How do I keep things from growing in my couch?

April 26, 2007 3:37 PM

How do I prevent or treat mold, or any other kind of growth, on a couch in a screened in porch?

I'm a college student and I have a couple couches on my front porch. The porch is screened in, but when it's rainy and windy, they can get a little wet. Is there anything I can spray them with to keep them from getting nasty?

posted by jjbb to Home & Garden (3 answers total)

I don't think there's anything you can do to keep a wet sofa from getting nasty. You could try covering them with plastic or a tarp during rain, but leaving that on all the time might add to the problem if it ever gets damp or too humid underneath. Plus it sounds pretty tedious to me to continually cover/uncover.

Your best bet is to pick better furniture for the porch, like all plastic or wood outdoor furniture. They do make pads that won't funk up for outdoor use, if you want it to be a bit comfier.
posted by 6550 at 4:37 PM on April 26, 2007

Front porch furniture responds well to regular exposure to sun and drying breezes. A little winter mould is part of the front porch furniture experience. Don't sweat it.
posted by flabdablet at 4:53 PM on April 26, 2007

After a good exposure to sun and breeze, you might want to liberally spray the thing with Scotchguard. That will make your couch less likely to absorb water (and as a bonus, spilled beer or other party leftovers). It won't really eliminate mold and other funk, but it'll help prevent it somewhat.

And the next time you see a pleather couch on the side of the road...
posted by toxic at 6:27 PM on April 26, 2007