Placing Item Close to Heat and Sunlight
The placement of the furniture in a living room is often based on convenience and visual appeal. But, if you place a piece of leather furniture too close to heating vents or any type of heating unit, you may risk damage to your leather furniture. Heating vents, radiators, and space heaters can dry out and ruin leather furniture with prolonged exposure. In addition, exposure to sunlight can fade and damage your leather furniture as well and you will end up with minimally discolored patches on the furniture. The worst-case scenario includes cracked and dry parts of the furniture that begin to break and pull away.
Putting Printed Materials on Leather
Magazines, newspapers, and even some books can bleed onto leather furniture when left laying in contact with it. Although the furniture is a convenient place to leave reading material, you may end up with an extra copy of the print. This is especially true of magazine pages with their vibrant colors or coloring pages that have crayon on them. It is best to avoid leaving items on the leather for any extended period of time.
Infrequent Turning and Fluffing of Cushions
Leather is admired for holding its shape so effectively, so owners may be a little more negligent in fluffing and turning their cushions. Wrinkles that develop in leather couches can be impossible to fully fix. The best bet for owners of leather couches is to turn and fluff cushions weekly.
Forgetting to Dust
Leather furniture needs to be dusted weekly. Whether owners choose to use a dry microfiber cloth or opt for using the brush attachment on the vacuum cleaner, the key is weekly attention to the dust on your leather furniture. Dust is an enemy of many things, and leather is included on the list. Luckily the damage is easy to avoid with just a little bit of regular weekly cleaning.
Using Inappropriate Cleaners
Leather owners should avoid soaps and detergents, sprays, oils, and polishes that may damage their leather furniture. Follow manufacturer’s instructions carefully and when in doubt, call in the professionals. Most of the time a dry cloth, or well cared for cleaning cloth and lukewarm water are all that is needed. Some leather cleaning experts claim that equal parts of water-to-white vinegar are good for leather furniture cleaning, however, if you plan to use anything other than water on your couch, check with the manufacturer of your furniture first. Look at the tags on the furniture, check the company website, or get in touch with customer service, but do not use a product that is not recommended as it might end up ruining your furniture.
