Whether you’ve made your lounge your accidental bed, your kids personal playground, or your new favourite sitting spot, odds are you’ll be due for a cleaning sooner than later. If you want to avoid spending an undue amount of money to get your lounge professionally cleaned there are number of perfect household solutions to remove stains and odour from your lounge at home.Cleaning leather lounges can be a tricky business, and it’s still up for debate on which is a safe at-home method for every day cleaning. Different fabric lounges require different techniques for cleaning. Before you begin your attempt, make sure you check the tag attached to the underside of your lounge so that you’ll know what kind of fabric you’re working with, as well as any special instructions the manufacturer might want you to know about. This will make it so that you don’t have any expensive “oopsies!” while innocently wiping down your lounge.
What you’ll need:
Vinegar
Toothpaste
A microfiber cloth
Gentle soap
Warm water
A vacuum with attachments
Leather cleaner
How to clean a fabric lounge
For dust and pet hair, it is a good idea to make vacuuming your fabric lounge a regular part of your cleaning routine. For cleaning stains on a fabric lounge, use a 50:50 mixture of vinegar and water solution on a gentle cloth and dab on top of any spots you might see. You may also choose to use a soapy cloth dipped in warm water. To help combat odour, use dryer sheets under your pillow cases or try store brand fabric sprays designed to reduce unpleasant scents and bacteria. Use caution when using these methods on other types of non-standard fabric sofas, such as microfiber, since that particular fabric is sensitive to water and can stain easily.
How to clean a leather lounge
For a general dusting use a dry microfiber cloth to wipe down your leather lounge, or use a vacuum with a soft brush hose attachment and gently start vacuuming the areas affected by dust. When spot cleaning for small stains such as ink or grease, use a dab of toothpaste and apply to the infected area. You will want to wipe this off within a minute of putting it on, and repeat if necessary. For an all over gentle cleaning, dampen a microfiber cloth with warm water and lather with a gentle face soap (such as Dove). You’ll definitely want to skip the dish soap on this one, as it will be too harsh on the leather fabric. Gently wipe your lounge with the soapy cloth and dry with a separate clean microfiber rag.
Avoid using vinegar or any household wipes such as Lysol that contain alcohol, as this will strip your leather of its moisture and cause eventual if not immediate cracking – Definitely a no-no for your beautiful, expensive leather! For rust stains and soiled areas you want to go ahead and excuse you’re at-home efforts, bite the bullet, and buy a leather cleaner. This is a good idea, as professional cleaners use beeswax instead of oil, which will condition your leather as it cleans.
Leather is a natural material. You wouldn’t use harmful chemicals or bleach to clean a cow, so don’t try it on your sofa, either. Regardless of the fabric of your choice, make sure to do a test spot when cleaning your lounge before you start the full wash process. Perform your test on the underside or backside of the lounge just in case it leaves a stain, this way no one will know about your lounge cleaning fail.
