The couch may not look like it needs a good wash yet, but hiding under those covers are layers of dust, dirt, and body fluids that can become a health hazard!
In this article, we present to you a step-by-step guide in cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting your office couch so you won't be left with the embarrassment of having a foul-smelling couch in your workplace. Plus, your workplace will be healthier and cleaner too.
How to Disinfect a Couch: A Step-by-Step Guide
Step 1: Gather your supplies
The first thing you'll need to do is to gather up your supplies. You'll need a lint roller to remove the hair and fur from your fabric couch, as well as a vacuum cleaner, baking soda, spot cleaner, absorbent towel, bristle brush, and an upholstery steam cleaner.
Step 2: Remove lint and pet hair from couch
Use the lint roller to remove any large pieces of debris from your couch. The lint roller should be sticky enough to pick up pet fur, hair, and general dust particles from your couch without damaging the material. Keep using the lint brush until you go over the entire couch.
Step 3: Shake off debris from couch
Next, shake off the large pieces of debris from your couch by removing the cushions and shaking out any small pieces you can see like coins, pens, etc. Keep these or throw the unnecessary items away. Best to wash your couch cushions as well at this point, which you can do so in the laundry machine.
Also read: How to Disinfect Earrings
Step 4: Deodorize with baking soda
Sprinkle baking soda all over your entire sofa. This will deodorize the couch, and clump together dust particles for easy vacuuming. Vacuum up the excess powder after about an hour of letting it sit. You may stop at this point if you're only looking to deodorize your sofa. Otherwise, keep going to disinfect your couch!
Step 5: Make a shampoo out of mild dish soap
You can make a shampoo for upholstered furniture using a mild dish detergent. Dish detergent can break down oils and dirt without leaving a waxy residue like most cream and bar soaps, which makes it perfect to use as a spot cleaner! Dilute a few drops of dish soap in water, and place the mixture in a spray bottle.
Step 6: Spot clean couch
Use the solution to spot clean your couch. Spray the dish soap onto discolored spots on the couch, and blot out using a towel or clean cloth. Keep spraying or blotting until the stain is completely gone. Deeper stains may require washing.
Step 7: Use steam cleaner to disinfect your couch
Now for the disinfection part of the cleaning process: using a steam cleaning appliance! A steam cleaner can be used with or without a disinfectant solution, but it will be able to kill off any couch germs and bacteria, as well as dust mites and furniture pests.
Go over the entire couch to clear away all the germs, and disinfect your office couch! Give your couch a deep clean too, as the steam can loosen stains and dirt on a fabric sofa. However, we recommend you lower the heat settings for a leather couch to protect the material.
Step 8: Let couch air dry completely
Before using the couch, let it air dry completely. It may not feel damp on the outside, but the steam penetrated deep into the couch, and you will need to let it dry before using the couch. A damp couch picks up dust and dirt better than a dry one.
Different Ways to Keep Your Office Couch Clean
The couch is still very much part of your office, and will require some cleaning every now and then. Here are a couple of helpful tips on keeping your sofa clean - regardless of who uses it!
Use a sofa cover
Using fabric covers minimizes the dust that settles on the couch, and provides an extra layer of protection against spills, sweat, dirt, and other grime. Each week, you should wash the covers in the laundry machine as you would any other cloth material.
Vacuum the couch
Vacuuming isn't just for floors and carpets! Vacuuming your couch daily minimizes the amount of dust and dirt that accumulates in the couch, as well as the pests that may try to live in the couch. Vacuum the couch daily to keep it clean easily and conveniently!
Sanitize with rubbing alcohol
Keep a spray bottle with rubbing alcohol in your office for when you need to disinfect your couch. Spray the couch every now and then to keep it clean and sanitized. You may also use a commercial disinfectant like Lysol products, but make sure you're spraying a cleaner and not just an air freshener to ensure that your sofa is sanitized.
Keep spot cleaning solution in a spray bottle
Keeping a spot cleaning solution can come in handy, especially when you're in charge of cleaning your office sofa. Fresh stains are easier to clean off than stains that have been left to set, so keeping a spot cleaning solution in your office makes it easy to clean the couch at a moment's notice!
Disinfect your couch daily
With the number of people going in and out of your office, it makes sense that you should be disinfecting your couch as often as you can. Whether through steam cleaning, a disinfectant spray, or shampooing, disinfection maintains a healthy work environment for you and your coworkers.
Disinfect your Workplace
Maintain a healthy workplace with frequent office disinfection. Luce SG offers sofa cleaning services that will clean and sanitize every inch of your office - couch and all! Our expert cleaners will get those stains out of your office upholstery, while disinfecting all surfaces as well so you can keep clean at work.
