Cleaning a piece of furniture can be a complicated task, because it’s not only about cleaning the surfaces, either by stains or dirt, but also about disinfecting it. I mean, it’s not only the visible but also the invisible that can bring us health problems such as respiratory or skin allergies. The concern with furniture is mostly mites. They’re everywhere, and we all wanna get rid of them.
Some TikTok users believe that they have found a solution, and they have started sharing it so that it later goes viral. But hey, there are people who are warning that this cleaning trick is one that, actually, you should avoid. The trick is to place a Tide Pod in a pot or container and then place boiling water so that the detergent dissolves. Then wrap a rag around the lid of a pot, dip it into the container and rub the surface of the sofa.
Should you avoid this TikTok viral furniture cleaning hack?
However, although this trick has gone viral and thousands have made their own versions showing the supposed “wonders” of this upholstered furniture cleaning trick, it might not be the best option to actually clean them. Yeah, at first sight, it might look clean, but there’s a catch when doing it on a regular basis, or even from the first time.
Actually, just rubbing laundry detergent on the fabric of a sofa, without rinsing well, will start to leave chemical residues, but it will not be spotless. This trick is not only ineffective, but can end up damaging your sofa. Let’s see: You are rubbing a damp cloth on fabric, on a piece of furniture whose structure is made of wood that should rather be kept away from all possible wetness. This could cause the fabric material to start to wear out or the wood to be damaged by moisture.
You should leave Tide Pods where they belong: The washing machine
In addition, Tide Pods have highly concentrated liquids, which leave viscous or sticky residues on the surfaces because, hey, they’re not made for that! So, apart from the damage you could cause to your furniture, you are leaving very powerful cleaning chemicals on a surface on which you and your family sit, lie down and so on, putting their skin in contact with these ultra-concentrated detergents.
Skin contact with these detergent chemicals can cause problems such as rashes or allergies, again, because these soaps must be removed from the fibers once they get the dirt and grime out. So, you should use your Tide Pods only to do what they were invented for: cleaning your clothes inside a washing machine.