How Does Furniture Get Dirty And Why Doesn't It Seem To Show?

Allergists, upholsterers and cleaners all agree that DUST is the #1 enemy of upholstered furniture. Gritty matter blows in through open doors and windows and impregnates itself on your furniture cushions and back. Think of how much dust would accumulate on a table if it were never dusted. That same amount is on your sofa, too. You just can't see it. Then when you sit on the cushion the oils from your skin and hair compress the dirt into the fabric where it's almost impossible to remove with vacuum cleaning.

The abrasive action of the grit pressing into the fiber CUTS the fibers like a knife – that's why your furniture wears out. Then combine this with pollens, food crumbs, dust mites and their nasty fecal pellets…your furniture is literally awash with soil within the short span of just a year (with an average family). If you have pets and kids your furniture needs to be cleaned thoroughly at least once a year.

Bacteria and Germs are the result of soils that are not removed from furniture on a regular basis. The byproduct of decaying living materials decomposing is a foul smell that characterizes furniture that has not been cleaned regularly.

Why doesn't dirt show? Because today's fabrics are designed to HIDE dirt with patterns and colors…But just because it doesn't show doesn't mean it's not there.

How often should I have my furniture cleaned? If you're a retired couple and live in your home 6 months a year…probably every 2 or 3 years. If you have an active family with 3-5 kids and pets – I suggest at LEAST once a year. Conatct Referral at 483-4383 to set up your cleaning.

Is Fabric Protection Necessary? You benefit by having us apply our carpet & fabric protection any time we clean your carpets, rugs, and furniture. Our protector makes it more difficult for spills, spots, and stains to PENETRATE to the interior of the fibers (where they cause permanent color change). The protector keeps messes on the surface where they can be more easily cleaned. Some fabrics have protector applied during the manufacturing process. However, the protection degrades over time with use and cleaning. It must be refreshed from time to time.

But my furniture says 'Dry Clean Only' Many fabrics do. The manufactuer does this to limit their liablity so they are not responsible if an unexperienced technician ruins a piece of furniture while trying to clean it. The only problem is dry cleaning is not a very effective cleaning method. However an experienced technician can wet clean various types of fabric and fibers if they use the proper cleaning solutions, do not over wet it, dry it quickly and clean the fabric in the proper direction so they do not disrupt the way the fabric lays.

We don't just clean carpets. Referral's carpet cleaning technicians are also experts in cleaning upholstery. We know the right cleaning methods for a particular fiber or fabric. We can clean different types of fabric construction such as Jacquard weave, Pile weave, Dobby Weave, Haitian Cotton, Denim Twill Weave, Velvet weave, chenille, microfiber and more. Our steam-powered equipment will clean almost any sofa, love seat, chair or other piece of upholstered furniture.

Often upholstery fabrics are blends of different fibers. These give the upholstery various textures and effects. It also creates challenges for cleaning since not every fiber can be identified. These challenges include bleeding, fading, loss of finish, browning, and shrinking. Some fabric is sometimes worn to the point that when cleaned it may separate or break. We will use our professional expertise and tools to give you the best possible cleaning but can not make any guarantee regarding the above cautions.

Your home contains many pieces of furniture created from many different fibers, each with different characteristics. Cleaning these fibers properly takes experience and the correct cleaning methods. No one method cleans all upholstery fibers. So that expensive living room set, dining room chair cushion, or office ensemble you bought years ago doesn't need to be replaced. Referral will make it look like new again. So when you call us to have your carpets cleaned, don't ignore your furniture. We can do both at the same time. You can also drop off a piece of furniture or just a cushion if needed to our shop.

You can see the contrast from cleaning on these sofa cushions!

Video - How Referral determines the price to clean your furniture.

Testimonials from Fort Wayne Residents after Referral cleaned their upholstered furniture and fabric.

After cleaning my furniture was dry, soft and smelled good. It looks like new even though it is 20 years old. Referral is by far the best company I have used in over 50 years. The technicians were careful and courteous. There is no comparison! - Ms Poyser

Referral had no problem cleaning a sofa that another carpet cleaning company refused to clean. It look like new! Mrs. Yurkanin

Your people "TOOK THEIR TIME" and did an excellent job. The carpet and furniture look like new! - Mr. and Mrs. Burnett

Your men were very helpful with the hints to keep my sofa & chair cleaner longer. My sofa did not take long at all to dry. _ Mr. and Mrs. Kaiser

I really didn't expect our sofas to come clean. What a surprise! The white is white again. Thank you! - Ms. Zartman

My couch looks brand new again. I have already told others about the great work Referral does - Ms. Walter

The area you cleaned on the soiled arm of my couch where the other company cleaned, looks great! Big difference! Thanks! - Mr. and Mrs. Tanner

Very happy with the outcome of our carpet and chair. Great job! - Mr. and Mrs. Krueckeberg

I appreciate being able to drop off a cushion for cleaning when there's been an "accident" - Mr. and Mrs. Patton

Carpet & furniture really look great! - Mrs. Resac

You're the best! I have referred you to several of my friends. Our couches look great! - Mr. and Mrs. Stuart

Your men were very helpful with the hints to keep my sofa & chair cleaner longer. My sofa did not take long at all to dry. _ Mr. and Mrs. Kaiser

My couch looks brand new again. I have already told others about the great work Referral does - Ms. Walter

I really didn't expect our sofas to come clean. What a surprise! The white is white again. Thank you! - Ms. Zartman

Excellent! Spent a lot of time on the sofa - it was a real challenge - Mrs. Worman

Very Pleased with service and the looks of my sofa. Did an excellent job! - Ms. Miller

Excellent cleaning of velour couch and two chairs. - Ms. Fincher

I thought you did and excellent job removing stain from ottoman. I was very pleased - Ms. Zachrich

The furniture looks great! Both men were very courteous and seemed to take pride in their work! Very thorough! - Mr. and Mrs. Thies

We were very pleased with the service & the amount of time spent on our furniture. Thanks! - Ms. Smith & Mr. Melchi

Referrals technicians were very friendly and willing to answer questions.  The carpet is 17 years old and has never been professionally cleaned, I have cleaned it myself in the past. Now it looks like new, Unbelievable!  They were able to schedule me quickly.  Referral cleaned the arms of my recliner chair and they look like new.  -  Mrs. Tennison

They also cleaned a chair that I didn’t think the stains would come out of, but it looks like new.  I have used the host system and did not like the film it left down in the carpet and it made my pets sick.  Referral pre-spotted the spots in my carpet and went over them several times to make sure they came out.  I think they did a great job.  -  Karen Boggs, Carpet Discount

You made my two chairs, which were soiled from many years of use, look like new. – Mrs. Koester

The cleanliness of the carpeting and upholstery essentially restored them.  It was quite an accomplishment since the carpet is a light color and about 10 years old.  The technicians paid careful attention to areas I pointed out that I felt needed extra attention.  They surpassed all my expectations with every area of carpet and upholstery.  The carpet & Upholstery were well dried when I returned home after work and I continued the process with my own fans.  Referral does not finish the job until it is completed almost at a standard of perfection.  It could not be done better or more professionally.  This differs from past experiences with 2 other large franchise companies who’s service was adequate but not exceptional as with Referral.  There is not a thing that could have been done any better.  -  Mr. & Mrs. Brown

We had to have our upholstery cleaned and Referral was recommended to us.  They did a very nice job.  We would certainly recommend them to anybody.  They did an excellent job.  -  Mrs. Aspy

Ryan and Alan did an excellent job.  They were very thorough and did not rush to get the cleaning done.  They also did a great job on cleaning the upholstery.  The couch and chairs look new.  I am pleased with your service and would not hesitate to recommend Referral to anyone.  -  Ms. Lalha

Click here to download the Woven & Knit Residential Upholstery Fabric Standards & Guidelines

Referral can keep your families home clean and healthy.

Cleaning A Soiled Sofa.

Soiled sofa from pets rubbing against the fabric.

Cleaning the sofa.

The sofa looks like new again!

A dog chewed up an ink pen on a wool fabric sofa

Referral goes to work

The wool fabric sofa looks like new again!

Cleaning a white sofa with cotton fabric.

Above a heavily soiled cushion around the head cover.

Below you can see the cleaning by Referral made it look like new.

Above a dirty and spotted Microfiber Sofa Cushion.

The lighting changed but below you can see the cleaning results of Referral.