How to Take Care of Your Leather Chair

Leather chairs seem to be everywhere. Most office chairs are leather and many chairs at home are as well. Do you have a leather chair that's getting a little dingy? Cleaning your leather chair properly can make it look better and last longer.

Things You'll Need

• Arm-gum eraser
• Mild soap
• Bucket
• Clean, soft cloths
• Leather cream

Instructions

1. First of all, if your leather chair came with an instruction manual check it for advice on caring for your chair. Many high end chairs such as those wonderful ergonomic, office chairs come with specific instructions on caring for their leather. Since leather can be processed in many different ways, manufacturers may recommend cleaning it using different cleaners.

2. Keep the dust off the chair. A leather chair can be very sensitive to dust and the bacteria and oils in the dust can damage the leather. Try to dust off your leather chair once a day with a clean, soft cloth. At the bare minimum dust your leather chair once a week.

3. With all of the cleaning tips here, clean a small inconspicuous area first, just in case.

4. Decide if your leather chair has been protected from liquids. Some leather chairs are made of leather that is non-finished and so is porous and should not be cleaned using liquids. Others may be finished to become water-resistant or water-proof. If the leather of your chair is glossy it is probably at least partially water-resistant, but no matter what the finish on your leather chair is like, use any liquids on it with caution.

5. Remove small dirty spots on your leather chair by "erasing" them with a soft art-gum eraser. This is a great non-wet cleaning method and is about the only way you can clean non-water-resistant leather. If the leather chair is really dirty but not water-resistant you may have to erase the dirt off the entire chair in order to get it clean. On water-resistant or water-proof leather use the eraser to get rid of minor dirty spots.

6. Wash water-resistant or water-proof leather chairs occasionally with a mild soap such as Ivory. Sweat and body oils can cause your leather chair to wear prematurely and also make dirt cling to it more.

   Rub the soap bar between your hands in a bucket of room temperature water. Hot water can cause the leather to bond more with the soap and not wash clean. Cold water makes the soap not dissolve well. So use room temperature preferably.

   Do this to another area and another until you've cleaned the entire leather chair this way. If the chair is one of those large ergonomic executive office chairs, this can take a while since it has more surface area, but keep at it until the leather is all cleaned. Make sure you completely clean the entire leather chair since leaving part of it dirty will make the leather look bad in certain lights and make it get dirty again in a different pattern than the cleaned parts.

   Get a soft, clean cloth slightly damp with the soapy water and wash a small area of the leather chair.

   Rinse the soap off that area using another clean cloth that has been slightly dampened.

   Buff dry the leather of the chair immediately with yet another clean cloth.

7. Apply your chosen leather cream to your leather chair after its cleaning. Only use it on clean leather though to avoid sealing any dirt and oils to your leather chair. Use a good quality leather conditioner cream and follow the directions carefully.

Tips & Warnings

• These tips will make your leather chair last much longer and look a lot better, but if you start noticing cracks or heavily worn areas it's time to start looking for a new chair.

• If you get a new leather chair, following these care tips from the start to make your leather chair last a lot longer and stay looking gorgeous.

• Don't use cleaners not intended for leather chairs since they can cause the leather to get sticky or even ruin it.

• Always test cleaners and creams on a small inconspicuous area before using on the leather chair. If they affect the chair you don't want to ruin your leather with them.