Sofa smelling damp or musty: why it happens in winter and how to fix it
Winter in Porto is humid, and upholstery absorbs that moisture. A sofa pushed against a cold wall, in a poorly aired living room, starts to smell damp or musty even with no visible stains.
Why it happens
- The sofa foam holds moisture from the air for weeks
- Against a cold outside wall, the back fabric always stays damper
- Sweat, crumbs and dust inside the upholstery feed the smell
- A badly dried spill, or a home clean with too much water, stays inside
What helps at home
- Move the sofa a few centimetres from the wall so air can circulate
- Air the room every day, even in winter, and use a dehumidifier if the home is damp
- Vacuum thoroughly, including under the cushions and along the seams
- Sprinkle baking soda on the dry fabric, leave it a few hours, then vacuum it up
What makes it worse
- Perfumes and air fresheners: they mask the smell for a day and leave the fabric damper
- Washing with lots of water: the foam gets soaked and the smell comes back stronger (see what ruins a sofa)
- Bleach on fabric: it discolours and never reaches inside the upholstery
When it needs cleaning inside
If the smell returns after airing, or there are dark marks on the fabric, the source is inside the upholstery. Sofa cleaning with injection-extraction washes the inside and immediately sucks the water back out, without soaking the foam; drying takes 2 to 6 hours, towards the upper end on humid days. If the smell is urine, the treatment is different: see urine smell on a sofa.
After the cleaning
To keep the sofa clean for longer, fabric protection helps stop spills from soaking into the upholstery. Cleaning prices: 2-seat sofa €40, 3-seat €55, corner sofa €75 (details in how much sofa cleaning costs). In Porto, Vila Nova de Gaia, Matosinhos, Maia and Gondomar.