Furniture advice: stains, smells and care

If the accident has just happened

For most fresh stains the first steps are the same. Gently blot the liquid with a clean, dry cloth or towel, without rubbing. If needed, lightly dampen the cloth in cold water, but do not soak the fabric, so that the liquid does not reach the filling. Do not use hot water, a hairdryer or an iron. If you want to try anything else, read the label first and test it in a hidden spot.

Read first

• What comes out and what may stay. An honest list: what usually comes out, what may stay and why.
• How to photograph a sofa for a price. Which three shots are needed for a specialist to give a price, and which two help.
• Dry or wet furniture cleaning. How the choice is decided by the fabric and the label, not by advertising.
• How long a sofa takes to dry after cleaning. What drying depends on and why it is not honest to promise a number of hours.
• Can a leather sofa be cleaned. What harms leather and when it is a job for a specialist.

Urine and urine smell

• What to do about urine on a sofa or bed. What to do in the first few minutes and what not to do.
• Urine smell in a sofa. Why the smell may stay and when cleaning makes sense.
• Urine smell in a mattress. Why a mattress is a harder case than a sofa.
• Cat urine smell in furniture. Why a cat comes back and when to see a vet.
• Dog urine smell in furniture. What to do about the stain and smell on the furniture.
• Child urine on a mattress. What to do at night and in the morning, and what to do with the mattress.

Stains

• Stains on a sofa. First aid, what you may and may not do.
• Stains on a mattress. Why you must not pour a lot of water on a mattress.
• Blood stain on a mattress. Why cold water, and why never hot.
• Wine and coffee stains on a sofa. What to do while the stain is fresh.
• Grease stain on a sofa. Why solvent can damage foam.

Smells and hair

• Why a sofa smells and what to do. How to tell a surface smell from a smell in the filling.
• Why a mattress smells and what to do. Damp, sweat, urine and when a mattress has to be replaced.
• Cigarette smoke smell in a sofa. Why smoke stays in fabric and what you can expect.
• Pet hair on a sofa. What helps day to day and when cleaning is needed.

Mould, dust mites and care

• Mould in a mattress. When a mattress is no longer worth cleaning and why.
• Mould in a sofa. A surface patch or the filling, and why the damp has to be dealt with.
• Dust mites in a mattress and sofa. What helps, what studies do not confirm and what cleaning does not do.
• How often to clean a mattress. What decides how often in everyday life.

How we check the advice

Our care facts come from university extension services, textile and mattress manufacturers, the Health Inspectorate (Veselības inspekcija) and veterinary sources. We do not use cleaning companies' texts as sources. If we cannot confirm a fact, we do not write it, and the sources are listed at the end of the articles. Checked 07.11.2026

We are neither doctors nor vets. Cleaning does not cure allergies, does not remove damp from a home and does not deal with a cat's behaviour. Bedbugs and fleas are a job for pest control. If the advice does not solve your problem, send a request: sofa cleaning, mattress cleaning or upholstered furniture cleaning. See prices in the price list.