How to Remove Oil Stains from a Sofa

How to remove oil stains from sofas and carpets

Every week we get several inquiries from customers who don't know how to get rid of oil stains that have built up on their sofas at home or on their car upholstery. As everyone knows, oil stains are among the most stubborn and hardest to remove. Most customers reach out to us after trying countless different products and cleaning methods that weren't very effective. In some cases, using the wrong products causes irreversible damage, which is why we always recommend calling a professional — even if it costs you a few hundred shekels — rather than ruining a sofa worth thousands, sometimes tens of thousands, of shekels.

So how do we clean oil stains?

In the first step, we vacuum up all the dust that has accumulated on the sofa.

In the second step, we identify the type of fabric and the type of oil involved — for example, engine oil or cooking oil. Once we've identified the fabric and the oil type, we choose the products best suited to solve the problem without damaging the fabric.

In the third step, we inject hot water at high air pressure into the upholstery fibers to dissolve the oil, using a professional degreaser for fabrics, and let it sit for about 5 minutes. After a short wait, we scrub the fabric with a silicone brush to loosen all the dirt from the fabric.

In the fourth step, we use a very powerful extraction to remove all the loosened dirt, the cleaning product, and of course any oil residue. After treating the area affected by the oil stain, we clean the entire sofa so you don't end up with an obviously cleaner patch.

This extra step of a light full clean prevents visible clean spots and color differences.

We start with the cushions, each one individually, and then move on to the sofa's frame. It's the same process of injection, scrubbing, and extraction, only this time we use a professional upholstery cleaning product that includes a color stabilizer and doesn't include any degreaser.

At the end of the process, we put everything back in place and spray on an odor-neutralizing product that stays active for several days.

What should you do in an emergency, or while you're waiting for a professional to arrive?

It's very simple: use a clean towel or paper towel and try to blot up as much of the oil as possible using gentle pressing motions only.

Make sure to only press, not rub the spot, since rubbing won't solve the problem — it will just smear the oil and make the stain bigger.

Professional sofa cleaning costs an average of about one hundred shekels per seat. In cases involving oil stain removal, some companies will charge an additional fee for removing the oil stains.

If the stains aren't in a truly extreme condition, don't agree to pay more than a 20% surcharge.

Have more questions?

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