Cleaning information All fabrics have a cleaning code which can usually be found on the store sample. If there is no sample, ask your salesperson to contact the factory and get the cleaning code. If they say they can't get it, excuse yourself and head to another store. Using the wrong type cleaner to remove a spot or stain could leave you with an expensive paperweight. W Water based cleaning agents or foam my be used for cleaning S Don't put water on this fabric. Only mild, pure water-free dry cleaning solutions may be used for cleaning this fabric. Some fabric manufacturers recommend that this type of fabric should be cleaned by a professional furniture dry-cleaners only. I think you should go to the store and look at the upholstery cleaning products. Read the labels and look for petroleum distillate-based products. Suggested products are Carbone, Renuzit and Energine. CAUTION: Use of water-based or detergent based solvent may cause excessive shrinking and permanent waterstains which may be unable to be removed by solvent products. Consult a professional for best cleaning method. W-S Water-based cleaning agents and foam may be used for cleaning. This fabric may also be cleaned with mild, water-free solvents. X This fabric should be vacuumed or brushed lightly to remove soil. WARNING: Do not use foam or liquid cleaning agents of any type. V This fabric should be washed with warm water and mild soap monthly. WARNING: Do not use cleanser or liquid cleaning agents of any type.   Wear Information The question on the mind of most people buying upholstery is "how long will this fabric hold up?" The only scientific answer is: no one really knows. It depends 100% on how it is used or abused. Fortunately though, we do have guidelines to help us guess how long it should survive. The government has developed uniform test standards for companies wanting to sell them upholstered products. They are called wearability codes and are on the manufacturer's swatch sample shown in the store. Someone in the government thought that rubbing a wire screen across a fabric sample a couple thousand times was a good indication of how well it will hold up in actual use. I suppose... if you are in the habit of rubbing wire screens on all your furniture. Personally, I would have drug the sample fabrics behind the car to see how many miles you can get out of a fabric. But they did their test first so we'll use their standard. A double rub is one motion back and forth like shining a shoe. It is estimated that 3,000 double rubs equals one year's worth of use. HD Heavy Duty Held up to more than15,000 double rubs. That's five years worth of use. I doubt the Space Shuttle's heat shield could survive much more than 15,000 double rubs. Use this stuff on the family room sectional. Although it is by nature stiffer and thicker than gentler fabrics there are some incredible new blends coming out which come close to this rating but still retain a semblance of comfort. MD Medium Duty Withstood 9,000 to15,000 double rubs. The closer the fabrics get to 15,000 the stiffer they are. In general this is a great all-around fabric. With modern technology, the mills can blend man-made fibers to make a comfortable well-wearing fabric. Use in the family room, living room. LD Light Duty This fabric can take anywhere between 3,000 to 9,000 double rubs. That is a wide range which could mean one to three years of regular use. These fabrics are generally very delicate and should only be for casual use, such as rooms where you entertain on occasion, a living room that only gets used when company comes, a bedroom chair, an occasional chair that is more for looks than use. You get the picture. DD Delicate Duty Minimum 3,000 double rubs. If you put this on an uncomfortable chair that no one likes to sit in, and drag it out only during holidays you should still have it in 10 years. Put it in the family room and it will be shredded wheat in a couple months.