Cleaning a faux leather sofa isn’t too difficult, depending on how dirty it is. In fact, it is much the same as cleaning a leather sofa, with a few subtle differences that will keep the faux leather looking beautiful for longer.
Let’s have a deep dive into cleaning a faux leather sofa and see how easy it can be.
Cleaning a Faux Leather Sofa
There are several things that you can do regularly to avoid a deep cleaning session of your sofa; these are:
For regular cleaning – once a week or fortnightly
Wipe the sofa down regularly with a dry, clean microfibre cloth. This removes dust and dirt very effectively.
Once a month cleaning
Clean gently with warm water and washing up liquid. Lightly dampen a clean microfibre cloth with the solution and go over the whole sofa.
You may need a couple of clothes for this. The cloth should remain slightly damp throughout. If the sofa gets a bit too damp, use a dry, clean towel or cloth to remove the excess water.
Deep cleaning a faux leather sofa
If your sofa is in need of a bit of deep cleaning, we can call upon our old friend’s white vinegar, bicarbonate of soda and water to help.
An equal parts mixture of vinegar and water will tackle a lot of stains, dirt and dust buildup. Use a microfibre cloth slightly dampen with the solution to clean the entire sofa.
Bicarbonate of soda is excellent for absorbing stains, grease and oily spots. Simply rub it into the affected area and leave it to absorb the stain.
Bicarb is also fantastic for removing odours from your sofa too. Sprinkle bicarb all over the sofa and leave it to soak up the odours. This should take about 15-30 minutes. After both applications, you can simply hoover up the bicarb.
Bicarb does have some abrasive properties to it, so don’t be too aggressive when rubbing into the stained areas on your sofa.
If you want to be extra careful, a small amount of undiluted washing-up liquid will work a treat too.
Conditioning your faux leather sofa
Faux leather is less porous than real leather. It is also much dryer than real leather. As a result, faux leather can often crack and split if it becomes too dried out. To prevent this, you need to condition your faux leather regularly.
Thankfully, you can use a leather conditioner on your faux leather to condition it perfectly. Leather conditioner rehydrates the faux leather and leaves behind a protective layer that is water-repellent.
It helps to restore the colour of the faux leather and protects against scuffs, scratches and discolouration.
Using a leather conditioner on your faux leather sofa every six months will keep it looking beautiful for much longer.
Things to Avoid
Before we leave you to give your faux leather sofa the pampering treatment it deserves, here are a few things to avoid when cleaning your sofa:
Bleach
Avoid using bleach or any other harsh chemicals on your sofa or any other soft furnishings. Bleach and chemicals can draw out the colour of your sofa and leave the fabric brittle and more prone to cracking and splitting.
It can also leave it very dry, which means it is much more likely to absorb anything it comes in contact with. So, it can become more prone to staining.
Abrasive cleaning products
Never use any abrasive cleaning products, clothes or brushes on your faux leather sofa. These will damage the surface and leave tiny scratches that will hold dirt.
If you found this article about how to clean a faux leather sofa helpful, we have loads more like it. To find out more cleaning tips and tricks and to find out the many uses of bicarbonate of soda and white vinegar around the home, please explore In The Wash further.
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