why do rings appear in upholstery when wet

[zgoalscorer]

Guys I cleaned 2 couches last week one was microfiber so i just used my steamer and triangle brush with an MF and the other was a fabric but both of thm as soon as I started wetting it these big rings appear like outlines. Looked like a stain and it wasnt from the water like a little water mark. What is that and does that always happen on upholstery? Is it normal? I kept cleaning it with my steamer and scrubbing with the MF they disappered but I didnt know if they disapperes because the fabric was totally wet now or cause they have be cleaned and now gone. Any help here please

[DJsDetails]

Generally the newer fabrics in vehicles will do this as well. I mist the entire surface, not just stained sections, and extract evenly. If you saturate just one area, you`re going to get a ring. From seam to seam the surface needs to be equally damp/steamed.

[zgoalscorer]

yep thats what I did. I had about 4 rings per couch and just 1 ring was left when dried between the 2 couches, so on all your fabric seats you prespray them lightly first? then extract with an extractor? just extract or u pump water into the upholstery also? Im thinking just putting dry foam down agitating the vacuum and wipe ..... You think that will work to clean well enough?

[DJsDetails]

Yeah just because I prespray my shampoo too, let that sit, and then agitate before extracting. Misting it first seems to help the shampoo work better.

[Addicted2Bling]

Also maybe less shampoo next time. You want the water to do most of the work...

[zgoalscorer]

I didnt use any shampoo at all thats whats weird. I didnt see the stain when dry. As soon as I started to wet the upholstery with water from my steamer a couple of big rings appered about the size of a baseball but skinny outlines. Really weird

[Addicted2Bling]

I didnt use any shampoo at all thats whats weird. I didnt see the stain when dry. As soon as I started to wet the upholstery with water from my steamer a couple of big rings appered about the size of a baseball but skinny outlines. Really weird

I`ve had that same exact problem before, and I replaced the water, rehit the rings, and still had rings showing up. I think your best bet is to do like DJ said and hit everything. Instead of little rings showing up, the whole thing will look the same as one huge ring!:bigups

[doctordon]

Sounds like what you are experiencing is wicking. Wicking occurs when there has been something spilled into the fabric that was absorbed by the padding underneath. You clean the fabric and it looks great until it starts to dry or has dried. Just as oil in a lamp comes to the top of the wick, the substance in the fabric surfaces as the fabric is drying with a wicking action. In fact, it is possible for spills or stains that were not even visible during cleaning to mysteriously wick up after you clean.

There are many anti-wicking products designed for carpet and upholstery but a thorough vacuuming of the upholstery is the first step. Dirt that is deep into the padding or backing will always show up again in certain fabrics if not throughly vacuumed first.

Do a google search and you`ll find a plethora of additional information.