Cleaning Tips

   Cleaning Furniture

Wooden furniture can be cleaned with: Detergent solution, Soap solution, Washing -up liquid solution, Vinegar solution, Rinse off and leave to dry.

Raw wood then should be dressed with a mixture of beeswax and oil or turpentine (which is an oil derived from pine trees). Wax will not clean if your furniture is heavily soiled, unless it is antique wood in which case your furniture should be kept waxed as a preventative measure, to avoid drying and subsequent warping. Teak or linseed oils are the usual wood dressing oils. If your wood furniture is laminated or varnished, as most modern furniture is, then it will not need dressing at all. Avoid the spray polish anywhere around your home – it does not clean, but merely attracts and seals in even more soiling. Life goes on well enough without it. So throw it out.
If your furniture is antique and valuable, then French polishing is an answer to a poor finish. This is a mixture of shellac in mentholated spirit and it leaves a beautiful glossy finish, which is easily maintained by a polish with a dry cloth after a gentle quick wash if needed.

Fabrics
Fabrics and tricky -curtains can be washed but we hold no hope out at all for chairs which attract children, cats, dogs and large amounts of food and grease and worse. You may be able to steam the chair fabric but isn’t prevention rather better than cure? Throw a cover over the chair – you can throw that in the washing machine. Spot treatment on most fabrics will show as spots when dry and the whole begins to look very unsightly -clean in some places and not in others. Always consider the end result when cleaning or attempting to clean.
For a more comprehensive guide to stain removal check out stain removal guide below.

How To Avoid Dusting Completely

Is it necessary, and can it be avoided? But of course it can be busy living area avoided! What a waste of time. Dust is human hair and skin wrapped around grease from humans and particulates from the atmosphere. You dust, you put it back into the atmosphere and half an hour later, it is back again. With a new lot to keep it company. Real dust is what we find on a construction site -plaster, cement, particulate, concrete, wood -the list is endless. That has to be removed, but not in ways you would think. It takes the same length of time to wash a surface as it does to dust, and the effect lasts for a week. Think it over when you next pick up your feather duster, and go and have a cup of tea instead. Then throw out your feather duster or use it on the spiders hiding in the lampshades.

Tips for Cleaning Leather Upholstery
Leather is a popular choice in furniture, car interiors, clothes and accessories. Along with the cozy leather sofa and the great shoes comes the frustration of keeping them clean.

Always keep leather furniture out of direct sunlight to prevent drying and cracking the leather. To nourish the leather, feed it a “hide food.” Mix one part white vinegar with two parts linseed oil, shake well, and apply to the leather using a soft cloth. Work in a circular motion, covering the entire surface. Rub in thoroughly, let it sit for about 10 minutes, then buff with a soft cloth to bring a shine to the leather surface. You may need to buff once more before sitting on the furniture.
Remove stains such as ink by dipping a cotton swab in rubbing alcohol and rubbing over the spot. Dry the area with a blow dryer. If the stain remains after drying, apply a thick coat of non-gel, non-oily cuticle remover. Leave on overnight, then wipe off with a damp cloth.

Remove dark stains from light-colored leather upholstery by mixing a paste of one part lemon juice with one part cream of tartar. Rub the paste on the stain and leave in place for about 10 minutes. Apply another layer of the paste, work it in, then remove with either a damp sponge or a damp sponge topped with moisturizing soap.

For general leather cleaning, use a moisturizing soap, such as Dove. Lather on with a soft cloth, and wash the item to remove dirt and grime. Do not over wet the leather and do not rinse after washing, just buff with a soft cloth; this allows the moisturizing soap to condition the leather. Polish as usual.

Remove road salt from leather shoes by mixing equal parts water and white vinegar. Dip a cloth in the mixture and wipe over the leather. This may have to be repeated several times to clean the surface. Buff and apply shoe polish.

Upholstery Cleaning and Furniture Cleaning
Many furniture fabrics now carry the upholstered furniture industry’s leather furnitureclean ability code adopted in 1969. It gives the consumer information about the proper furniture cleaning methods for specific fabrics. There are four letters in the code, immediately followed by upholstered furniture cleaning service instructions. The code letters are W, S, W-S, and X.

Code “W”
To prevent overall soil, frequent vacuuming or light brushing to remove dust and grime is a recommended step in furniture cleaning. Spot clean, using the foam only from a water-based cleaning agent such as a mild detergent or non-solvent upholstery shampoo product. Apply foam with a soft brush in a circular motion. Vacuum when dry. Pretest a small area before proceeding. Use a professional furniture cleaning service when an overall soiled condition has been reached.

Code “S”
To prevent overall soil, frequent vacuuming or light brushing to remove dust and grime is recommended. Spot clean using a mild water-free solvent or dry cleaning product containing carbon tetrachloride which is highly toxic. Pretest a small area before proceeding. Furniture cleaning by a professional cleaning service only is recommended.

Code “W-S”
To prevent overall soil, frequent vacuuming or light brushing to remove dust and grime is recommended. Spot clean, with a mild solvent, an upholstery shampoo, or the foam from a mild detergent. When using a solvent or dry cleaning product, follow instructions carefully and clean only in a well ventilated room. Avoid any product which contains carbon tetrachloride which is highly toxic. With either method, pretest a small area before proceeding. Use a professional upholstery furniture cleaners cleaning service when an overall soiled condition has been reached.

Code “X”
Clean this fabric only by vacuuming or light brushing to prevent accumulation of dust or grime. Water-based foam furniture cleaners or solvent based furniture cleaning agents of any kind may cause excessive shrinking, staining or distortion of the surface pile and, therefore, should not be used.

Why is it important to Protect Your Upholstery?
The manufacturer’s upholstery protection that is applied after manufacturing to your furniture wears off over time, through everyday usage. For this reason it is vital to reapply the protection application periodically to your furniture so to preserve the color, beauty and life expectancy of your upholstery.