Tips to Maintain Leather Sofas | Divano Furniture – Mississauga

How to Better Maintain and Care for Your Leather Sofa

There are many advantages to adding a classy and elegant leather sofa to your home décor as this luxurious material is very durable yet flexible. Along with that, modern leather-made custom furniture is resistant to peeling, sagging and cracking as well.

However, there is one problem. Any spill, small tear, or even a slight blotch becomes easily visible on these furnishing, ruining the beauty of the product. Replacing them is not a viable solution either since they do not come cheap.

But, here’s the good news.

Cleaning your leather sofa is very simple and getting them repaired is pretty pocket-friendly too.

Let us show you how to identify, maintain and take care of different types of leather upholstery.

Cleaning Different Types of Leather Upholstery

Depending upon the different types of the upholstery of the sofa, the cleaning approach needs to differ as well.

• You can identify what kind of upholstery your sofa has by reading the label or the written materials in the packaging.
• Another option is to search it up on the website of the manufacturer or retailer.

To make things easy for you, here are some pointers that you can follow.

1. Cleaning Unprotected Leather

Unfinished or aniline leather, also known as pure aniline, is an aniline-dyed luxurious material that has no protective layer on it, other than the treatment done for making it resistant to dirt. It is more expensive and more prone to getting stained than protected leather.

Most manufacturers will advise you to only dust your sofa with a dry piece of cloth and vacuum it from time to time. Some may even ask you to wipe the surface gently with slightly damp cloth. Leather cleaners can be a good option too. But you need to be extra cautious while doing this since this type of furniture can be easily scratched and stained.

In case of spillage and stains, you need to blot it with a clean and dry cloth as soon as possible. Since this material is very sensitive, you need to be very careful about taking any step.

2. Cleaning Protected Leather

This is what most leather furnishing is made of. Stains are easily removed from this type of material. This is how to do it:

• For water-based spills, like soda and juice, wipe it off with a slightly damp clean cloth.
• For the more stubborn stains, gently apply soft sponge that has been soaked in lukewarm water. You can use non-detergent soaps as well.
• If the stain is oil-based, for example, butter or body oil, then you cannot use water on it. Blot the stain with a cloth first. With time the stain spot will disappear on its own.
• For grease stains, apply some baking soda on the area. It will help absorb the oil and clean your sofa. Keep it like that for a few hours and dust it off.

Pro Tip 1: The most common problem that occurs with leather sofas is the colour loss. This can be restored with the use of special colour pigments that will also provide your precious furniture with a protective topcoat finishing.

Unlike unprotected leather, protected or semi-aniline is a much more durable material that can withstand rough use and cleaning. However, avoid using any detergent, saddle soap, oils, ammonia or other any alkaline products on your sofa at all cost.

General Repair and Restoration Tips

Other than keeping it clean, you need to pay attention to some other maintenance factors too when it comes to leather sofas. Here are some basic maintenance tips for your custom sofa.

Pro Tip 2: Applying a commercial leather conditioner, like Lexol, Mohawk, Leather Master or Leather Magic can help keep your sofa soft and supple for a long time. Make sure to read the label for advice on using commercial products before applying.

1. Colour Restoration

• Keep at least a distance of 2 feet (0.6 metres) between your furniture and a heat source, such as radiators, otherwise, it can dry out the natural oils of the product.
• Place the furniture in a place where you can avoid direct sunlight exposure.
• Placing your couch in front of the fireplace may sound like a beautiful idea, but it is not good for the health of the product. Exposing it to the fireplace for too long will fade the natural colour and can even make it crack.

2. Scratch Repairing

Avoid leaving sharp objects, like the keys, pens, buckles, and shoes on your sofa.

3. Upholstery Replacement

Using a product for too long can make the fluffiness go away. If you feel that your sofa feels flat, then you need to get the upholstery filling restored and may even have to get some extra filling in your cushions if needed.

While you can follow the aforementioned tips for general maintenance of your expensive leather sofa set, for the bigger damage it will be better to hire some professional who knows how to mix the colours and textures and repair it in the proper way. After all, it is a big investment on your part, and with a little care, it can continue to be a great asset to your home.