The Dangers of DIY Upholstery and Leather Cleaning

Whilst we fully recommend our customers maintaining their furnishings, there is a particular area of DIY cleaning that has a habit of going terribly wrong for many homeowners: DIY Upholstery and Leather Cleaning.

We’ve long advised exercising caution when carrying out DIY carpet cleaning, and with leather or upholstery cleaning, it is even more vital you get it right.

If you choose the wrong product to clean upholstery or leather there is often no way to remedy the damage caused.

Even more astonishing is that some of the manufacturers or superstores that sell such furniture will hand out a basic care kit that supposedly covers the cleaning needs of a huge variety of fabrics and leathers.

I advise you DON’T use them!

Homemade Upholstery Cleaning Solutions

Despite there being numerous websites that you can find instructions to make homemade upholstery cleaning solutions, be very careful if you choose to make and use them.

TEST the solution first on a small hidden area of the fabric at the back of the sofa.

That way, if it causes any unexpected reaction, you have not ruined your expensive item of furniture.

And if you need advice on stubborn individual stain treatment, please get in touch with a reputable professional upholstery cleaner.

DON’T attempt to remove a stubborn stain with additional harsh chemicals.

Professional Upholstery and Leather Cleaning

Thinking of hiring a rental machine along with some upholstery shampoo to rejuvenate your sofa? I’d suggest giving it a miss.

We are often called by unhappy homeowners who have used these machines only to find they are not powerful enough to remove the necessary moisture from the fabric. This causes many problems such as over wetting and even unsightly water marks.

We also recently visited a home where an unfortunate lady had used a steam machine which had permanently altered the colour of her sofa’s fabric due to excess heat.

Not in a position to pay for professional cleaning?

Not everyone can afford to pay for professional cleaning right away.

If it comes down to budget, the best course is to save another month or two rather than buy a harsh cleaning product from your local store.

But a good professional upholstery cleaner should be more than willing to offer advice over the phone.

They may also have safe and effective solutions that you can purchase to maintain your furnishings and remove common stains quickly before they set.

If you need any stain removal advice or info on caring for your upholstery and leather, please don’t hesitate to call me today on 07530 532208 (Melissa).

Post School Holidays – Emergency Stain Removal!

Hands up if you’re kinda glad things are going back to normal this week?! Even secretly…

Like me, I’m sure you love our children more than anything in this world. But, they do seem to have unique talents in muddying and staining carpets and upholstery! At least mine do.

It’s been a very busy summer for us this year. We’ve been out cleaning a variety of premises including homes of new and repeat customers, pubs, offices, mobile homes and even a very large hotel (we are delighted to have been awarded the contract to clean the carpets in the Radison Blu hotel in Cardiff.

So if you do happen to be staying at the hotel in the near future, you can be sure that the carpets will be super hygienic and as clean as possible!

Grubby hands and muddy feet!

Carpets often take the brunt of the damage from children hurtling to and from the garden during the summer, with high traffic areas such as hallways taking a particular beating.

But upholstery also benefits from a good professional clean due to grubby hands smudging stains onto the arms of sofas. Over time this can cause the fabric on the arms of your sofa to deteriorate and appear discolored.

We recommend a post summer professional clean of at least your main walkways  – hallways, living rooms, stairs and landings. It’s not just for appearance – it will help protect and maintain the integrity of the carpet fibres and prolong their condition for many years to come.

Emergency Stain Removal

You know that annoying little stain that keeps catching the corner of your eye? Don’t ignore it. The faster you treat a stain the better the chance of removal. But do not use cheap chemicals purchased from a shop.

If you aren’t in a position to pay for professional stain removal, we also supply a really great stain remover that onkly costs a few pounds that will deal effectively with loads of common stains.

Just give us a call, pop me an email or get in touch on Facebook and I’ll happily drop one off to you!

Hope you all have a great September.

Melissa Edwards x

07530 532008

How often should I get my carpets cleaned?

There are a couple of questions we’re often asked by our customers or people enquiring our services: What is the best method of carpet cleaning and how often should I get my carpets cleaned?

Firstly, we advocate the HWE (Hot Water Extraction) method of carpet cleaning. We believe it is by far the best method of cleaning carpets and it is the method recommended by most carpet manufacturers.

It is, however, important you choose an experienced, insured and trained technician so as to negate the risk of any mishaps. A qualified professional will always identify the type of carpet and stains present in order to use the correct temperature and solutions for your carpets.

The HWE method not only produces better visual results, it also effectively kills germs and removes common allergens, resulting in your carpets being clean, fresh and healthy.

Get them cleaned at least every 12-18 months!

Although people often delay getting their carpets cleaned until they are starting to look pretty grubby, there are more important reasons to ensure they are cleaned at regular intervals.

A clean carpet that is maintained professionally, will last considerably longer than one that isn’t. Most manufacturers will advise you get them cleaned annually.

And the small cost of an annual carpet clean will save a great deal of money further down the line. It is the soiling that builds up in the carpet pile that causes the abrasion that wears down the fibres of the carpet and can literally mean the difference in a carpet lasting several years longer.

Allowing soil to build up over time (especially in high traffic areas) will cause permanent damage to your carpet.

Cost of regular professional carpet cleaning

The cost of maintaining your carpets at regular intervals is certainly cheaper than replacing them every couple of years.

There is, however, an easy way to budget for regular cleaning and stain protection, whilst benefiting from free stain removal call-outs and low monthly payments. It’s called our Premium Care Plan!

But, whichever company you choose to use, it is wise to check they have equipment that is capable of getting you the best results and that they are fully insured and offer a no quibble guarantee. These are the absolute minimum requirements of a professional carpet and upholstery cleaning company.

My day at the TACCA carpet cleaning training event.

We have been members of TACCA for a couple of years. They are an important association in the UK, run by Derek West (who also owns Arcadia Cleaners) that educates the public about carpet cleaning and provide a trusted resource that enables people to choose a suitably qualified, local professional carpet cleaner. This enables the customer to choose a local carpet cleaner with confidence, knowing that companies who are members of TACCA have met the minimum entry requirements. Indeed, all TACCA members must have undertaken 2 forms of recognised industry training. And it was in the hope of learning new skills and picking up some tips from industry experts that made me determined to make it to their annual carpet cleaning training day! I arrived at the venue early and met Sian -Derek’s wife – who was extremely welcoming and made me feel very comfortable settling in. The day started at 10am and my first port of call was to John Kelly of Restormate, my main supplier. I have been a customer of John and Lynn’s for many years and it was great to finally meet John, after annoying him with questions on the phone most weeks for the last couple of years. One of the things I was most looking forward to was the marketing seminar by Allan Simmons who owns a carpet cleaning software package called Get Booked Up. The seminar was packed out and I sat at the front with my writing pad and pencil, eagerly jotting down notes. Allan’s talk was really informative and I picked up a few things that I have already started to implement in my business. Although I’ve been carpet cleaning for a few years, there isn’t a week that goes by that I don’t learn something new or another way of approaching a problem… And that was the case when I watched Paul Pearce remove yellowing from bed head boards. He cleaned it in a way that I had never seen before and achieved amazing results. I also watched Dave Althomstone re-tuft carpet and tried to pick his brains as much as I could and managed to (sneakily?!) record his demo with my phone. His work was absolutely fantastic and I can’t wait to put some of the tips I learned into action! Along with meeting loads of lovely and friendly people on the day (some names I’ve forgot!), it was great to meet another fellow female carpet cleaner, Karen from Bonne Fresh Clean, who runs her own carpet and upholstery cleaning company in Bristol. This job can be bloody hard work and it is great to see more women getting involved in the industry! I had a fantastic day in Cheshire and it was more than worth the long drive down. I learnt so much that has added to my knowledge and experience and that will improve my business and benefit my customers. If you’re a carpet cleaner who has already completed the regular training courses and would like to learn some new cleaning and restoration techniques and also pick up some actionable and effective business strategies, there really is no excuse not to get yourself on next year’s event. And if you’re a customer looking for a local carpet cleaner that is fully trained, insured and operates equipment of a professional standard, then a great starting point is to search out TACCA members in your area.