Every apartment has a comfortable and soft sofa, on which the whole family gathers in the evenings… But the joy of owning this comfortable piece of furniture is quickly lost when it begins to appear a variety of stains that spoil the appearance. You can, of course, invite a dry cleaner to your home, but it’s not cheap. So many housewives have a legitimate question – but is it possible to clean the sofa on their own, without resorting to the services of professionals? We’ll answer right away – you can, and it’s not as hard as you think. From this article you will learn what are simple and effective methods of cleaning upholstered furniture from various dirt.
Household chemicals will help clean the couch quickly, efficiently and without streaks
If you want to clean the sofa with minimal effort and get great results, you need to buy a special product, the bottle of which says “For cleaning upholstered furniture”. There are a lot of such preparations in the modern market of household chemicals, they have different composition and principle of action. There are similar liquids in stores for almost any budget. Given that you will not need to clean every day, it is worth once to splurge and buy such a “helper” for the household. Let’s list the most popular and sought-after products that you can easily clean your sofa with:
Vanish Gold Oxi Action.Cleans any stains, does not leave streaks, the absolute leader in the ranking of stain removers. There are different formats of release – powder, spray, liquid. For sofa cleaning it is better to use a liquid cleaner.
Bissell carpet and upholstery aerosol. This is the best cleaner for treating sofas from dirt and hair left behind by pets. The bottle has a handy brush. Suitable for treating water-repellent fabrics, it is completely non-toxic and dries very quickly, leaving no residue.
Bagy Stichonite.It effectively removes dirt from upholstery, removes extraneous odors, disinfects. Available in a spray bottle.
Hoover platinum collection carpet upholstery detergent.The product is considered to be the “gold standard” in professional furniture cleaning. Users are attracted by the large volume of 1500 ml, but may not be satisfied with the high price and the fact that cleaning can be time consuming.
Nordland.It is a foam that has a very pleasant fragrance and helps remove the vast majority of dirt. Since it can be used on any surface, not just sofa upholstery, it can be ranked as a universal household helper.
Astonish fa
ic stain remover.This product is considered the best if you need to remove fresh stains on the upholstery of the sofa immediately after their formation. Removes dirt quickly and effectively, requires no post-treatment, is not tested on animals, and is reasonably priced.Ecos stain and odour remover.One of the best furniture cleaners with environmentally friendly ingredients. It is made of natural enzymes and plant components, which does not prevent it from easily cope with grease and other household stains, as well as remove odors from any type of textiles – from upholstered furniture to carpets and upholstery car interiors.
Dr beckmann carpet stain remover.The best stain remover for upholstery and carpeting, equipped with a brush for easy removal of dirt. Works great on stubborn stains like red wine, blood, and grease.
Astonish stain remover soap.This is an unusual cleaner for almost all types of fabric, available as a soap. This environmentally friendly cleaner is suitable for those who do not want to buy large bottles of household chemicals. The product has no detectable odor, is not tested on animals, and has an excellent price. As an additional advantage we can consider that Astonish stain remover soap can be used as a clothes stain remover, it is very convenient to treat such areas as cuffs and collars of shirts.
This is just a small part of household cleaners for upholstered furniture, represented in the range of stationary and online stores. This product helps to clean the couch quickly and easily without bringing in professionals, and saves you money that could be spent on services of professionals.
How to choose the best product
Given that the range of specialized products for cleaning upholstery upholstery is quite wide, many users are lost and do not know how to make the right choice.The overall recommendation here is to decide on a price range and choose a multipurpose cleaner based on such factors as
Type of fabric, The best choice for upholstery upholstery upholstery, as well as the compatibility of the cleaner with the upholstery upholstery, the sofa and the sofa itself. In particular, for leather and suede, velour may not suit those liquids that are approved for cleaning cotton, linen coatings.
The composition of the preparation.It is better to give preference to cleaners, which are made on the basis of substances of natural origin. For example, take oxygen stain removers, they are mainly made on the basis of components safe for nature and human health, which can not have a negative impact on most fabrics used in the upholstery of sofas.
Maintenance instructions for the item of furniture, listed in its technical passport. When buying a sofa, it should have come with an instruction manual and other documentation. See if there is any information about what products you can use to clean your upholstery. For example, manufacturers recommend using water-based products for some materials, for others – waterless products, powders, foams, wet wipes, etc.d.
Product reviews on independent thematic forums and specialized sites on the Internet. Read the stories of people who have already used a particular means to clean upholstered furniture, you can make a more confident choice.
Whichever product you choose, before you clean the entire sofa, test it on a small, inconspicuous piece of upholstery, for example, in the back of the furniture if its back is against the wall. If the fabric does not react negatively to the cleaner in 5-10 minutes, if it does not start shedding right in front of your eyes, it means you can use the product on a full-scale already.
Using a vacuum cleaner
If you have a vacuum cleaner with furniture-cleaning attachments, you’ve reached the level of a professional cleaner. Get rid of dirt and stains on your furniture in minutes with this tool. Just vacuum the piece of interior from all sides, or brush it dry to remove large particles of dirt and dust. Then treat the stains with any stain remover (specialized or prepared according to the recipe, which will be described further in the article), and then conduct a wet cleaning of the couch. If your unit doesn’t have a wet cleaning function, you can still use it before using a household stain remover to remove the bulk of the dust and dirt.
Using a Steam Generator or Steam Cleaner
A steam cleaner or similar device is just as useful a household appliance as a vacuum cleaner. Using a steam cleaner or steam generator, you can not only clean the upholstery of the sofa, but also to eliminate unpleasant odors, disinfect the fabric, get rid of a variety of parasites (fleas, mites, bedbugs, etc.), and disinfect the furniture.d.).We recommend that you use the steam generator as follows:
First, the preparatory stage – dry cleaning the upholstery of the sofa by any available method. Remove dust and large particles of dirt with a brush, broom, vacuum cleaner.
Wash the obvious and very visible stains/stains with a cleaner or spot remover.
Fill the steam reservoir with water. It is desirable that it was purified distilled water, so no limescale will form inside the device, and on the sofa upholstery stains with clearly delineated boundaries.
Begin treatment of the cleanest areas, moving in sequence over the entire area of the sofa. Treat the hardest stains a few times if necessary. Wipe treated areas with a clean, microfiber cloth. Try to avoid getting steam on the sofa’s hard surfaces made of plastic, pressed wood or metal.
Upholstery in hard-to-reach areas should be performed with the special nozzles which should be included with the steam generator.
In general, the combination of cleaner + vacuum cleaner or detergent + steam generator is the best way to clean your sofa at home by yourself, without the help of professionals. But sometimes it happens that there are no household chemicals at hand, no special detergent-cleaning equipment, and you need to clean the furniture urgently, as it has noticeable stains, and “on the doorstep” guests or relatives and need to bring the house in order very quickly. In such a situation, you will be helped by folk recipes that are suitable for eliminating various stains and dirt from the surface of upholstered furniture.
Using improvised means
Detergents, made according to folk recipes, have some advantages:
They are made from the simplest and most accessible components, which often do not even need to buy, because they are already in the kitchen or in the medicine cabinet.
Turn out to be quite effective, as professional tools often include the same components.
Do not contain aggressive substances that can adversely affect the upholstery material, harm the environment or human health.
Much cheaper in cost than the most inexpensive household detergents.
They can be used consistently – if one tool does not work, you can use another.
If you have an urgent cleaning requirement, you can use citric acid, vinegar, baking soda, hydrogen peroxide, alcohol, even regular laundry soap. We will tell you more about the recipes further in the article.
Folk recipes for cleaning the sofa at home
The easiest way to remove ordinary dirt from the upholstery of upholstered furniture, sofa including – to use a detergent of laundry soap and baking soda. Use calcined soda, as its cleansing power is even more pronounced than that of ordinary baking soda. In this case the calcined one is not more dangerous for the environment or health than the ordinary one, it simply underwent thermal treatment (hardening), which contributed to the evaporation of excess moisture. To prepare a cleaning gel, a quarter of a bar of laundry soap is ground on a grater or a knife, mixed with about the same amount of baking soda, the proportions do not have to be exact, you can measure “by eye”. And then this mixture is poured with hot water. Take as much liquid as you need to get a gel of comfortable consistency, liquid or thick it will work one way or another. If after cleaning your couch and possibly other upholstered furniture you have any excess detergent left over, don’t worry, you won’t need to dispose of it, it’s universal. It can be used for laundry, cleaning, dishwashing and any other “cleaning” purposes.
How to use laundry soap gel to clean the couch:
Dilute the gel with water, whip up a stiff foam.
Clean the furniture from dust and dirt, using a brush or broom.
Moisten the area you want to treat with clean, lukewarm water.
Pour the foam on the upholstery and rub it into the fabric with a soft sponge. If you need to apply not only the foam, but also soapy liquid, rub with a sponge as thoroughly as possible. Leave the cloth to soak and the stain or dirt to dissolve.
After 15-30 minutes take a new sponge or a clean white cotton cloth, moisten it with water, start blotting and wash the upholstery. Proceed like this until the foam and soap are completely removed.
To quickly dry the treatment area, you can use paper towels, napkins or toilet paper. You can also use a hair dryer as a last resort, but don’t hold it too close to the sofa upholstery.
In addition to the soap and baking soda solution, other handy remedies can be used to clean the sofa:
Dish detergent (one tablespoon per two cups of cool water).
Laundry soap and vinegar. Dissolve the soap in a glass of water and then add two teaspoons of ordinary vinegar. Apply the mixture to the dirt for 5-10 minutes.
Soda diluted with water to the consistency of a pulp. The substance is applied to the upholstery in a thick layer and left to dry completely, then washed from the fabric with a soapy solution and a clean cotton cloth.
Lemon juice or citric acid diluted with water will help get rid of stains that smell bad.
Peroxide, Water and Soda. Take 250 ml. liquid, 100 grams of baking soda and 150 ml of. Mix and wait for the peroxide to dissolve, pour into a spray bottle, apply to the soiled surface, wipe with a clean cloth or sponge.
As in the case of professional cleaners, any solution made with your own hands, you need to test on a small, inconspicuous area of the couch. Do not use harsh detergents on velour, suede, leather, etc.
