Basics in Wooden Furniture Care and Maintenance

Although not all furniture pieces are created equal, however they are all subject to usual wear and tear. Even the ones you bought from the best furniture store are not an exception. You surely have shelled out a major investment for your home furnishing. It will definitely become a regret if your home furnishings deteriorate even before you have maximized their use. The need for proper care and maintenance applies to all types of furniture " from bedroom furniture to children’s furniture. You definitely have heard about furniture pieces that have served their owners for more than a decade. The secret to this long-term usage of your home furnishings is to religiously devote a couple of hours for their care and maintenance. When you are able to take care of your wooden furniture pieces, they will definitely be worth the investment. Even simple steps could  go a long way in maintaining the good condition of your home’s wooden adornments.

Dusting. Airborne dust can easily accumulate and pile up in different sections of your furniture, especially in your living room furniture sofas. The moisture caused by the buildup of dust could damage and scratch the finishing of your furniture. Most homeowners tend to use feather dusters. However, this will just pave the way for the dust to be scattered back through the air. Thus, it will just be an endless cycle from the air to your furniture and back to the air and so on. To ensure that the dust will not be a repeat guest to your furniture items, a damp cloth will be a more effective tool in removing the dust. Any piece of cloth will do, even cuts from your old shirts. Dusting should be done twice a week but may have to be more frequent for furniture placed near windows and doors. After removing the dust with a slightly wet cloth, you should also wipe your furniture with a clean, dry towel to prevent the buildup of moisture.

 

Cleaning. Despite their popularity, all-purpose cleaning sprays are not a universal furniture cleaning agent. They are only highly recommended for furniture pieces with plastic coating, like children’s furniture and plastic chairs and tables. For other furniture pieces such as sleeper sofa and sectional sofas, the use of all-purpose cleaning sprays is strongly discouraged. For wooden furniture, use wet cloth to wipe off sticky spots caused by spillage of liquids. The cloth should be washed with soap or detergent. Again, wipe your wooden furniture afterwards with a dry cloth. Silicone-based spray and liquid polishes would also be good because of the protective layer they wrap your furniture with. Never use olive oil in cleaning and polishing. Instead  applying paste wax would be a better alternative. Waxes are known to provide long-lasting protection to wood finishes. You also do not have to worry about smears in your furniture items.

 

It has already been a common knowledge that wooden furniture items have been designed with features for protection. However, owners should not just rely on the furniture’s built-in protective coatings. You also have your own responsibilities. When you need to look for new pieces again from your favorite home furniture store, make sure the care and maintenance requirements should be clearly explained to you.