# Ah. Help, have I ruined my leather sofa?!



## Dunkwho (Jan 23, 2009)

Ah indeed, can I get some advice on the problems shown in these photos with my leather sofa please?




























With Christmas at our place the good lady thought it might be nice to give our sofas a once over, they put up with quite a lot with 2 kids running around. "No problem", I said and reached for the Auto Glym leather cleaner from the garage. One foot stool and one sofa under my belt I turned to the other sofa which happens to be the one that takes the majority of the wear (no prizes for guessing that this is opposite the TV!). I was zipping along applying a reasonable level of cleaner to get a froth and using a microfibre cloth to rub it onto the surface, the same cloth had been used for the other sofa so was probably well loaded with cleaner. When I came to wash off the cleaner I started seeing spots or patches of a darker colour. Rubbing my finger over them I'm getting balls of stuff rubbing up and leaving the darker colour behind as you can see in the last photo. The darker surface is sound, its not loose or cracked in anyway. You can see from the photo of the two sofas that the section in question is much lighter on the sofa in the back with this problem.

Can you guys and girls give your thoughts, have I
1) killed the surface of the sofa by being too aggressive? What should I be looking at to make amends and rescue the leather?
2) actually played a blinder and I'm cleaning off serious amounts of light coloured muck to leave the original darker leather behind?

I'm really hoping its one but I'm worried enough about what damage I might be doing to stop and seek help. I'm really hoping that I've done a good thing here and with a further couple of rounds of cleaning to remove the surface muck plus a hit to get into the creases I'll be left with a clean surface that just requires conditioning to get it back to spec.

As you can see from my rambling I'm rather concerned.

If its bad news ... break it to me gently!


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

I don't want to sound rude here but is it real leather or leather faced stuff or PVC stuff?


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## Testor VTS (May 29, 2009)

IanA said:


> Can be restored with the application of leather colour available off ebay eg....
> 
> http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Car-Sofa-...ssories_Car_Care_Cleaning&hash=item416f685266


That's a Furniture Clinic stuff AFAIK!


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## Dunkwho (Jan 23, 2009)

Quick work, I like it!
Its real leather (offence definitely not taken!)
Ian - thanks for the link although if anything its driving me towards no damage and just cleaning (or that could be my stubbornness). Its the light stuff thats coming of to leave the dark, not the dark coming off to leave the light. The more I look at the seat the more I can see solid original dark brown moving into lighter colour in the creases growing into areas where there's more light than dark until I've made this patch.


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## CraigQQ (Jan 20, 2011)

looks like it's removing the top coat from the leather, which is leaving a darker patch..

if you want to make sure it's not just removing dirt have a look at the back of the couch, compared to the rest of it..
the back wont get worn like the front as it's not being sat on and scuffed, so should show the colour it's meant to be.


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Hope you get it sorted mate. Did you work literally just that patch? Have you tried a bit more yet or waiting for more conclusive suggestions?


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## Dunkwho (Jan 23, 2009)

I've completed the job on all 3 bits of furniture, this is the only one with problems. I didn't just work that patch at all, I applied equally across the cushion. I've applied more time to this bit during the damn wipe down as the patching caught my eye. If I compare to the original colour then its closer to the dark than the light by a good margin. The other areas of the sofa are more glossy than my dark patch though.

I don't know anything about leather as a material used for this in cars or the home. Is the leather sealed with something that could be peeling away? I believe that the colour and surface integrity of the dark bits is good and strong once the lighter stuff has been rubbed off. The lighter stuff is rubbing up into balls\string which do have a leathery texture to them ... but I'm not familiar enough with cleaning the dirt of this type of thing to know if that's what you'd expect of the dirt or a leather surface. If a\the surface of the leather is coming off then what part of the finish is being left behind that needs care and treatment?

Still very grateful for everyone's words


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## CTR De (Feb 10, 2011)

have you had it from new, my instincts say that cushion has been colour matched and its that thats peeling up , has it ever been repaired ???


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## CraigQQ (Jan 20, 2011)

almost all leather other than really high end lanolin leather(which is dyed) is painted, using a pigment colour and a clear coat over the top.

the clear coat gives the glossy effect and it appears this is being removed by your cleaner.


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## Princy (Dec 14, 2011)

It's possibly some sort of stain guard applied by the manufacturer. 

Hard to tell though from the pics but does look like the dye has been lifted


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## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

As stated its either removing the lacquer or removing a touched up section.


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## Derekh929 (Aug 28, 2011)

Was it Scotch Guard Coated from New


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## ikon66 (Jul 23, 2008)

Can you not just turn the base over ?


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## iPlod999 (Jun 23, 2012)

Home insurance claim. 

My daughter covered on of our leather sofas in nail polish years ago. 

Claim went in and the whole suite was taken away and sorted.


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## Dunkwho (Jan 23, 2009)

Yes we've had these from new, they're 2 years old. Serve never had a moments trouble with them before so they've not had any previous repairs. Looks like the final dye and/or lacquer has gone then. I'm surprised, they had maybe 5 minutes with the Auto Glym cleaner and then cleaned of with a demo cloth as instructed. I guess dirt would have lifted gently off without these balls.

I'll get on to furniture clinic and see what they recommend.


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## judyb (Sep 7, 2007)

Let us know if we can help. It appears that the top finish and colour have been removed. This can happen on high wear areas. Microfibre cloths and car products are not generally recommended for use on furniture as the finishes are different and more varied. Body oils and dirt can break down finishes - protection and regular cleaning can help to stop this from happening.
The colour will now need replacing and then the finsh needs to be reapplied. It will be necessary to make sure there is no grease in the leather otherwise the finishes will not adhere.

Hope this helps
Please contact us if you need further advice 
Cheers
Judyb


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## DJ X-Ray (Sep 2, 2012)

judyb said:


> Let us know if we can help. It appears that the top finish and colour have been removed. This can happen on high wear areas. Microfibre cloths and car products are not generally recommended for use on furniture as the finishes are different and more varied. Body oils and dirt can break down finishes - protection and regular cleaning can help to stop this from happening.
> The colour will now need replacing and then the finsh needs to be reapplied. It will be necessary to make sure there is no grease in the leather otherwise the finishes will not adhere.
> 
> Hope this helps
> ...


Sorry to jump in but i've got two brown chesterfield's two seater and three seater what product would you reccomend for them judy ?just for general maintenance Thanks
Gary


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

I'm sure my AG leather cleaner says not to use on house hold furniture or something. Not sure why though as leather is leather?


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## judyb (Sep 7, 2007)

Dj.X-Ray said:


> Sorry to jump in but i've got two brown chesterfield's two seater and three seater what product would you reccomend for them judy ?just for general maintenance Thanks
> Gary


Hi Gary
For general maintenance we recommend Lazy Leather - a quick and easy to use product that cleans, protects and rehydrates all in one.



> I'm sure my AG leather cleaner says not to use on house hold furniture or something. Not sure why though as leather is leather?


Whilst leather may be leather they are all finished differently and as it is generally the top surface we are looking after products will react very differently. This is why products are manufactured specifically for certain types of leather and for furniture and auto leather. Generally speaking auto products are stronger and should not be used on furniture leather.

Hope this helps
Cheers
Judyb


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## tante (Jul 8, 2011)

Looks like you taken the finish of the top new sofa time your in the dog house


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## RedUntilDead (Feb 10, 2009)

tante said:


> Looks like you taken the finish of the top new sofa time your in the dog house


Not really. This can be repaired in the home by a leather technician.

My Missus works for a leather or rather, furniture specialist and they have a team of technicians who do this kind of work all the time.


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