right way and in this next section, we are going to help you with that.

Steps for Cleaning Fabric and Microfiber Sofas

Here are a few steps you need to follow when cleaning a fabric or microfiber cloth sofa

1. Use a handheld garment steamer or bursts from your steam iron to get rid of surface dust mites. Make sure the steam gets deep into the fabric to ensure better cleaning. 
2. After that clean the back, arms, skirt, and cushions of your sofa with the help of your vacuum’s upholstery attachment. Go along the seams, buttons, and trim of the sofa with the crevice tool of your vacuum.
3. Before using any sofa cleaner, always test it on some hidden spot to see if it causes colour loss or water spots.
4. Take about 1/4 teaspoon of mild dish soap and add it to one cup of water. Apply this cleaner to the cloth and try spot-cleaning the stains.
5. After the stain is gone, dab the area with another damp cloth and rinse.
6. If you have a water-safe fabric, use some portable extraction cleaner by dispensing it through a hose. You need to agitate the fabric with the brush nozzle and vacuum up the dirt.
7. Finally, you can sanitize the sofa with a sanitising spray to kill bacteria and remove odours.

Steps for Cleaning Leather Sofas

Follow the steps below to clean your leather sofa in no time

1. Wipe the fabric using a microfiber cloth to get rid of dirt, crumbs, and stains.
2. Grab the vacuum and use it on the entire couch.
3. Use a leather cleaner or a mild soap solution to clean one small area of the sofa at a time.
4. Now take another clean damp cloth to rinse the sofa until there is no cleaner left on it.
5. Buff the entire sofa with a dry cloth and make sure to get all the moisture out.
6. You can also apply a protectant that conditions the leather making future stain removal easy and quick.

Steps for Cleaning Velvet Sofas

Velvet sofas are somewhat high-maintenance. When cleaning these you need to be extra careful since using too much force or too strong cleaners can damage them permanently.

1. First, target the stains with a clean paper towel. Try to remove the liquid stains by rubbing them with a wet paper towel.
2. In case of a solid stain, use a butter knife to lift as much of it as possible.
3. Now you can mix a small amount of dishwasher (a few drops) in warm water and slowly blot the stain. Avoid rubbing the stain with force.
4. Velvet sofas are prone to creases and wrinkles. To remove these, use a regular steam cleaner. Make sure to start with the lowest temperature settings to keep the fabric safe.
5. After airdrying, use a soft brush to finish the job.

Steps for Cleaning Sofa Cushions

Just like the sofa, the cleaning method used for cushions also depends on the fabric they are made of. To clean removable cushions, throw them into the washing machine and use a delicate cycle.

Also, try to avoid washing them with other clothes. Instead put them in the washer separately to avoid colour bleeding issues.

Following are a few steps that you can take to clean any type of sofa cushion

• If your sofa cushion has pet fur on it, you can easily remove it by wearing rubber gloves and rubbing your hands over the areas where you see the fur. 
• Then you can simply vacuum the cushions from all sides. Make sure to get to the little nooks and crannies that often trap the crumbs and dust.
• Use a solvent-based cleaner and run a spot test on a small area. Make sure to only use the cleaner that is recommended by the manufacturer.
• In most cases, you can use mild dish detergent. Add it to warm water and soak an upholstery brush in it. Use this brush to gently remove stains from the cushions.  

Conclusion

Deep cleaning your sofa or couch can not only prolong its life but can also keep it looking fresh and new for years to come. Always make sure to read the manufacturer’s instructions for cleaning your sofa and only use recommended chemicals and cleaning methods to get the best results.

Knowing the type of your sofa fabric and the right methods to clean it can save you so much time and money. Use the above tips to clean any type of sofa you have in very little time to make it look as good as new.

Visit Lulu Pest Control and Cleaning Services to have any type of sofa cleaned using the latest technologies and by the hands of professionals in the field.