Fabric Care

Caring For Your Fabric Upholstery

Correct care will extend your furniture’s life and value. Various factors determine the life expectancy of your fabric, for example colour, weight and fibre content. Due to so many variables, some fabrics may require specific, specialised cleaning solutions or procedures. Hence it is impossible to provide a single cleaning code for all fabrics. Your furniture should have a Fabric Care Label affixed to or accompanying the furniture. If in doubt, you can also consult one of our furniture sales specialists. We highly recommend purchasing a Fabric Care Kit with your sofa purchase. This will provide you with the correct products in order to care for your fabric sofa. But remember, these fabric care products are for spot cleaning only. You must closely follow the individual usage directions for each product in the Care Kit. If stains persist, consult a Professional Upholstery Cleaning Service. Vacuum all surfaces, cushions and decking regularly. Accumulating dust is abrasive and will accelerate wear if regular vacuuming is not carried out. Always use an upholstery (brush) attachment. Do not vacuum feather filled cushions.

To remove dust, brush delicately using a brush with soft bristles or use a vacuum cleaner set to the medium power output setting (using the most suitable accessory supplied with the cleaner) and taking care not to rub the accessory directly against the covering. Rotate or reverse cushions regularly when the design permits. Do this once a month to minimise wear from ‘favourite chair syndrome’, this is where more obvious soil build up on the most frequently used seat or seats. Position the sofa at least 2 meters from a heat source, such as heaters or radiators. Do not sit on edges of cushions or arms. This causes premature wear and may distort the padding under the fabric. Keep pets and sharp objects away from fabric. Fur is particularly oily and may cause permanent discolouration. Claws, belt buckles, heels, keys, etc., can cut and/or pull fabric, causing permanent damage.

• Do not put a newspaper on the sofa as print ink from newspapers will transfer onto upholstery cover and dirty the sofa.
• Discoloration on upholstery in most instances is caused through unstable dye transferring from clothes to the sofa - please be cautious, the most frequent culprit is blue jeans.
• Feather and down cushions have excellent recovery, but much like down comforters or pillows, they need to be fluffed more frequently to restore their loft.
• Just like down comforters and pillows, feathers can sometimes find their way through the weave of the fabric. This is not considered a fault of the product.
• Tightly attached seat and back cushions will stretch and wrinkle with use. You can easily restore their appearance by smoothing the surface and tucking excess upholstery into the sides of the seat or back.
• An annual professional clean will keep your upholstery looking its best.

Spots and Spills

To maintain the aesthetic appearance, it is advisable to treat each stain immediately before it becomes absorbed excessively. This will avoid prolonged or abrasive treatments being required.

• Do not rub, carefully soak up the spillage by gently ‘blotting’ with a clean, dry, absorbent cloth.
• Clean the stain using a circular movement, working from the outside towards the centre. Always take care to blot each stain delicately.
• Do not use a wet cloth, rather, use a slightly damp one.
• Only apply the appropriate upholstery fabric cleaning and care products suggested by your sales consultant.
• Do not use household detergents or strong chemicals to clean your upholstery.
• Pre-test all of the care products in a hidden area to make sure that they are compatible.
• Improper cleaning may void your fabric furniture warranty.

Things To Note

• Do not move the sofa by dragging or lifting by the armrests.
• Do not move the sofa by pushing or pulling it.
• Do not jump or throw yourself onto the sofa.
• Do not sit on the arms and/or the back of the sofa. The correct way to move the sofa is by lifting it from the base but avoid using the feet as a lever to prevent breaking them.

Failing to care properly for your product may invalidate you’re Custom Sofa Centre warranty.

Professional Cleaning Frequency

How often you engage a professional upholstery cleaning service depends on how you use your furniture, your maintenance and the environment conditions. Overall, as a general guide, (restorative) cleaning is recommended every 12 months for most family room fabric furniture. In other circumstances, more frequently used furniture may need extra attention. Difficult stains should be attended to by a professional as soon as possible and not be left to the next restorative clean.

For all-over cleaning (or if in doubt about spot cleaning), use only a trained professional upholstery cleaning technician.