Every time I come home, I'm reminded that my furniture is a large part of why I enjoy being there. So when it comes time to clean my apartment, the needs of my furniture will play a significant role. In this article, I'll share some lessons learned and offer some tips on how to clean furniture.
First, the rudimentary needs. My furniture has to last, which means that the better I take care of it on a daily basis, the longer I'll go without having to replace it. Simple things like not putting shoes or feet on the couch, or keeping liquids away from the furniture are the normal rules for me. Additionally, frequent vacuuming will ensure that less dirt and pet hair will build up, resulting in less overall damage to the furniture. My vacuum has a special tool meant just for furniture that is, essentially, a powered spinning brush. This tool does the hard work of removing cat hair, loose dander and any other debris that accumulates from normal use. If your vacuum doesn't have one of these, I'd recommend getting one that does. I'm not sure I'd know how to clean furniture without this tool.
When it comes to dusting, I prefer to use a sponge or damp cloth. I have two reasons for doing this. One, I'm not a big fan of spraying aerosols or other agents onto my hard furniture as it adds unhealthy particulates to the air and a very fine film on the surface itself. Two, because I use a sponge and frequently rinse it, I don't move or spread around the same dust and dirt to each piece of furniture that I clean. This will be, of course, a matter of personal preference. One more thing here. I've found that if I start at the highest level of furniture, including shelves, and move progressively lower, I never have to go around re-dusting the same furniture I've already cleaned.
We can't talk about how to clean furniture without discussing difficult stains, so I'll finish with some tips just for the worst kind: cat urine. As far as stains go , there's nothing worse and, unfortunately, I have a fair amount of experience here. I've had cats for years, they never went where they weren't supposed to, and then one started doing just that. Several lessons were learned here. One, the litter box needs to be cleaned frequently, at least twice a week. This is, obviously, a matter of prevention. Should the unthinkable happen, a product called "Nature's Miracle" helped tremendously.
First, I saturated the offended area with this liquid spray, let it sit for twenty four hours and then vacuumed it up with the aforementioned tool. I repeated this two or three times, saturating the area each time. Finally, I laid out newspaper over the area, followed by a single layer of charcoal briquettes, and then another layer of newspaper on top. I let this set for another day, and now have the use of my furniture again without the smell of ammonia.
First, the rudimentary needs. My furniture has to last, which means that the better I take care of it on a daily basis, the longer I'll go without having to replace it. Simple things like not putting shoes or feet on the couch, or keeping liquids away from the furniture are the normal rules for me. Additionally, frequent vacuuming will ensure that less dirt and pet hair will build up, resulting in less overall damage to the furniture. My vacuum has a special tool meant just for furniture that is, essentially, a powered spinning brush. This tool does the hard work of removing cat hair, loose dander and any other debris that accumulates from normal use. If your vacuum doesn't have one of these, I'd recommend getting one that does. I'm not sure I'd know how to clean furniture without this tool.
When it comes to dusting, I prefer to use a sponge or damp cloth. I have two reasons for doing this. One, I'm not a big fan of spraying aerosols or other agents onto my hard furniture as it adds unhealthy particulates to the air and a very fine film on the surface itself. Two, because I use a sponge and frequently rinse it, I don't move or spread around the same dust and dirt to each piece of furniture that I clean. This will be, of course, a matter of personal preference. One more thing here. I've found that if I start at the highest level of furniture, including shelves, and move progressively lower, I never have to go around re-dusting the same furniture I've already cleaned.
We can't talk about how to clean furniture without discussing difficult stains, so I'll finish with some tips just for the worst kind: cat urine. As far as stains go , there's nothing worse and, unfortunately, I have a fair amount of experience here. I've had cats for years, they never went where they weren't supposed to, and then one started doing just that. Several lessons were learned here. One, the litter box needs to be cleaned frequently, at least twice a week. This is, obviously, a matter of prevention. Should the unthinkable happen, a product called "Nature's Miracle" helped tremendously.
First, I saturated the offended area with this liquid spray, let it sit for twenty four hours and then vacuumed it up with the aforementioned tool. I repeated this two or three times, saturating the area each time. Finally, I laid out newspaper over the area, followed by a single layer of charcoal briquettes, and then another layer of newspaper on top. I let this set for another day, and now have the use of my furniture again without the smell of ammonia.