- Cleaning and care
- The ABC of leather care
The secret of beautiful leather furniture
WHY DOES LEATHER REQUIRE REGULAR CLEANING AND CARE?
For leather to retain its attractiveness, its wonderfully soft feel and its natural look in the long term, it needs help from us in the form of regular cleaning followed by treating it with essential active moisture and care materials. As robust as the material may be: every now and again you will need to clean your leather sofa if you want to keep it looking like new.
The leather can no longer regenerate itself and is dependent on effective external care. It can only absorb the care materials if its pores are first cleaned thoroughly to remove particles of dirt. Without our care, leather quickly loses its beauty in everyday use, it becomes dirty, dries out or the colour loses its intensity.
THE ABC OF CORRECT LEATHER CARE
Leather should befirst cleaned and then treated. This is because the leather can only absorb the active care materials properly if its pores are free of dirt (as is the case with our human skin). This is why "all-in-one" care products are not particularly suitable for the regular care of high-quality leather furniture. All you are likely to do with these is to work the dirt into the leather with them.
Leather needs moisture to prevent it from drying out. Therefore, wash your leather now and again with the special KERALUX® Staubfix cloth or a similar slightly damp, soft cloth. By doing so, you are cleaning it of superficial household dust soiling and providing it with moisture at the same time.
EACH TYPE OF LEATHER NEEDS INDIVIDUAL CARE!
Because the individual types of leather differ significantly in their material properties, cleaning and care must also be tailored to the specific characteristics of the leather. Why?
Leather lovers prize, for example, the open-pored, breathableaniline leather as a wonderfully soft and full-grained upholstery material. Yet it is precisely this naturalness that makes aniline leather extremely vulnerable, which means it needs intensive care. In order to survive the daily routine, aniline leather is mainly in need of re-greasing and moisturizing, impregnation and light protection.
In contrast to this, the surface of pigmented, covered leather is finished with a coloured protective coat. As a result, this type of leather is very easy to care for and clean, making it ideal for everyday use. The right leather cream gives this leather plenty of moisture and lower amounts of re-greasing, light protection and antioxidants for a long life.
The high-quality KERALUX® range features an individual line of products for every type of leather. You can therefore be certain that your leather is receiving exactly the right care that it really needs:
Thorough cleaning and yet gentle at the same time · Important provision of moisture · Optimum re-greasing to retain the smooth feel · Protective impregnation · Effective light protection to retain the freshness of colour · Antioxidants for a long life
FURTHER TIPS FOR THE CORRECT TREATMENT OF LEATHER FURNITURE:
When cleaning your leather couch, never use micro-fibre cloths because these may scratch the leather surface.
When cleaning leather down, always use distilled water to avoid ugly limescale marks.
Colour-intensive clothing (e.g. dark denim), fashionable cushions, blankets, and the like may discolour leather. Red accessories are particularly "guilty" of this. Protect light leather either with the KERALUX® Intensive Protection or avoid such contacts.
Avoid too much moisture! Too much moisture can damage leather furniture. Never use too much water when cleaning your leather, only use "slightly damp" cloths. The interior frame is often made of wood and, just like other interior materials, will react with excessive moisture, e.g. to become unstable or spotted with mould (fungal attack). The recommended indoor climate for leather furniture is a relative humidity of 45-50% and a room temperature of 18-20°C.
Avoid direct lighting. Sunlight and artificial light can lighten the colour and dry the leather out.
Too much warmth/heat damages leather upholstery. Therefore, leather furniture should stand at least 30 cm away from radiators. Upholstered furniture standing directly next to a heat source must have sufficient floor clearance for fresh air to circulate and prevent any heat build-up.
Pets, zips and sharp objects can damage the leather surface. It is best to avoid this type of contact.
In the event of stains: react IMMEDIATELY! In the case of beverage stains, for example, gently soak up the liquid with a paper towel (kitchen roll). Clean down with the appropriate KERALUX® cleaner. Do not apply pressure or the stain will penetrate into the leather. You will find more information in our KERALUX® stain guide.
BEST-SELLING LEATHER CLEANING AND CARE PRODUCTS
Perfect for the regular maintenance cleaning and care of semi-aniline and pigmented leather. Contents: 2 x 200 ml, sponge, cloth Perfect for the regular maintenance cleaning and care of natural aniline leathers. contents: 2 x 200 ml, sponge, cloth Perfect for the regular maintenance cleaning and care of leathers with vintage-effect. contents: 2 x 200 ml, sponge, cloth KERALUX® Cleaning Set Active Plus is perfectly suited for the intensive cleaning of pigmented leather Care and protection for natural aniline leather. It spends the leather useful moisture, nutrition and impregnation. The additional sun protection helps to prevent early fading. Perfect care after cleaning of aniline leather. content: 250 ml The premium KERALUX® Strong Protector contains a special component to give an effective and long-lasting protection for light coloured pigmented leather against early soiling, e. g. colour transfer from dark jeans. Contents: 200 ml, 2 cloths The KERALUX® Colour Repair Set P is suitable for small scratches and slightly faded pigmented leather. We mix the colour according to your leather sample. contents: 2 x 250 ml, sponge, cloth, glove
furniture. Oily and greasy stains such as colour transfer, e. g. from jeans, are particularly easy to remove with
this product.
