Cleaning Furniture Fabric

Upholstered furniture requires occasional cleaning and regular care in order to remain looking its best. Just as you wouldn’t skip washing bedding or shampooing carpets, you shouldn’t ignore fabric furniture. No matter how careful you are, it eventually becomes dirty, but you can easily keep it looking clean and smelling fresh for as long as it lasts.

Weekly Maintenance

Don’t ignore your furniture until it’s obviously dirty and in need of a thorough cleaning. Vacuum your furniture on a regular basis. Remove the cushions and use the appropriate attachment to vacuum away crumbs, dust, and other debris. Also, vacuum the fabric with an upholstery attachment or brush it with a soft bristle brush. Doing so will help keep the furniture clean and bright.

Furniture cushions are like the tires of a vehicle. They should be rotated on a regular basis to extend their use. If possible, move the center cushion of a couch to another location, and rotate the other cushions as well to alternate wear and tear. Doing so will help your upholstered furniture wear evenly and last much longer than if you never moved or flipped the cushions.

Refreshing Cushions

Do your cushions smell a bit stale or musty? Give them a breath of fresh air by placing them outside. Simply remove the cushions, and place them in an outdoor location away from birds and other natural hazards. Flip them so each side airs out sufficiently, and leave them outside for several hours if possible. The cushions will smell fresh and clean like breeze-dried laundry.

Annual Cleaning

If your upholstery is labeled safe to clean but you don’t have upholstery-cleaning tools, don’t pay for an expensive rental. You can clean fabric furniture simply and easily using the following cleaning method.

All you need is a soft bristle brush or upholstery attachment for your vacuum, a rubber spatula, soap for delicate fabrics, ammonia, a clean one-gallon bucket, clean soft cloths, and paper toweling. You might also need a whisk to create soap bubbles if there aren’t enough soap bubbles after filling the bucket with water. You’ll be cleaning the upholstery with soap bubbles rather than soaking the fabric with water.

Begin by removing the cushions, and thoroughly brush and/or vacuum your fabric furniture to remove any loose dirt or debris. Leave the cushions off the couch during the cleaning process.

Next, place two tablespoons of delicate fabric soap and a tablespoon of ammonia in a clean bucket. Fill the bucket with lukewarm water. If there aren’t enough suds after filling the bucket, whisk the water with a wire whisk, and add a little more soap if necessary.

Precautions Before Cleaning

If you are unsure if the upholstery is colorfast, test an inconspicuous area before cleaning the entire piece. Simply rub a small amount of suds into a hidden section of fabric. If the fabric is unaffected after the suds dry, it’s safe to clean your upholstery. If there are any changes at all, hire a professional to do the job.

Easy Cleaning Steps

Cover a soft clean cloth with soapsuds, and begin cleaning by rubbing the suds into a portion of the fabric. Scrape away the suds with a rubber spatula, and wipe them off with paper toweling. After removing the suds, dampen a clean rag with water to wipe and rinse the freshly cleaned area.

Change the water to create more soap bubbles if necessary, and continue these easy upholstery-cleaning steps until the entire piece of furniture has been cleaned. Dry the damp fabric in front of a fan or an open window.