The Ultimate Guide to Cleaning Your Couch

Since Pesach is coming up, I decided it’s high time to write a post about how to clean and maintain furniture. I don’t know about you guys but my couch is full of crumbs and I haven’t vacuumed it since last Pesach (yikes!) So this post is for myself as much as it is for you. I know that Pesach cleaning isn’t exactly fun but hopefully, this post will help you to clean your furniture with confidence that you are cleaning and maintaining it properly. 

Upholstered Couch

Your couch is one of the most used and abused furniture piece in your home. And if you have an upholstered couch (like me) it’s very absorbent. Not great for when you have little people eating and drinking all over it (sigh.) Click here to read about which couch material is best.  We have a no shoe rule on the couch but it’s hard to prevent people from eating and drinking since we have an open concept living room/dining room. Regularly,  I keep an upholstery cleaner nearby so that as soon as something spills, I can clean it right away. My favorite one is this. It’s also great for rugs. 

When the time comes to deep clean your upholstered couch, here’s the best way to go about it. 

1. Check The Cleaning Codes

Look for the tag on your couch that will tell you what type of cleaning products can be used on it. The care tag codes are as follows:

Code W: The fabric can be cleaned with water-based cleaning products.

Code S: The fabric can only be cleaned with a dry cleaning or water-free solvent to remove stains and soils.

Code W-S: The upholstery fabric can be cleaned with either water-based or solvent-based products.

Code X: The fabric can only be cleaned by vacuuming or by a professional. Any type of home cleaning product can cause staining and shrinking.

Source: www.thespruce.com

2. Vacuum

Use a handheld vacuum or your vacuum with an upholstery attachment to vacuum all parts of the couch (the sides, the back, the cushions, underneath the cushions.) If your couch is against a wall, now is also a great time to vacuum the floor underneath your couch and collect all toys and other assorted objects that have fallen behind the couch. 

3. Treat Stains

Use upholstery spray to spray any stains. Follow the instructions on the label. Usually, it will say to let the stain sit for a few minutes and then to blot with a cloth. Repeat this process until the stain is gone. Try to do this as soon as a stain strikes since they will be easier to remove. You can stop at this point but if you feel like your couch could use a deeper clean, move on to step 4. 

4. Deep Clean

If your cushions are removable and machine washable put them in the washing machine and done. If they’re not, you can create a cleaning solution with warm water and a drop of dish soap. Put it in a spray bottle and spray a small amount onto a clean cloth. Use it to wipe down the whole couch. Make sure you let the couch air dry completely before use. 

Leather Couch

Leather couches have a one-up over upholstered couches in the cleaning arena since most leather furniture has a non-absorbent coating. If your couch does not have this coating, consult the manufacturer’s instructions on how to clean. If it does, follow the steps below. Make sure not to do this more than once or twice a year since it can strip the leather. 

1. Vacuum

Vacuum all the nooks and crannies.

2. Clean

Create a cleaning solution using warm water and a little bit of dish soap. Using a sponge or a cloth soaked in your solution, clean the couch in circular motions. Dry with a clean cloth right away. Work in small sections. 

3. Condition

Using these cleaning wipes, wipe down the couch to condition the leather. These wipes can also be used to spot treat stains or to give your couch a quick wipe down whenever necessary. 

Note: Always test cleaning solutions on a small hidden area of the material before you begin cleaning.

Now that your couch is clean, you can kick back and relax on it.