upholstery cleaning

[Len n Jeanne]

This is sort of a minor question... unless you travel in a very small space like we do, where the interior is very up-close and personal. The white curtains/drapes and yellow seat cushions in our International edition Bambi have gotten grungy over time, but are otherwise in good shape. Our salesperson at the dealership said just to touch up the upholstery with spot remover, but this has not been effective. No unusual stains, just aluminum marks and food spills.

So how do you clean the stuff? Remove it and toss it in the laundry? Dry cleaners? Other?

Any Martha Stewarts or Hints from Heloise out there?

Hey, thanks.

[idroba]

I use a "Little Green Clean Machine" on the seat cushions and it works very well. Amazing how much grunk comes out when you do them. Do it on a warm day when you can leave it open after so it dries out reasonably fast. After you get them clean, do it every couple of months to keep them that way.

I don't know about the curtains, if they are washable or dry clean only. Most likely you could clean them with cold water soap and suds, by hand after you take them down. I would not machine wash them, most recent AS curtains I have seen are too delicate. Someone else maybe can give better advice on them.

[Lily&Me]

I'm a big fan of OxyClean for seats, carpet, etc.

We use a couple of drops of dawn detergent and some OxyClean in almost-hot cleaning water, rinse well and let dry. Pretreat any spots with Shout gel.

We used this recently on the upholstery in our 2005 Matrix, and it worked beautifully. These seats had never been really cleaned.



Maggie

[Len n Jeanne]

Thank you both so much! Your solutions sound very reasonable. I checked out the little green machine today, and it doesn't seem too pricey. The cleaning products seem even more economical.

I got a call back on this question from Airstream Central's customer service department on my voicemail. The rep recommended dry cleaning both window coverings and dinette cushions; with the caveat that the entire cushions be dry cleaned, not just the covers, due to concerns about shrinkage.

I phoned our local dry cleaners (the only one in town) to ask whether they dry clean entire cushions. She said no, as their chemicals might damage the foam. Our curtains/drapes come with sewn-in little plastic sliders, and she also expressed some concern that the dry cleaning process might melt the pastic! But I will bring in a sample for her to look at, assuming the sliders actually slide out of their groove.

The dry cleaner recommended I contact an upholstery cleaner, so that will be my next call.... after we return from next week in Yellowstone NP!

Any further suggestions would be welcomed.

[jchodgdon]

Originally Posted by Len n Jeanne

Thank you both so much! Your solutions sound very reasonable. I checked out the little green machine today, and it doesn't seem too pricey. The cleaning products seem even more economical.

I got a call back on this question from Airstream Central's customer service department on my voicemail. The rep recommended dry cleaning both window coverings and dinette cushions; with the caveat that the entire cushions be dry cleaned, not just the covers, due to concerns about shrinkage.

I phoned our local dry cleaners (the only one in town) to ask whether they dry clean entire cushions. She said no, as their chemicals might damage the foam. Our curtains/drapes come with sewn-in little plastic sliders, and she also expressed some concern that the dry cleaning process might melt the pastic! But I will bring in a sample for her to look at, assuming the sliders actually slide out of their groove.

The dry cleaner recommended I contact an upholstery cleaner, so that will be my next call.... after we return from next week in Yellowstone NP!

Any further suggestions would be welcomed.

We used to spot clean with mild detergent and light brushing. This year, we had our carpets professionally done, and he told me he could clean upholstery in place. His method was a spray made up of plant and vegetable extract. No harsh odors, and, it looks great.
Jeff

[montanablue]

I would suggest something a Car detailer shared with me. He said mix a bucket with 1 part Liquid detergent to three parts warm water. Dip a clean rag in solution and scrub the upholstery. I have used this solution in cleaning the seats in several of my cars and it does an amazing job. When you look into you bucket you can see how well it removes and pick up the dirt. Your bucket water will be very dirty. Give it a try. You will be amazed.
Rick

[Len n Jeanne]

Thanks to all of you who responded!

Just a follow-through, for anyone equally baffled by their ca. 2005 International Edition lined white curtains/drapes and yellow dinette seat cushions.

On the advice of the Aristream customer service rep, I did take the curtains to the dry cleaners, who wouldn't dry clean them for fear the little plastic sliders would melt. They would launder them, though; and figuring that they had more experience in drapery cleaning than I did, I went ahead. Cost: about $22. Verdict: much better though not pristine, some shrinkage.

We had all of the dinette seat cushions cleaned by a professional upholstery cleaner, on the advice of the dry cleaner. Cost: about $50. Verdict: a lot better, though not 100%. Who would have thought that ripe avocado is one of the most stubborn stains known to modern technology?

I will try your ideas in the future! And maybe recommend to Airstream that they stick with practical colours; or perhaps a tasteful camouflage pattern. (Hey people, we are camping!)

Jeanne

[Paul M.]

Originally Posted by Len n Jeanne

This is sort of a minor question... unless you travel in a very small space like we do, where the interior is very up-close and personal. The white curtains/drapes and yellow seat cushions in our International edition Bambi have gotten grungy over time, but are otherwise in good shape. Our salesperson at the dealership said just to touch up the upholstery with spot remover, but this has not been effective. No unusual stains, just aluminum marks and food spills.

So how do you clean the stuff? Remove it and toss it in the laundry? Dry cleaners? Other?

Any Martha Stewarts or Hints from Heloise out there?

Hey, thanks.

We have a 2005 Bambi 16'. I have washed the white curtains several times in the washing machine but hang to dry. Touch up with iron and slip back on. Recently i washed the lower wall carpet pieces (that we had to remove for another reason) and they washed nicely in the washing machine-no dryer. They are a tiny bit whiter now than the upper wall carpets but look 100% better now than they did before washing.

Hope this helps. I just used Tide on a gentle cycle and everything comes out great. Hang to dry!

[A W Warn]

This product works great on carpeting and fabrics. Will remove pet stains, wine stains, blood stains, rust stains, etc. Will not remove grease stains.
Shop FOLEX 32 oz Carpet Cleaner at Lowes.com__

We use OxyClean too.

[NiftyNurse]

On my! Well, all I can say is beginner's luck. After purchasing a previously owned 2009 FC 25' I cleaned her from top to bottom including the upholstery cushion covers. Machine washed in front loader gentle cycle with woolite, no spin, sun dried on a outdoor line. Results: clean fresh, no shrinkage minimal iron need. No problem getting them all back on the foam.

[Nomad518]

We own a Rugdoctor carpet cleaner and it also has an attachment for cleaning upholstery. You can rent these types of machines at many grocery stores, drug stores, and home improvement stores. There are specialized cleaning fluids for carpet and upholstery. Get some of each if you're planning to clean the carpets and the upholstery. Don't expect great results using the carpet cleaning fluid to clean your walls or upholstery.

I've cleaned our carpets many times with our Rugdoctor and it does a great job. I do this on warm days and leave the windows and roof vents open when I'm done so that any remaining moisture in the carpet can evaporate.

I've cleaned the "mousefur" wall covering with the upholstery cleaning attachment. Works great and leaves almost no moisture when you're done. To clean any stains on the mousefur, I've mixed a bit of bleach with water in a small spray bottle. Spray it on the stained area and work it in with a brush. Then, vacuum the moisture out with the upholstery cleaning attachment. This has worked really well for me.

The curtains can be removed and washed. I've washed them on the gentle cycle and I've used Oxyclean. Hang the curtains to dry. This has also worked well with no shrinkage to our curtains. (After owning our trailer for 13 years, our curtains were badly stretched out of shape from opening and closing them. I replaced them with new curtains from JPA).

The upholstery can also be cleaned using the upholstery attachment with the Rugdoctor. For stubborn stains, try mixing a bit of the upholstery cleaning fluid with some water and pour it directly on the stained area. Work it in with a brush, then vacuum the moisture away with the upholstery cleaning attachment. Should work pretty well.

The inside of our AS looks like new. It's fully carpeted and the upholstery and wall coverings are all original. We travel with a big Golden Retriever and we've encountered some really nasty weather when camping.