How To Clean & Maintain Your Coffee Table

A coffee table is one of those essential items that no living room should be without. It is also one of the very few items that when cleaned and organised, can make the whole room look tidy, even if the rest of the room looks unkept. Essentially, a dirty and untidy coffee table can ruin the whole aesthetic of a room. To help you keep yours clean and looking its best, we have put together this short blog filled to the brim with the best cleaning and maintenance tips. So, whether you’re trying to fill in scratches or remove water rings from a wooden coffee table or simply looking for the best cleaning products for a glass coffee table, you’ll find all that you need below!

What Material Is Your Coffee Table Made From?

This is an important question to answer before treating your table with any cleaning products. Why? Because not all materials can be cleaned and treated the same way. If you are unsure and have recently purchased your coffee table, you can find this information on the product details leaflet that comes with your table. The most common materials are wood glass and marble. Once you have established what yours is made from, you can jump quickly to your specific material type below.

• Wood
• Glass
• Marble

Wooden Coffee Tables

If properly cared for, a wooden coffee table can last for years, which is why it tends to be the most popular material choice. It’s relatively simple to update too should your taste change. You can add a lick of paint or cover with a darker wood tint if you so wish and it doesn’t take a DIY or paint expert to do so. Rest assured that your wooden coffee table is a good investment and will remain with you for a long time.

For everyday cleaning: Use a specific wooden polish to buff up the appearance of your table. For spills, make sure to get to them quickly by either drying them if it is a clear liquid like water or using a damp cloth for coloured drinks.

Removing watermarks: Unfortunately, watermarks are common for those who refuse to use coasters. Sometimes even with coasters, you can still end up with the odd watermark or two. Removing these though is not as easy as it may appear, although there are many tried-and-tested home treatments either using heat or oil, we have difficulty trusting them here. Our suggestion is to enlist the help of a professional or at least, a specific wooden cleaning kit.

Treating scratches: Superficial scratches on wood furniture can be treated with a moisturising wood polish. These shallow scratches will disappear completely when this is used because they will become filled in. Deeper scratches are not as easy to remedy, unfortunately. Again, we suggest enlisting the help of a professional or simply sanding your table down and revarnishing, although this will only cover the scratch and not fill it in.

Removing paper stuck to wood: This is a cleaning tip worth mentioning because it is a frequent problem. If there happens to be a damp spot on your coffee table and you put a magazine, newspaper, or even a piece of kitchen paper on it, you’re likely to find paper and ink stuck to the wood. Fortunately, it’s not too difficult to fix it. Firstly, you’ll need to peel away as much paper as you can and then dampen the corner of a clean cloth and rub it into the spot. Wait a few minutes and then use the side of a bank car to scrape away the residue.

Glass Coffee Tables

You’ll be delighted to hear that glass tables are the easiest coffee table to clean. Still, we do not recommend a glass coffee table for homes with small children as they are not shatterproof, instead, opt for a durable wooden or marble table.

For everyday cleaning: You can use a specific glass cleaner, although that isn’t necessary. To clean up any spills, all you need to use is a damp microfibre cloth. To dry it, you can then use a lint-free cloth to buff it and remove watermarks.

Removing scratches: Regular white toothpaste or a mildly abrasive liquid soap used with a microfibre cloth can help to remove scratches from a glass coffee table. If scrubbed too harshly though, it can lead to additional damage, so we would recommend leaving it be. Like your favourite superhero who can travel back in time, so can you by using coasters to prevent scratches from happening in the first place. Alternatively, you could also use coasters to cover up any existing marks.

Marble Coffee Tables

Marble coffee tables are extremely durable and magnificently timeless. They fit well with a variety of living room decor and can be easily cleaned too, just beware of what you are using to clean it with.

For everyday cleaning: Use a non-abrasive cloth such as a microfibre cloth together with a mild dish soap that has been diluted in water. Make sure you don’t use vinegar, bleach or any acidic cleaning substances because they can eat into the marble and ultimately dull the stone.

For scratches: To remove scratches from a marble coffee table you will first need to clean it using the same directions above. You will then need to use a marble polishing powder to buff and shine that scratch mark away for good.

Tips To Keep All Coffee Tables Clean

• Always use coasters under beverages. We suggest choosing one made from an absorbent material with a non-slip backing.
• A decorative tray will help to group those smaller home accessories together, ultimately making the coffee table look more organised.
• Use felt pads at the bottom of trays and other objects to prevent any scratches.
• Include cleaning your coffee table as part of your daily cleaning routine. This will help you to deal with any water ring or stuck on paper quickly before it becomes an even bigger problem.

Now that you know everything about cleaning specific coffee tables, we hope you can start to look after yours - the easy way! Come to our store to find the best tables for your home or just browse our website here.