When you have a sunroom in your home, it’s often your favorite place to enjoy the sunlight and views of the outside. Sunrooms receive increased use in nicer summer weather and along with that nice weather usually comes summer humidity that can create mold and mildew on your sunroom furniture upholstery and other surfaces. Mildew growth in the sunroom can lead to a musty odor, fabric discoloration, and damage to various furnishings, including furniture and flooring. Preventing mildew and mold growth in your sunroom requires regular maintenance and cleaning to retain the room’s beauty, function, and clean smell.
Keep it clean
The best way to prevent mildew in your sunroom is to keep the space as clean as possible. Any soil on already-dirty surface supplies food for mildew growth when it’s humid. When you clean your sunroom fabric upholstery and carpets regularly, you prevent mildew development. If your sunroom furniture consists of synthetic fabrics such as nylon, polyester, or acrylic, they’re more likely to resist mildew, but it’s still important to clean upholstery regularly.
Prevent excessive moisture
When you open your sunroom windows on humid days, the condensation from the moist air settles on the cooler surfaces of furniture and carpets and this can lead to mildew growth. To prevent this, close your windows on excessively humid days and at night when humidity generally increases. Make sure your windows have a proper seal to keep moisture out when closed. If lingering dampness is an issue in the sunroom, open windows and doors when the sun is brightest so the heat can dry out the room and prevent mildew growth.
Absorb moisture
To protect the fabrics in your sunroom from mildew, consider using chemicals that absorb moisture such as silica gel and activated alumina. You can also purchase various items in stores designed to absorb moisture and odors that hang out of sight. Chemicals such as silica gel generally don’t harm fabrics, but it’s a good idea to place them in cloth bags (not plastic as it will render them useless) under cushions of chairs or sofas to prevent direct contact. Another way to eliminate moisture from a sunroom is by using a dehumidifier, but make sure you don’t make the room so dry that it damages the furniture fibers and makes it susceptible to splitting.
Eliminate musty odors
Any lingering musty odors indicate that mold growth is still present so you need to eliminate the cause of these smells to prevent further mold growth. Keep the area dry, let the sun in whenever possible, and remove odors from fabric with products such as bleaching powder or chlorinated lime. However, before applying any type of cleaning product to furniture or flooring, test a small area first to ensure it won’t cause damage or discoloration.
If your sunroom furniture and/or flooring smells musty or you’ve noticed mold growth on fabrics, contact Embassy Cleaners for professional on-site upholstery and carpet cleaning.
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