Furniture Upholstery Cleaning Costs

There are many reasons that the costs for furniture upholstery cleaning need investigation. Perhaps you had a problem in the home and part of the remediation is the cleaning of the furniture. Perhaps it is simply that time, wear and tear have taken their tolls on the cleanliness of the furniture. It could be that moving has left the furniture with a bit to be desired in terms of cleaning. Whatever the reason, it pays to explore what is involved in furniture upholstery cleaning and learn why pricing might vary on different services or options.

Unlike many household jobs, furniture upholstery cleaning is not priced by the hour or even on a consistent flat-rate. Instead, it is based on the piece and then the type of cleaning needed. Experts determine the costs based on the labor, materials and other costs associated with each, individual project.

Furniture upholstery cleaning: by type of furniture, flat fee.

Other considerations and costs

• Opting to have multiple pieces cleaned can help to keep total costs lower as a professional will set up the materials and equipment just once to tackle the entire project.
• Additional fees are often tacked on for items with special functions. Recliners, as an example, often have additional charges because of the difficulties associated with moving the seat forward or working around the mechanisms inside of the chair. The same applies to vinyl or leather upholstery and items that combine both wood and fabric or other materials.
• All upholstery is identified with a “code” that helps professional cleaners to know how best to clean it. There are standard or routine treatments applicable to all (vacuuming, spot treating, etc.), but the codes also give clear cleaning instructions. They include codes W, S, W/S, and X. It is only the X fabrics that specifically say professional cleaning is required, but almost all will fall under the umbrella heading of being suited to professional cleaning.

DIY considerations

• While you can look at any tags on your upholstered furnishings to determine how to clean them best, it is not really a DIY project. The best thing to do is shop around among local cleaners and find one with the right level of experience for providing the work.
• Professional cleaning is the smartest choice because it eliminates most of the risks for error and further damage. After all, use the wrong approach to cleaning a piece of furniture and you might see its value decline sharply or stains set permanently. You may even ruin it and face the expensive prospect of replacing or reupholstering the item.

References

• Craftsman Estimator Costbook, complete series year 2019.
• Latest prices found on Home Depot and other vendor Web sites.
• Literature review of DIY Web sites.