When it comes to your house, the most frequented furniture, other than the bed, will be your upholstered furniture. Some families entire time together will be based upon sofas and armchairs, and they form a comforting presence in the home, always available, and always nice to relax on. Unfortunately, this regular use can result in some less pleasant dirt and staining on such items, and if you don’t know how best to clean them, then you may find yourself with a problem on your hands. Upholstery is a lot like carpet in that it’s textile nature will mean that it collects smells, and can stain very easily. However, it tends to be a fair bit thicker than carpet due to the upholstery beneath, which means that it should not really be left wet for long, and can be difficult to dry. So, how best to tackle the cleaning of your upholstery?

For a start, if your furniture is of a particularly rare, specialist or expensive persuasion, it is always best to consult a professional cleaner about how to go ahead with your cleaning. If you are Someone who uses a domestic cleaning service regularly, then they may well have a good idea about stain removal. Do ensure that your cleaner knows exactly what they are doing however, as you don’t want them to feel pressured into making a mistake! Finding an upholstery cleaner should not be too difficult, what with the wonders of the web, but ensuring that they are doing the job for the right price will often involve getting a few quotes in. Have a look at testimonials and reviews to get an idea as to how much you should realistically be spending, so that you have a baseline for the quotes you receive. A professional upholstery cleaner will understand which chemicals and techniques can be used on which fabrics and materials, so that you can avoid staining or tearing your furniture. They will also be able to carry that process out, ensuring that there is no risk of further damage to the item, whilst the stain is removed effectively.

There are home upholstery cleaners, so if you think you might want to have a go at doing it all a little more cheaply then you certainly can. However, ensure that you read the bottle carefully to avoid any mishaps and expensive accidents!

When it comes to the general cleaning of your upholstery, you may find that the covers of certain items will come off, and can be washed in the washing machine. If this is the case then the covers will have washing instructions which you should follow specifically. If you cannot remove them, then look in to light upholstery cleaners that you can wipe certain items down with. If you are concerned about the smells left behind in the fabric of a sofa or an arm chair, then try sprinkling baking soda over the furniture and leaving it overnight. The compounds in the soda will absorb the smells, leaving you with a resultantly fresh smelling sofa! This is good for pet smells and smoke, as well as less obviously offending odors. Just make sure that you remember to hoover it off the next morning, as you may well end up with dusty clothes if not! A bowl of hot water and vinegar left in a room overnight is also a great way to remove a lingering smell. If you find that none of these things work, then it is worth getting the carpet cleaned as well...