If you have a dog or cat, you know the feeling: no matter how often you vacuum, hair always seems to stay behind on the couch. That’s because hair clings to fibres through static electricity — a regular vacuum barely scratches the surface. With the right approach, you can get a genuinely hair-free result.
What you’ll need
- A rubber glove or rubber window squeegee
- A vacuum cleaner, ideally with an upholstery attachment
- A lint roller or tape (for small spots and crevices)
- A fabric brush, such as our Fabric Brush
Step by step
- Put on a rubber glove and dampen it slightly. Run it over the upholstery with light pressure, in one direction. Rubber pulls hair loose through static friction and clumps it together into fluff you can easily remove.
- Or use a rubber window squeegee. Works the same way as the glove, but is easier for larger areas like a full couch or seat cushion.
- Brush against the grain of the fabric. A firm fabric brush — like our own Fabric Brush, with natural bristles that reach deep between the fibres — works loosened hair further to the surface, making the next step more effective.
- Vacuum thoroughly. Go over the same spot several times with the upholstery attachment, including against the direction of the fibres, to actually pick up all the loosened hair.
- Crevices and edges? Use a lint roller or a strip of wide tape to pull hair out of seams and corners the vacuum can’t quite reach.
- Wash removable covers separately. Cushion covers that unzip are best washed separately in the machine for a truly fresh result.
A note of caution
Test the rubber techniques on a small spot first on finer or delicate fabrics like velvet — on some materials, friction from rubber can cause pilling.
When should you call in a professional?
Years of built-up hair, odours and skin flakes deep in the fibres and backing of your couch often can’t be fully resolved with the techniques above. Our professional furniture cleaning service lifts out what’s sitting deeper in the upholstery with steam and extraction — including the odours that often come along with pet mess.
