Leather is notoriously difficult to clean. You aren’t supposed to get it wet, so how can you possibly clean it? We spend enormous sums of money to purchase a new jacket or sofa, but the first time it gets dirty, it’s often considered ruined. Leather is a very expensive natural product, so when an item made from this material acquires a stain, it would be nice to be able to remove it yourself. After all, you already spent a bunch of money on it in the first place, so you probably don’t want to spend more just to keep it clean. Many people resort to calling in a specialist or professional company to return their leather to it’s former glory, but that is usually not at all necessary.
Cleaning leather yourself is thought to be risky. Traditional products are very testy, and prone to causing more damage than good. For this reason, it’s often advised to test the cleaner you are using on a small, non-noticeable spot before moving on to the larger area. This is because the chemical compounds that are the active ingredients can alter color, remove color, or otherwise damage the stuff you are trying to make look better. Instead of improving the area, you could easily be causing more extensive damage without even knowing it.
Home-made remedies include using Windex, nail polish remover, hair spray and toothpaste, but the results with those are about as disappointing as the methods are crazy sounding. These techniques don’t usually work that well, and most people wouldn’t want to spray Windex on their couch anyway. Just because Crest can brush away plaque and tarter, does not make it well suited to remove a greasy stain from the arm of your sofa.
Leather Cleaning Tips:
Traditional ways of Cleaning
Despite how thick and tough looking it is, leather is one of the more delicate and volatile surfaces we clean in our homes. Traditional methods have proven to be less than effective, so most people are left guessing, searching the internet, or just dealing with the dirt because they don’t know what else to do. Common recommendations include using hand soap and a damp cloth to surface clean products, or turning to some sort of specialized product. As you know, hand soap has a hard time getting rid of anything but loose dirt off on your skin without intense scrubbing involved, and it’s no different for your coat. You may be able to get some light grime off, but any set in dirt or staining will remain after you are finished. Because you are using a damp cloth, you also run the risk of discoloring your leather as moisture begins to absorb and sink in, and that does not even take into account how you are supposed to get the soap off.
Most of us rinse the soap off of our hands with water from the faucet, but this would be a very bad idea when it comes to leather. You can wipe it away with a clean rag, or take a wet one without soap to remove even more, but chances are you will just end up with an area that is not really clean, and also coated with soap. Whenever you use a method like this, it will also be recommended to follow it up with a conditioning product. This is because it’s common for the material to dry out, so if you don’t condition afterward, you may be left with a dry surface that is more brittle and susceptible to damage than when you started. If too dry, the material will begin to crack, and that’s something that you can’t really fix.
If you go to the store, you can find products specifically designed for this job, and they will come in a spray bottle, or a convenient leather care wipes on form. They will be pretty darn expensive, and they will not be good for anything but this one job. With a spray application, it will be quick and easy, but the results will be less than stellar. Most times you are supposed to just spray on and then wipe off right away with a dry towel. Some of these can be decently effective for conditioning the leather, and making it look a bit nicer, but you will not actually be removing that much dirt. A light surface cleaning will be about the best you can do without venturing into dangerous territory. The leather care wipes offer the same sort of power and ability, but the solution is soaked into the leather care wipes so it can be even more convenient as far as use and application goes. Just grab one, wipe down an area and then dry with a towel.
This article comes from simplygoodtips edit released