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Caring For Your Furniture To Make it Last

From spills to pet hair, keeping upholstered furniture clean can be a challenge. We’ve got you covered with these tips from Wayside Furniture & Mattress.

We all want our furniture to stay in the same condition as when we first bought it for as long as possible. However, furniture is made for living, and daily use will cause wear and tear over time. Your pets curl up on the chair beside you and leave their hair behind. A glass might wobble and spill wine or juice on the couch. The cushion in the corner seat of your sectional starts to look more squished than the other cushions because it’s the most used. Wear and tear don’t necessarily mean you need to replace your upholstered furniture. There are ways to maintain your furniture and, in some cases, prevent or minimize signs of use.

Wayside Furniture & Mattress in Akron, OH, offers a wide selection of furniture with more than 200,000 square feet of inventory. We’re trusted by customers throughout Northeast Ohio, including Cleveland, Canton, Medina, and Youngstown. Here, we discuss how to clean and maintain upholstery and keep it looking its best.

Shopping for the Best Upholstery for You

Believe it or not, caring for your furniture begins before it’s even in your home. When shopping for a new couch, chair, sectional, or loveseat that suits the needs of your specific household, here are some things to consider:

Fabric Expectations

First, you want to have the right expectations about upholstery. You might have come across upholstered furniture with claims about the fabric being stain-proof or pill-resistant. Take such claims with a grain of salt. No fabric is stain-proof, pill-resistant, or bullet-proof, despite being labeled performance fabric. It’s indeed easier to clean up spills with some fabrics. However, all fabrics experience wear with use, and no factory will guarantee performance, nor do they warrant against wear.

Pilling

Have you ever noticed that fabric on sweaters and shirts tends to ball up in high-friction areas, like the armpits? You might also notice this when you take clothes out of the washer or dryer. With upholstery, it doesn’t matter if it’s a light blanket on the back of the sofa, a slipcover across the entire piece, or the seat of your pants on the cushion. Daily use and friction cause sofas, loveseats, and similar upholstered furniture to pill.

It’s hard to avoid pilling. Fabrics that best resist pilling are mostly used for commercial applications, so not practical for the average homeowner. No factory warrants against fabric pilling, and no retailer or manufacturer will consider pilling a defect. Even the most high-quality, expensive fabrics are susceptible to pilling.

Still, it’s an effect some people find unpleasant. What can you do? One option is to explore a fabric shaver, an electric tool for removing pilled fabric, fuzz, and lint from upholstery without causing damage. Using one can help your furniture look newer and refreshed. Or, you can consider purchasing leather furniture rather than fabric.

Cleaning Codes and Instructions

The tags on clothing aren’t just for size; they also include instructions for cleaning. The same is true for your furniture. You might notice codes, which correlate with different cleaning instructions. Some of the most common include:

  • W (Water-Based Cleaner): Spot clean the fabric with a water-based shampoo or foam upholstery cleaner. An upholstery attachment on a carpet cleaner may also work.

  • S (Solvents): Clean with solvents, or dry clean. You may spot treat stains with a water-free solvent or other dry-cleaning product.

  • W/S (Combined Water-Based Cleaner and Solvents): Can use water-based cleaners or dry-cleaning solvents.

  • X (Not Cleanable with Water or Solvents): Only vacuum or lightly brush the fabric to clean it.

Understanding these codes can be helpful to avoid ruining your furniture when attempting to clean it. However, mistakes can still happen, especially if you don’t know the proper techniques for using the different types of cleaners and solvents. Overall, it’s best to consult with a professional service for upholstery cleaning to ensure your piece is treated correctly.

The Benefits of Leather

Fabric isn’t your only choice for upholstery. If you worry about wear and tear or know that fabric pilling would drive you crazy, leather is a great option to consider. Some advantages of leather include:

Appearance

Many people find leather to be sleeker and more sophisticated than fabric. What’s more, as leather ages, it develops a patina, which is a desirable effect of the material. Patina develops as wear and tear, debris, and exposure to the elements leave a darkened appearance and soft sheen. It’s this unique look that helps separate full-grain leather from lower-quality types and makes even older upholstery look better with age. Dissimilar to fabrics, some people look forward to their leather aging, as it unlocks the rich, earthen tones and natural beauty of the material.

Easy Cleaning

Cleaning up pet hair and other debris prone to clinging to fabric can become a hassle. Leather is a hypoallergenic alternative that repels pet hair and dander, plus other allergens. A room with leather upholstery is less stressful to clean and can be healthier for people with allergies.

Resists Stains

Leather undergoes a tanning process during manufacturing that increases its durability. It can repel stains and only requires light cleaning with a damp cloth. Such low maintenance can ensure your leather sofa looks good for years to come.

Back Cushions

When deciding on upholstered furniture, consider your options for back cushions. There are pros and cons for each style, including:

  • Semi-attached backs are sewn to the back of the sofa. This cushion style is known for comfort. Many households with young kids prefer this style as it prevents the cushions from being strewn about during a pillow fight or ending up in a pillow fort. One major challenge to this style, however, is that you only get half the wearability of the fabric and cushion since it cannot be flipped or rotated. It’s also more difficult trying to fluff these cushions up, so once there are signs of wear, there is little that can be done to rehabilitate the cushion or evenly distribute the wear throughout.

  • Tight backs are made of solid foam and do not protrude from the back of the sofa. While they offer sturdy support, you won’t need to fluff these up. In fact, you can’t because they’re fastened to the furniture. Once the foam or the fabric on this back style wears out, there’s not much that can be done to restore it.

  • Loose pillow backs are not attached to the back of the sofa frame at all. You can lift them to fluff, rotate them to different seats to evenly distribute wear, or simply flip them to cover up stains until you can seek professional cleaning. This style offers the most flexibility when it comes to maximizing the longevity of your upholstery.

You can see examples and learn more about these different back styles by watching this quick video.

Seat Cushions

When shopping for upholstery, try to look for seat cushions that are upholstered all the way around. This is a simple way to ensure double the wearability of the fabric and cushion, as it allows them to be flipped and rotated. For many entry-level items or budget furniture, this is an easy place for the factory to cut costs; they’ll only upholster one side of a seat cushion. So, fully upholstered cushions may raise the price of a piece, but you’ll get more wearability if you can flip and rotate them.

With leather furniture, it's different. Leather seats are always only covered on one side. This design ensures the leather can breathe and provides friction on the bottom of the seat to prevent sliding.

Stationary vs. Reclining Furniture

Although comfortable, reclining furniture is not known for its exceptional tailoring or longevity. For one, the cushions are entirely sewn in, so you can’t fluff them up. The fabric often wrinkles or puddles as the foam padding experiences wear. Both things are characteristic of reclining furniture and not warranted by any manufacturer. Plus, motors and mechanisms are also prone to breaking – especially if used incorrectly. In all, reclining furniture is more challenging and often costly to maintain.

The Difference of “Better Quality”

Sofas and sectionals come in all shapes, sizes, and brands. It can be difficult to distinguish between a lower- and higher-quality piece if you’re not familiar with furniture construction techniques. You want to consider each component, from the frame and support systems to the cushioning, to understand the hallmarks of high quality. Investing in a premium piece isn’t just about functional longevity – this furniture tends to look better longer, too. What’s more, the factories that produce higher-quality pieces tend to offer lifetime warranties on frames and cushions for assurance.

For help determining if the piece you want is truly high quality, check out this video covering the fundamentals of furniture construction and other tips. It may be an older video – but the information is still true!

Protect From Accidents

Another key consideration – does the manufacturer or retailer you’re purchasing from offer any protection against accidents that can offer you some peace of mind? At Wayside Furniture & Mattress, we offer an Accidental Stain & Damage plan (Total Care 5-Year Protection Plan). Like a home or car insurance policy, it covers accidental incidents (in this case, stains and damage) that occur in specific instances, but not everyday wear and tear.

The Protection Plan covers the following for fabric, leather, and vinyl upholstered furniture:

  • Foods and drinks normally consumed by people

  • Human or pet bodily fluids

  • Crayons, highlighters, and gel pens

  • Grass stains

  • Rips, tears, punctures, or burns from a specific incident

  • Other substances (grease, iodine, shoe polish)

  • Blue jean dye and newspaper print transfer (leather and vinyl upholstered furniture)

Customers who purchase the plan must ensure they meet the Requirements for Requesting Service to qualify for coverage. You also want to be aware of stains and damages not covered by policies like these. In general, our Protection Plan will not cover stains or damages that don’t fall under the covered incidents, which include damage of ineligible furniture and components, wear and tear from repeated use, manufacturer quality issues, and more. For more information on the Accidental Stain & Damage plan, click here. Or, feel free to consult one of our associates to learn more.

At Wayside Furniture & Mattress, we want to share the wealth of knowledge we’ve learned in our nearly 90 years of working with, in, and around furniture. The cornerstone of our training is transparency and honesty, so we can help you make an educated purchase decision based on the specific needs of your household before the furniture has even made it to your home.

Maintenance Is KEY!

Once your furniture is in your home, the only way to prevent it from looking used is to: 1) place it in a dark room, 2) cover it, and 3) never use it. Seriously! The point is – if you use your furniture, it’s going to show wear. However, proper use and cleaning of your furniture can maximize the life of it in your home. Here are some maintenance tips to help keep your sofas, loveseats, or sectionals looking better for longer:

  • 1. Flip and rotate your cushions regularly
    a. We’re creatures of habit and tend to sit in the same spot all the time. Swap the cushion seats (and backs, if possible) around the sofa from time to time to help evenly distribute the wear. Flip them, too.

  • 2. Vacuuming regularly
    a. Dust, hair, and dirt get wedged into the fibers of your sofa – even if you can’t see them. Over time, these can cause discoloration and create friction or pilling. Vacuum regularly to keep it free of this debris. It’s best to use brushless vacuum attachments.

  • 3. Avoid moist environments and sun exposure
    a. As we like to say: sun, water, and wind created the Grand Canyon, so they can definitely damage your furniture! Sun can cause fading, and moisture can cause damage, smells, and even allow mold and mildew to grow.

  • 4. Keep pets off

    a. It’s hard not to let the pup who follows you everywhere or your snuggle-worthy cat onto the sofa. Just know your furry friends leave more than hair and dander. Their paws can also bring in dirt and grass from outside. Claws can create snags, and some animals like to bite or dig at cushions. Many pets like to sit perched on the back of a sofa, too. Upholstery isn’t designed to be sat on anywhere but the seat cushions, so this can lead to cushion sagging and uneven, undesirable wear & tear that won’t be warranted.

  • 5. It’s not a trampoline, nor is it a bed

    a. Treat your furniture with care. “Plopping” down on seats with all your weight and jumping around on upholstery can damage the frames and their support systems. And, although upholstered chairs and sofas are comfortable, try to limit how much time is spent sleeping on them. Check out this Instagram video with other tips on treating your sofa right to extend its life.

  • 6. Protection accessories

    a. Consider investing in accessories to help protect your furniture. There are slipcovers for sofas and pads that go under the legs of furniture to protect floors. Coasters and trays offer an even surface for beverages to help prevent spills.

  • 7.Proactivity & Protection Plans

    a. Hindsight is 20/20. We can’t tell you how many of our customers call us within the first five years with some sort of accidental spill from bumping a table, or chipped leg from running a vacuuming into it. A small investment upfront for an accident protection plan can create long-lasting peace of mind that if a covered accident happens, your new furniture is protected.

Cleaning Up After Your Furry Friends

There are many positives to owning a dog or cat. Cleaning their hair from your furniture isn’t one of them. Your furry companions travel all over the house, from sleeping on the bed to resting on the couch to basking in the sun on the rug. In other words, your home can become covered in pet hair.

Your vacuum is a go-to for cleaning pet hair. Other tips include:

  • Put on damp rubber gloves and run your hands over the upholstery. This will pick up loose hair, and all you will need to do is rinse the glove to remove the hair. A damp sponge will also work.

Use a pumice stone on rugs, gently running it across the upholstery to gather pet hair. You may also want to consider our add-on Accidental Pet Damage Plan, which covers single incidents of damage caused by pets. (Note, stains are included in the base plan mentioned above.) For more information, please contact us.

What to Do When Spills Occur

Spills happen – and they seem to happen quite often. A recent survey asked Americans about their experiences with furniture damage and found that the most damaged pieces are sofas and loveseats at 40%. After a spill, your first inclination might be to try and clean it yourself. This is a natural response, but there are a few problems:

  • Once you remove cushion covers, it can be very challenging to get them back on and as neat as they looked before.

  • As mentioned above, different fabrics include different instructions for cleaning. Although machine washing might be the easiest choice, it can cause further damage.

  • Store-bought cleaning supplies or DIY cleaning solutions are convenient, but they, too, can make stains or damage worse.

  • Some warranties or accident insurance policies void coverage if customers attempt to clean up stains themselves, making the problem worse.

Your safest choice is to lay down a dry towel on top of the spill to soak up excess liquids and call a professional cleaner.

Knowing a professional is handling the task offers assurance. Another provision that gives you peace of mind is protection plans, like what Wayside Furniture & Mattress offers. Our Accidental Stain & Damage protection plan can be applied to all merchandise in our store except for mattresses and accessories. The plan covers any accidental spills, stains, rips, punctures, or burns that occur within the first five years you own the furniture. It works like this:

If the part that is stained or damaged can’t be repaired, and a replacement part can’t be obtained for it, then the entire piece will be replaced. Exclusions apply. See more information about our Accidental Stain and Damage plan here or speak with one of our sales associates in-store.

Peace of Mind with Wayside Furniture & Mattress

Though daily wear and tear is inevitable and accidents happen, it helps to purchase high-quality upholstered furniture from top brands at the start from a retailer that helps guide you in making an informed decision. At Wayside Furniture & Mattress, customers in northeast Ohio access over 200,000 square feet of inventory at everyday low prices. Other benefits of choosing Wayside Furniture & Mattress include:

  • On-site Customer Service department available 7 days/week for questions and assistance regarding parts, warranties, and repairs

  • Convenient free pickup and white-glove delivery at our warehouse in Mogadore – just minutes from the showroom in Akron

  • A free loaner program for customers waiting on custom-order furniture

  • Free cribs for new parents living in northeast Ohio

  • Cafe and kids’ play area onsite to enhance the furniture shopping experience

  • Investment in the local community through participation in multiple events

Wayside Furniture & Mattress also recognizes the various aspects that can impact upholstered furniture. It’s why we offer a guarantee of satisfaction and will service any furniture – no matter the brand or construction – at no extra cost within one year of delivery*. We also strive to honor manufacturer’s warranties.

*Please note: Manufacturer warranties are subject to limitations. Our free in-home service within one year of delivery is excluded from final sale/clearance merchandise, which is sold as-is.

Explore Our Selection Today

When it comes to the selection of furniture, nobody in Ohio comes close to Wayside Furniture & Mattress. We’re one of the top ten single-store furniture retailers in the country. Come see why customers throughout northeast Ohio, including Akron, Cleveland, Canton, Medina, and Youngstown, rely on Wayside Furniture & Mattress. Contact us today.

Wayside Furniture & Mattress features a great selection of sofas, sectionals, recliners, chairs, leather furniture, custom upholstery, beds, mattresses, dressers, nightstands, dining sets, kitchen storage, office furniture, entertainment and can help you with your home design and decorating. Wayside Furniture & Mattress offers great quality furniture, at a low price to the Akron, Cleveland, Canton, Medina, Youngstown, Ohio area.
Information Accuracy - We have taken great care to provide you with information that is accurate and useful. Please notify us if you find an error and we will do our best to correct it. We ask that you contact us directly to confirm information about pricing, color, features, dimensions, availability and lead times.