Top 9 Tips to Keep Your Couch Looking Like New!

Top 9 Tips to Keep Your Couch Looking Like New!

Everyone loves getting a new couch but everyone hates when they start to see wear on their new purchase after a few short months. Here are some tips and tricks to keep your furniture looking new for as long as possible! 

Vacuum weekly

Although this may seem like common sense, it is a really important one. The longer debris and pet hair sits on the fabric, the more embedded it becomes and the harder it is to get rid of. A quick weekly vacuum going over the tops of the cushions and in the cracks is an easy way to keep your couch cleaner longer! 

Wash your cushion covers

Although not all couches have removable cushion covers, many do. This is a really inexpensive way to keep your couch looking nice. Simply take the cushion covers off each seat, turn the covers inside out, and wash with your favorite gentle laundry detergent. Take them out and hang them up to air dry. Once completely dry, re-stuff the cushions and put them back in your couch! This step can be done every 1-4 months as needed. 

Buy a fabric shaver 

Certain fabrics couches are made with have a tendency to pill. Pilling is when friction cause the fabric to get fuzzy and/or clump up into tiny bead like balls all over the cushions. This is hard to avoid if you get a lot of use out of your couch but it is easy to fix. Fabric shavers are fairly inexpensive ($15-50) and can make a night and day difference in your couch. As often as needed just run the fabric shaver over any areas that have pilled. It’s as easy as that! 

Avoid direct sunlight 

One sign of wear on couches that is nearly impossible to fix is sun fading. It is best not to put your couch in front of a window that gets frequent direct sunlight for extended periods of time. Doing this can result in the fabric fading and even changing the color of your couch. Once this happens it’s difficult to hide. The best thing you can to is keep your couch on a wall in your home with no window or pull the shades during peak sunlight hours. 

Rotate your cushions

Everyone has a favorite spot on the couch where they want to sit every night. Unfortunately this can lead to noticeable uneven ware on one section of your couch. An easy way to prevent this is rotating the cushions on your couch every 3-4 months so all the cushions get even use. If you have a modular sectional you can even rotate entire pieces of your couch to prevent uneven ware. 

Re-stuff flattened cushions. 

The back cushions on your couch are typically filled with stuffing. If these cushions are starting to look delapatated and too flap and droopy, you can take all the stuffing out and pull it apart into small pieces and simply put it all back in and this will rejuvenate your cushion with no additional cost. If that is not enough, you can purchase this stuffing at any craft store and add more stuffing in the cushions that need it. 

Treat stains immediately

We all know it is inevitable that someone will spill something on the new couch. Although it is best to avoid major spills on the couch by eating at the dinner table and keeping kids crafting supplies in a separate room, most stains can be fixed. It’s easiest to get a stain out right away when it fresh and you know exactly where it came from.

Simply Google whatever it is you spilled on the couch and you should be able to find away to get it out. For example, grease can be removed with dawn dish soap and a scrub brush and paint can be removed with rubbing alcohol, a toothbrush, and a lot of patience. Take the time to get it out and keep your couch stain free! 

Use an upholstery cleaner 

If you already have one, great! If you don’t they are available to rent in almost any city. This makes a huge different in the lifespan of your couch. A surprising amount of dirt settles into the fabric from normal everyday use that requires an upholstery cleaner to get it out completely. Often just scrubbing your couch and then letting it dry isn’t enough. An upholstery cleaner is able to extract the dirty water out of your couch where as hand scrubbing your couch leaves the dirty water on your couch to dry right back into the fabric. This should be done about once a year to increase your couches life span. 

Hire a professional cleaner 

If you have the money to spare this is the way to go. A professional cleaner will be able to clean the couch and restore it the the best condition possible and they come with years of expertise. Although this is not the most affordable option, it’s the easiest option for you! 

If you continue to care for your couch and follow all of these steps, it is possible your couch could last you over 10 years and look great! This is important because is not only saves you money but getting the most out of a large purchase, but it also helps couches stay out of landfills and in people’s homes for a long as possible.

Sofa Savers uses a lot of these tips!

At Sofa Savers we implement a lot of lot of these tips ourselves in our refurbishment process. We thoroughly clean and sanitize all of our couches with a commercial grade upholstery cleaner. Sofa Savers is a used furniture store in Ann Arbor that sells clean gently used furniture and also offers a free furniture removal service.