Couches are not something we wash on the regular. Unlike things like the bath or the kitchen counter, sitting furniture usually don’t get a weekly, and especially not a daily scrub. Still, it is not rare to be munching and drinking on it. Popcorn for movie night, a drumstick while reading a good book and a few glasses of champagne while celebrating with friends, let alone that time your child kept his shoes on or all the dust it inevitable accumulates, we might not notice it as quickly as other areas in the house, but couches still get dirty.
This big piece of furniture obviously can’t go in the washing machine so if you decide to wash it, you need to plan ahead and have some sort of plan unless you want to spend a lot of money and call a cleaning company. But not anymore! Discover how to use your iron to deep-clean a couch.
1. For a fabric sofa
- Check the fabric care codes;
- Steam it;
- Vacuum it;
- Refresh with a portable cleaner;
- Banish bacteria and odours.
2. Tips to clean upholstery on a couch
With a handheld garment steamer (if you don’t have a handheld steamer, you can also use your normal steam iron) to kill dust mites. Steam the entire surface of the sofa but make sure it’s only the steam touching and penetrating the fabric. If you don’t have a steamer, go straight to vacuuming. Vacuum the entire sofa, making sure to remove the cushions.
3. Getting stains out of a couch
Before you start taking out all your cleaning products, read the fabric care codes:
- W means water-based cleaners are safe to use
- W/S means water-based or solvent-based are safe to use
- S means solvent-based cleaning chemicals are safe to use
- X means you can only use your vacuum and a brush to clean your couch
Food and pet stains can be cleaned with a carpet and upholstery cleaner but you can also use a mix of mild dish soap and warm water. Of course, test your cleaner on a small area before cleaning your entire couch.
4. Sanitizing your couch
Kill all the germs and odours left with a fabric sanitizing spray.
Source: MSN
