What Have YOU Heard About Stain Protection?
Whether you’re a firm believer in stain protection or just starting to explore what it’s all about, one thing’s for sure—life gets messy. From puppy accidents and toppled sippy cups to coffee spills and celebratory red wine toasts, our lives are full of moments that can leave lasting marks on carpets, rugs, and upholstered furniture.
Stain protection acts as a first line of defense. It gives you time to respond to accidents, makes routine cleaning more effective, and helps extend the life of your textiles. But despite its benefits, stain protection is often misunderstood. Misinformation and outdated advice have led to plenty of myths—and we’re here to clear the air. Let’s bust the most common stain protection myths so you can decide, with confidence, what is the best choice for your home.
Myth #1:
” ‘Protection Plans’ Always Provide Stain Protection.”
If you’ve recently purchased a sofa or rug from a major retailer or design company, you were likely offered a protection plan. This is a service policy, of sorts. It covers the cost of a professional cleaning for incident-based accidents (not long-term wear and tear). A protection plan requires you to file a claim and to schedule service to address your concern. Some plans provide a topical protection but many do not. What is more, the coverage has a limited timeframe – usually, 5 years tops. It must be bought up front and activated before delivery.
Buyers often struggle with sticker shock when they hear the total bill for their new furnishings. In that moment, a protection plan can seem like an unnecessary, add-on expense. However, when the sofa, chair or rug arrives at the door, clients may recognize the likeliness of an oops or uh-oh. At that point, is too late to activate coverage.
This is where after-market protection can provide peace of mind. When a homeowner calls a textile-care company, the pros will share the benefits of their stain protection product and calculate pricing for their application service, based on the scope of the project. Once textiles are protected, they are dramatically more responsive to professional cleaning. Spills often bead on the surface of the fabric or fiber and, with quick action on the part of the owner, can be wholly removed when blotted with a white rag or paper towel. Those satisfying results do not require a claim or an appointment.
Myth #2:
“Protectants Make Furniture Waterproof, Right?”
Most protection is more likely to be water-resistant than waterproof. Unlike your Grandma’s plastic sofa cover, an effective protectant will encapsulate fabric and rug fibers while still allowing them to breathe. It will preserve the feel of the protected surface and help spills to ‘bead up on’ rather than sink into the textile, giving you time to blot up the accident.
Myth #3:
“Stain Protection Doesn’t Really Work.”
Actually, protection sprays do help keep spots and spills from soaking in and turning into stains. The key is an immediate response on the part of the homeowner. A spill left for hours on a sofa or rug is likely to penetrate any topical treatment. That said, a commercial spray will always perform better than a DIY retail product.
Some stain protection solutions offer benefits beyond repelling spot, spills and soil. There are protectants that cut down on abrasion. Some contain flame retardants or guard against sun-fading. Professionals agree that even commercial applications benefit from stain protection. Given that endorsement, homeowners can be confident that an in-home application will achieve better maintenance results and a longer life for protected items. A call to trustworthy, local pros will lay out the value you will get from investing in their protection product.
The more you live on your furnishings, the faster any protective coating wears away. Multiple deep cleanings or heavy use will require a periodic re-application of protection. The good news is that, in addition to its efficacy with spots and spills, stain protection guarantees better removal of even the everyday grunge that builds up on your furniture and floors.
One of the many benefits of a quality fabric protector spray is its ability to give the professional cleaner a fighting chance to restore the protected piece. That can be true for everything from a specific accident to a year of moderate soiling.
Myth #4:
“Stain Protection Is Unsafe for my Family.”
Over the years, the media has called the safety of protection products into question. Yet, despite a “spotty” history, stain protection is more safe now than ever. This is thanks to decades of research and oversight.
Some products have even been banned by big box stores because of their use of PFAS and PFOS. In this day and age, retailers are more attuned their clients’ safety concerns. Moreover, the fabric protector market has expanded in the past ten years. The best protectants contain no fluorocarbons or silicates. As a result, they are both family and earth friendly.
At Pro-Care, we’re big fans of a product called Fiber ProTector. This protectant has been shown to be non-toxic, hypo-allergenic and bacteriostatic and has been around since 1994. This is the only fabric protector ever to receive WoolSafe EnviroSeal certification. If you’d like an in-depth analysis, you can read published test results concerning the safety of Fiber Protector.
Myth #5:
“Stain Protection Means I’ll Never have to Clean Again.”
Upholstery, rugs and carpets are all vulnerable to spots, spills and soiling. Protection does not mean your furnishings will never get dirty. It means that when you have those items cleaned, you are more likely to get “like new” results.
As for the oops and uh-ohs, the key is to act quickly. Left untended, spills and other liquids will penetrate even outdoor fabric. The best protection will allow for airflow while still leaving the surface of the carpet, rug or uphosltery fibers “hydrophobic and oleophobic.” That means your treated upholstery or rug should be able to repel water-based stainers like black coffee and oil-based spills like that buttery forkful of mac and cheese. If you are unsure how to respond to specific spots, there are great resources online to talk you through gentle, chemical-free strategies.Your timely response can tide your item over until you can schedule a professional cleaning.
Make sure to call your local pros before employing any aggressive cleaning strategies on protected furnishings. You always want to blot an accident, never rub or scrub. Friction can grind the spot or spill deep into the surface of the rug or upholstery, past any protective layer. Remember too, some of the cleaning advice on the internet is not professionally vetted. For more information about the best response to accidents, check with a reputable company. When it comes to cleaning a serious spot or soil removal, it’s best to trust the pros!
Protection Myths Busted – Now What?
If you still have reservations, they may be based on misinformation. A quick internet search will help debunk even more myths about stain protection. Ultimately, you have a decision to make. Before you do, keep in mind that wall-to-wall carpet, designer rugs and large upholstery pieces are among the most expensive items in a household. Getting more years out of these items gives you more bang for your buck. Remember too, an effective stain protection product will keep your furnishings looking new longer. It will reduce wear and tear on even the most-loved furnishings.
The expense of a protection application every few years will more than offset the cost of replacing an item, whether it suffers a one-time staining event or is simply exposed to everyday use and abuse. If you want to prolong the life of your home’s furnishings, fabric protection is a smart investment.
For more information, “Call the Pros!”
Folks in our industry see spots and spills every day. So many accidents happen in the first few months after the purchase, delivery and installation of a big-ticket item. If those accidents lead to lasting damage, homeowners are left with a spoiled furnishing and an empty pocket. Why not avoid the unhappy ending? Consider the role fabric protection can play in an effective maintenance plan for your home.
If you are ready to move forward with stain protection, take these easy steps. First, find a trustworthy, local company that applies a well-vetted fabric protection product. Have them price out the job, then compare that pricing to the cost of replacing the furnishing prematurely. Let them talk you through the pros of topical treatments.
With all the misleading myths debunked, you’ll find that the decision to protect your furnishings may be easier than you expect.
For more FAQs about stain protection, or to prepare for your protection appointment, enjoy these articles: