Tips to take proper care of vintage furniture

The importance of taking good care of vintage furniture lies in the fact that it is the best way to maintain its overall look and value for the generations to come. The key factor to preserve vintage furniture is to never use harsh cleaning agents or polishes that you use for modern furniture. If you do so, it would prove to be detrimental for your furniture. Biological changes like insects, environmental changes like humidity and human intervention like polishing are known to affect vintage furniture in worse ways. Read the tips below if you want your vintage furniture to remain in pristine condition:

Protection from sunlight:

You should never keep your vintage furniture under the sun. The UV light is harmful and would degrade fabrics and wood. Ideally, you should keep vintage furniture in places where direct sunlight cannot enter. Even if there is a chance of direct sunlight entering the spaces where vintage furniture is placed, you must use curtains and blinds to block the same.

Buy a dehumidifier or humidifier:

There is a high chance of your vintage furniture to shrink or expand when you keep them near fireplaces, air conditioners, and radiators. This would result in sticky or loosen drawers, loosen glue joints and veneers. This is because the furniture gets affected by the amount of moisture in the atmosphere. Thus, any change can result in their contraction or expansion. In order to keep the room temperature at a normal level or constant, you must buy a dehumidifier or a humidifier.

Eradicate or isolate pest infestations:

Insects are quite infamous for making fabrics, wood, and leather their breeding place. Beetles and termites generally eat their way out along the grain inside of the wood. Cockroaches feed themselves with the build up grease and dirt on the wood surface. It is easy to identify pest infestations as insects leave a trail on the furniture surface of exit holes behind them. Damage caused due to pest infestation is irreversible and irreparable if you do not take care of it when it is still time. Call for a conservator or an exterminator to inspect the vintage furniture as soon as you see any holes.

Use suitable polishes:

In order to take care of your vintage furniture, apply a thin coat of superior quality paste wax once a year. It protects the surface from dust and moisture for a longer time. Use slightly dampened lint free and soft cloth to keep the furniture dust free.

Move the furniture carefully:

Moving the furniture needs special care as well. Always move the tables using their legs to prevent the base from getting loose. Remove the shelves and drawers from furniture before moving the furniture. Move chair holding by the seat and never by the arms or back.

How do you maintain your vintage furniture pieces?