How do you take care of leather furniture?
Friday, February 5th, 2010 at
2:38 am
Just got a new couch, love seat, and arm chair how do I take care of leather furniture.
Tagged with: arm chair • couch • leather furniture • love seat
Filed under: Your Community Center
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!
This depends what type of leather it is. if it is very absorbent then the dirt and stains will have soaked into the leather and will not clean out.
For general cleaning you need to use a good quality water based foam leather cleaner. Strong cleaner or Maxi Cleaner if it is very dirty. With light coloured leather dye transfer from clothing can be a problem although using a good quality leather protector will help inhibit this.
DO NOT use anything containing oils, waxes or silicones. (Most ‘conditioners’ contain waxes or oils) and furniture polish contains silicones
BABY WIPES are the worst thing you can use as they will destroy the finish on your leather. They are very strong alkiline cleaners to neutralise urine (acid) on babys skin so they are not the right thing to use on leather.
Saddle soap is too harsh to use on fine leather.
A lot of leather wipes contain chemicals which will also destroy the finish or leave residues on the leather which will damage it. They are not cheap in the long run as you would need a lot to clean a whole leather sofa. A bottle of foam cleaner should do your furniture 1-2 times.
Fairy liquid contains more salt these days to get dishes clean and this will break the finish down on your leather. This has been verified by the manufacturers (as with the baby wipes).
You should also follow cleaning with a good water based leather protector which will act like a ‘scotchgard’ and inhibit dirt and stains from being absorbed and make cleaning easier the next time.
Dry leather needs rehydrating with water and oils and waxes should not be used as the natural oils do not dry out of leather. Wiping over with a damp cloth regularly will help to do this.
It is important to maintain a regular cleaning regime cleaning dirt off the surface regularly and inhibiting the absorption of body oils into the leather with a protector is the best way of doing this.
The alternative is a brand new product on the market called Lazy Leather. This is the latest technology in cleaning and combines an effective cleaner with a protector. It is quick and easy to use and should be used as a maintenance product once your suite has been cleaned or from new if you have just bought it.
Using household products may appear to work but will in the long run deteriorate the leather finish quicker and it may tehn be impossible to restore. May seem cheaper to use products from the supermarket but if they do not work or damage the leather then it is a short sighted saving.
Source(s):
http://www.LTTsolutions.net
Leather care consultants to the furniture and cleaning industries
Get a cleaning product from a store that sells leather furniture. Spray on, wipe off.
Your best bet is to invest in a leather care kit. It should have all the necessary stuff in order to keep your new furniture looking new for several years. Try calling the furniture store where you purchased the set from. They should be able to help you locate a kit. Good luck!
For regular light cleaning just take a damp cloth and wipe them down. For a deep cleaning once a year use saddle soap. It will not only clean the leather but also condition it.