Dealing With A Soiled Sofa

These furniture pieces are large investments, intended to last for decades- and come with a high price tag. Unless properly cared for, the funds spent on it can go down the drain. Dirt and grime is a threat to your unit. From the dust particles that accumulate on it on a daily basis and get ground against the upholstery whenever one sits back on the cosy cushions, the food particles that are strewn all over the material, attracting insects and in some cases rodents, which damage the upholstery as they try to pry out the food crumbs, issues like spills that soak into the sofa and bond with the material- the barrage of abuse meted out onto the sofa necessitates routine cleaning to be carried out. Sweat and body oils that are rubbed onto the upholstery, hair products that grease up the sofa, the denim wear which leaves behind markings on the seat, those cases where the kids decide to be creative and draw all over the furniture with pens, urine accidents from puppies- the mess takes away the elegance of your furniture. In fact, many do not even recall how the sofa first looked on those initial days after it had been brought back from the store. The gradual colour changes that occur over time as the dirt dulls the unit, stains that stick out of the surface of the furniture as though to mock you with their existence, odours that reek up the unit and make it uncomfortable to sit back and relax- this is not a state that you want to maintain the set In. It takes away your comfort and peace of mind, it’s a constant distraction when you’re in your own home, and makes for an embarrassing sight whenever you have guests coming over. Get the services of a sofa cleaning professional to bring back the elegance to your sofa. Washing it by yourself is problematic. Here’s why: 

Common mistakes made during the DIY Sofa cleaning

When faced with a stain or spill, it is natural for the sofa owner to use water on it- especially with the thought of the stain setting deeper into the fabric and causing long-term damage. However, using too much water will cause its own sets of problems. With the excess water soaking into the sofa, the moisture that seeps through the upholstery can cause ripples, or even buckling in the fabric. This is difficult to fix. Then there is the prolonged drying time that results, especially without powerful suction equipment to extract the moisture from the upholstery. This, in turn, will encourage mould and mildew to develop on your unit. The fungi cause stains of their own and also increase the allergen concentration in the indoor air space. Colour bleeding may also result, in which case the dyes that had been used to treat the upholstery get leached out. Some fabrics shouldn’t even be worked on with water since it causes shrinkage of the material. All these blunders just revolve around water usage. There is more room for error with the DIY sofa cleaning. 

Skill level plays a key role in the process. Blog posts and video tutorials do not equate to the professional training and groundwork covered by technicians in the industry. There are different factors that come into play in every sofa cleaning situation. First, the material itself is focussed on. Form synthetic fabrics like polyester, to the natural fabric wool and silk upholsteries, to leather units like those with aniline and semi-aniline leather- they all have their required modes of treatment. Specific products need to be used for the different material, otherwise cases of corrosion of the material, or weakening if the protective treatments that had been used on them can occur. While some damage can be reversed through applying additional treatments to replenish those that were lost, in other cases the damage to the upholstery due to the chemical reaction with incompatible formulations can permanently ruin your set. The level of soiling and the type of stains involved also factors in. Here, powerful products may be needed to break down the heavy build-ups of soiling, and dissolve the stains that are on your unit. The goal is to get it done effectively without ruining the underlying material. The DIYer may turn to conventional products around the household that have worked in removing the spots and stains from the different hard surfaces, like the floors and countertops. This does not make them automatically suitable for removing the same kind of stain that is on the furniture. On the other hand, using weak products that do not aid in getting rid of the spot is exasperating, forcing you to spend hours scrubbing on the same area without it budging. This is not something that you want to go through. The professionals have the skillset and experience needed to take care of the situation. Having been providing the sofa cleaning services for years, they will know the right approach to take for your particular unit. 

The equipment used during the DIY sofa cleaning may also work against the individual. This is usually due to the rented equipment having lower capacity than the machinery that the professionals use. For the former, the machines are smaller, as their component parts are reduced in size and weight to make them lighter and more portable. This has the negative effect of reducing their power and effectiveness. You end up having less heat, pressure and extraction power needed for the cleaning, as opposed to the truck-mounted industrial-grade machines that the professionals rely on. As such, the DIY sofa cleaning process takes up far much more time than you would have desired. In some cases, the rented units are not properly maintained. They may have faulty parts, or come over with dirt from the previous cleaning job. In this case, issues like frustrating results, or outright damage of the unit. Added to the costs involved in renting the equipment, and the amount of time that will be spent labouring on the job, it can put a strain on you. Things don’t have to be this way. Dial up the sofa cleaning professionals to take the load off your back.

Dealing With A Soiled Sofa