Furniture is an essential component of the house. You can find furniture in every room of your house. We sleep on furniture at night; sit on furniture during the day at home. Even when you go to work you sit and work on furniture. They are also a long-term investment. It is not something that you can buy every other day like shoes or clothes. When you buy furniture from some of the best furniture stores, you want to make sure that you get ones that will last you for a long time. The longevity of furniture is not dependent on the quality of the furniture alone; you also have to take good care of them. What are some of the measures you can take to make your furniture lasts long?
Do not drag or push furniture
When you are moving your furniture from one place to another make sure that you do not drag or push them. This will not only damage your furniture, but it can also damage your floors by scraping and scratching. When moving heavy furniture like a sofa or TV stand, ask for help and carefully lift it and move it to the desired location. You can only drag or push your furniture if they have wheels that are fitted on their legs.
Polish the hardware
Polishing your hardware regularly will make your furniture last longer. When polishing it is advisable to use a polish that has a mild abrasive, avoid using polish that has ammonia because it could cause corrosion. When you are polishing brass furniture or hardware, make sure that you protect the other finish with masking tape or other material, or alternatively, you could detach the hardware before polishing. This will make the hardware on your furniture last longer.
Clean the hardware
This should go without saying but you must clean your furniture regularly. For your furniture to maintain its appearance, you must vacuum, dust, and clean the furniture every now and then. If you do not, tiny particles could accumulate and make your furniture look faded and old. Make sure that you get rid of stains as soon as you can before they get stuck on the hardware and require you to use chemicals. Also, avoid using harsh chemicals on your furniture they could drain the color from your furniture.
Avoid direct sunlight
You should avoid exposing your furniture to direct sunlight because that could result in the furniture getting damaged. Direct exposure to sunlight could cause the wooden furniture to fade in color over time. Some furniture may have UV-resistant coatings that can slow down this process but continued exposure will permanently alter the appearance of the wooden furniture. You can protect your furniture fabric from sunlight by covering it or use window treatment to control the amount of sunlight that enters the room.
Have rules
Some things are easily preventable like ensuring nobody eats on the couch, making sure that kids do not use permanent markers on furniture, and do not jump on the couch because they could break it. Having some house rules will go a long way to ensure that your furniture lasts longer.
Buy slipcovers
You can buy slipcovers to help prevent stains from getting on your furniture’s fabric. This could be useful if you have young kids or during a holiday festival where you are hosting a large group of people. The slipcovers will act as a barrier to protect your furniture.
Paint
If your furniture looks a bit grimy but is still in great shape, you could try painting or refinishing it. Just giving your furniture a little paint or varnish could give your old furniture a fresh look.
Avoid buying cheap furniture
This sounds like a cliché but cheap is expensive. While buying low-cost furniture could look like you are saving money, the money and time that you will use to maintain, fix and clean it will add up over time. You could just save and invest in a good quality piece of furniture that will last.
Final thoughts
As you have seen there are a couple of ways you can try to make your furniture last longer. If some of these measures do not work maybe it is time you considered purchasing another piece of furniture.