Leather Furniture: The Ultimate Care Guide

Leather furniture adds a classic look to any home, it’s used as a covering for couches and chairs, the material can be durable and comfortable for years. However, leather covered furniture requires proper maintenance and cleaning to maintain its good looks and soft and supple texture. The cleaning process is not difficult but can be daunting for someone who doesn’t understand the process, but whether you’re caring for a bag, a couch, like rent to own furniture, or a leather bound book, these tips are essential.

Proper Placement

Do not place leather covered furniture in direct sunlight, because the exposure to the sun’s rays from a south window, for example, can cause the dyes used to color the leather to fade, and it can also dry the moisture from the leather. Dry leather is prone to cracking and other types of damage, so if the room design requires the placement of the leather furniture in a sunny location, cover the windows with ultraviolet filters to prevent fading and regularly monitor the furniture for damage.

Keep it Clean

Regular cleaning is critical to keeping any leather surface looking good for a long time, so regular vacuuming of the cracks and crevices of the furniture removes dust and small debris from the furniture. These little pieces of foreign material can cause scratches and abrasions to the leather surface which breaks the seal of the leather surface allowing damage deeperinto the material. Wipe off any spills with a damp rag using a mild soap, because routinely keeping the leather clean, possibly on a weekly basis, helps prevent larger problems over time.

Use the Proper Stuff

Occasionally, more intensive cleaning efforts are required, so always use a leather cleaner designed for the type of leather covering your furniture. For Example, a suede chair required a different cleaning agent than a finished leather does. Test the cleaning product on a small portion of a hidden corner of the leather furniture, as this helps confirm that the cleaning product will not cause the leather to discolor, but follow the instructions included with the cleaning product. Try to clean the entire piece in one process avoiding any sharp lines between sections cleaned at different times or with varying intensities of effort.

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Seal it Up

Some types of leather benefit from an application of a sealant or waterproofing agent, because these products prevent moisture from soaking into the leather allowing any spills to be wiped from the surface without damage to the leather furniture. Time and cleaning efforts can remove this sealant which should be replaced, so use a leather sealant appropriate for your leather furniture and apply according to manufacturer’s instructions.