Chocolate is a favourite treat for both children and many adults. But sometimes, things can get messy, and your post-holiday cheer can easily be ruined by discovering chocolatey fingerprints all over your furniture.
Staining your living room sofa (or any type of upholstery) with chocolate is annoying and should be cleaned ASAP so it doesn’t leave permanent stains. In this article, we will look at how to remove chocolate from a sofa and upholstery and give you a few tips and tricks to keep your furniture safe.
So, if you:
Then, keep on reading and we’ll tell you how to clean up the stains that trouble you.
Okay, let’s get into it. Let’s look at the tools and supplies you will need and cover the method…
This method involves scraping the chocolate off the surface, so if you’re treating a leather chair or sofa, you might want to use a plastic scraper instead of a knife to keep the material safe.
Now that we know what tools and supplies we’ll need, let’s get to the main point of this article – getting the chocolate out of the couch. The main thing to keep in mind when dealing with chocolate is simple – you need to treat it quickly if you want to avoid permanent stains. If you don’t act fast enough, the stain will settle in and it will be much harder, if not impossible, to clean.
Time needed: 30 minutes.
Start by carefully scraping off the chocolate from the surface using a knife or a spoon. As an extra tip, you can try using ice cubes in a small plastic bag over the stain to freeze the sweet treat and scrape it off easier.
Make a cleaning solution with one tablespoon of dish soap and two cups of cold or lukewarm water. Avoid hot water as it may help the stain settle even more on some types of fabrics.
Take your toothbrush and dip it in the soapy solution. Then, gently dab over the stain. You will start to see it getting lighter. Go over the stain a few times with the brush and remember to rinse and dip in soap each time you come back on to the fabric. DO NOT rub the brush in, because you will just work the chocolate into the fabric.
After you have washed off the stain, place a paper towel or white cloth over the wet spot on your sofa and soak the cleaning solution up. Remember – gentle dabs are the way to go!
If the stain is still visible, get enough cornmeal and cover it. Cornmeal will help absorb the dirt and moisture. Let it sit for a while and vacuum it off.
If you have spilt hot chocolate over the upholstery, you won’t only have to deal with the cocoa, but with the milk as well. Milk stains can get smelly over time and will need some extra attention. If the soapy solution doesn’t work, try using powdered laundry detergent with water.
If some of the milk and chocolate got on your sofa, we recommend checking our dedicated post on how to clean milk stains from your sofa.
After you have followed these steps, the stain should be gone, or at least barely noticeable. These techniques work for both fabric and leather sofas, as well as the back seats of your car, where children often smear waffles and chocolate bars. If you don’t have the time to take care of the stains you can book a professional mobile car valet with your mobile car wash service and leave the mess for the professionals. And for the stains on your furniture, keep reading.
So, you have tried the steps above but the nasty stain won’t go away. Or, your sofa is made of more delicate fabrics and you don’t want to cause more damage. Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.
Fantastic Services offers professional domestic and commercial cleaning services, made to fit any needs. Feel free to check out our upholstery cleaning service, which is designed to save you free time and effort. We have over 10 years of experience in providing property maintenance services in the UK and we aim to deliver amazing results every time. Book your service easily online and we’ll make your sofa good as new!
Find a professional to restore your upholstery!
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Did you find this post useful? Did you succeed in getting the chocolate out of the sofa? Let us know in the comments below!
Image source: Shutterstock / vasanty
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