How can i clean a leather suite / sofa

acl2009

Wow, thanks judyb! Stupid question, how do I find out what type of leather it is? I've checked the website of the company we got it from but it only says its dyed leather.

Really appreciate all that fabulous info!

judyb

If the website says it is dyed the chances are it is an aniline style leather but you can do 2 tests yourself.
1. Scratch test - run your fingernail lightly over the surfaced the leather and see if it leaves a mark
2. Moisture test - put a drop of water on the leather and see if it soaks in quite quickly leaving a darker mark which then dries out
Do both in a hidden place - if the leather marks and is absorbent to any extent then you have an aniline style leather.

If in any doubt put up a photo and I can take a look for you.
Hope this helps
Judyb
Leather care consultant

zippychick

I will be reading this with interest as i have a new leather sofa

ill merge this our leather sofa thread later

Zip

acl2009

Thanks so much judyb,

I did the drop of water and it just sat on the surface for ages, so does that mean its a protected leather? How easy is it to get hold of special cleaning kits or is there anything I might have around the house that will do the trick?

Many thanks again!

judyb

If the water sat there and the leather does not scratch it sounds as though it is a protected leather so dye transfer removing products should be fine to use. Please do not use household products to try to remve the dye as these will not have been tested on leather and could damage the finish whivpch would then be expensive to fix.
There are specialist jean and dye transfer removers available that have been tested by leather technologists.
Hope this helps
Judyb
Leather care consultant

acl2009

Thanks judyb, I'll be off to find a cleaning kit at the weekend!

foopydoo

If the problem is just that it is grimey, ie you can see that dirt is in the grain or 'ingrained' it is simple. A bucket of hot water with soap flakes (like Lux or similar, supermarkets sell them in the detergent section) dissolved in it, a clean sponge and lots of clean cloths or paper towels.
Whisk the soap flakes to make a good froth. Wet the sponge and scoop up some froth and gently rub into the leather until the wetness disolves the grime, then mop up with the clean cloths. Bad patches may need a bit more wetting. Change the soapy water if it gets too grey! Doesn't take long and does a terrific job, comes up like new. After sofa has dried off use a good quality leather conditioner/cream to help protect it.
Any more serious marks you can get special leather cleaner for.

gibson123

I use saddle soap and then saddle conditioning with lanolin. the soap I buy in a trigger bottle, both will csot about £12 from a saddlery, but will last for at least a year, and as your suite is white you will never be away from cleaning it especially if there are jeans wearers in the house.

minniemaus1970

try Pears glycerin soap. 69p and it feeds the leather ( it contains oils)

MM

judyb

Please do not use baby wipes for cleaning leather they do a great deal of damage to the finish and this will be expensive to fix particularly if the dirt has already damaged the coating.

Lux flakes these days contain a lot of salts to remove dirt from clothing and these also do damage to the finish.

This is the sort of problem we see every day when inappropriate cleaning products have been used to clean.
Either have the leather professionally cleaned or use products that ar backed by technical support from a professional leather care company.

Protect the leather rather than using a conditioner as these are only needed for older leathers or saddles that require oils and waxes.
Saddle soap should never be used to clean modern leather furniture as it is far too harsh a product for the leather finishes they now use and could cause it to break down.

Hope this helps
Judybjudy
Leather care consultant