How to Clean a Velour Sofa. Step-by-Step Guide

Velour sofas can make any home look more luxurious. The feel of the fabric itself is amazing, that’s why it’s a common choice for many households.

As with any fabric sofa, velour made ones have to be cleaned and maintained regularly. But with a fabric so gentle how can you clean your velour sofa at home?

It isn’t the easiest thing in the world, but it’s not an impossible task as well, so let’s take a look at how to properly clean your velour upholstery.

Is your sofa made of velour?

First things first, make sure your sofa is made of velour, as the fabric on your upholstery can be velvet and not velour. Velvet is an expensive material and you wouldn’t want to mess it up by cleaning it incorrectly. In fact, for velvet sofas, we advise hiring a professional to clean it.

If you’re sure your sofa is not made of velvet, you need to make sure it’s not a microfiber imitation of velour.

This can be done by simply checking the label on your sofa. It’s usually located on the bottom of the upholstery, which can be a bit tricky to reach.

Microfiber couch cleaning (according to the code on the label)

If it turns out you’re dealing with a microfiber couch then follow the letters on the labels. Microfiber couches have W, S, S-W or X lettering on the label, as each letter corresponds to a different cleaning type.

• “W” stands for water-based cleaning solutions only.
• “S” is for solvent-based cleaners.
• “S-W” indicates that you can use either solvent or water-based cleaners.
• “X” letter stands for vacuum only.

It’s mandatory to follow the instructions on the label as microfiber can be easily damaged and it’s often quite hard to repair it.

Tools needed to clean your velour sofa

To properly clean your velour upholstery you will need the appropriate tools for the job. Most of them are quite easy to find and cheap to buy, which is a great thing if you’re cleaning your velour upholstery on a budget.

Here’s what you’ll need to clean your velour upholstery:

For less than A$15 you can clean your dirty velour sofa, chairs or any other type of velour upholstery in your home.

Velour cleaning tips

Unlike other fabrics, like those used for car seat upholstery, velour is quite gentle and has to be handled in such way. You have to make sure you don’t damage the fabric. Here are some professional tips to clean your velour and keep it in mint condition.

Choose the right soap

When choosing the soap for cleaning your velour make sure you choose one that doesn’t have added colouration in it. Choosing a clear soap will ensure there isn’t any leftover colour.

Don’t use heat in the cleaning process

High temperatures can damage the velour. That’s why any cleaning involving heat, like steam cleaning, is best to be avoided.

Always work with clean materials

Velour soaks everything and if dirty materials are used there’s a big chance you will stain your velour upholstery. Often change the cleaning materials and always work with clean tools/materials.

Step-by-step cleaning velour upholstery

Grease stains, dirt and dust are the worst nemeses of the velvety-looking velour. Velvet upholstery requires constant maintenance in order to keep its luxurious look.

Step 1. Before you use any detergents to clean your velour sofa grab your vacuum cleaner and vacuum the whole surface with the help of a brush attachment.

Velour is quite soft and any harder debris on the sofa can scratch and even tear the surface. Going over your sofa with the vacuum will ensure that all potentially harmful debris will be removed. Make sure you vacuum all the nooks and crannies if the pillows are removable remove them and vacuum under them.

Step 2. In the bucket mix warm water and the upholstery soap. Make sure you mix everything gently and don’t stir it to form suds.

Step 3. Get the muslin fabric and dip it in the water. Muslin fabric won’t hold any water and it’s also very delicate.

Wring out the muslin fabric completely, so that only slightly damp. Too much moisture on the velour upholstery will most likely end up damaging the fabric.

With a back-and-forth motion rub the slightly damp muslin rag. Rinse out and repeat as necessary.

Step 4. Once the fabric is clean enough, leave the surface to dry completely. 24 hours would be enough.

Breaking up the stiff fibres

Often after cleaning the velour, the fibres feel stiff. This can be easily fixed by brushing the fibres with a velour brush.

The brush will break the velour fibres and the surface of the couch will feel brand new. Be gentle, as it’s quite easy to damage the surface. Slight pressure would be sufficient.