There's a Wrong Way to Dust? And 5 Other Cleaning Mistakes

Mistake No. 2: Scrubbing Like Crazy

Sim Fern, co-founder of Mod Restoration in Brooklyn, says the first thing people do when they spill, say, red wine on their white sofa is douse a towel in water or club soda and furiously try to rub the stain out. While club soda can help, the last thing you want to do is scrub—that just does more damage. Keep a cleaner like Guardsman Professional Strength Dry Cleaning Fluid handy, says Fern (and try it on an inconspicuous area when you buy it, before you're faced with a must-treat-now stain). Then, dab it onto the stain with a cloth. Don't scrub, since that will just ingrain the stain further. Keep using new sections of the cloth, and eventually you will get all or most of the wine (or other offender) out.