Care & Cleaning Guide
How to clean Duette® and cellular blinds
Cellular honeycomb blinds are one of the lowest maintenance window treatments you can own. The fabric is engineered to resist dust and static, so most of the time a quick going over is all it ever needs. When something does mark it, the trick is simple: treat it like any fine soft furnishing, and let gentle do the work.
Start Here
The one rule that matters most: less is more
You will never harm a cellular blind by being too gentle. You can easily harm one by being too forceful. Almost all the damage we see comes from good intentions and heavy handed cleaning, not from ordinary wear.
So the whole of this guide comes down to a light touch. Lift dust rather than press it in. Dab marks rather than rub them. Keep the fabric dry, or at most barely damp. And leave the blind exactly where it is. There is never any need to take it down.
Everyday Care
Keeping them looking new
A few minutes now and then is all it takes. Pick whichever of these suits the blind and how high it sits.
Dusting
A feather duster or a soft, dry cloth in light strokes is all that is usually needed. The anti-static finish means dust does not cling the way it does to ordinary fabric, so a quick going over keeps it fresh.
Vacuuming
Use the soft brush attachment on the lowest suction setting, and work along the pleats rather than across them. Low suction matters, as too much can pull the fabric away from its side channels.
Compressed air
A can of compressed air, the sort sold for keyboards, is excellent for lifting dust out of the honeycomb cells. Use short bursts, held a hand's width or so away, so you lift the dust rather than drive it deeper in.
A cool hair dryer
A hair dryer on its cold setting does the same job if you do not have a can to hand. Cold air only. Warm or hot air can mark or distort the fabric, so always check the setting before you start.
Marks & Spills
Dealing with a stain
Treat a mark on a cellular blind exactly as you would a mark on a good curtain or a sofa cushion. Calm, gentle, and no rush.
Act quickly and blot. Lift as much of the spill as you can with a clean, dry, absorbent cloth or a piece of kitchen roll. Press, lift, and repeat with a fresh part of the cloth. Do not spread it about.
Dab, never rub. Rubbing pushes the mark deeper and can burnish or discolour the surface, which is far harder to put right than the mark itself. Always dab.
Keep it barely damp. If a little moisture is needed, a cloth wrung out in lukewarm water with a tiny amount of mild detergent is plenty. Dab the mark from the outside in, then blot dry. The fabric should never be wet, just very slightly damp.
Let it dry fully extended. Leave the blind down and open so the fabric can dry naturally in its normal shape.
Never reach for bleach. Bleach and solvent cleaners can weaken the operating cords, corrode the fittings and change the fabric colour for good. We have seen blinds ruined this way that could only be replaced. Plain lukewarm water and a little patience is always the safer choice.
Overhead Blinds
Lanterns, skylights and roof lights
This is the part most cleaning advice gets wrong, and it is the question we are asked most often.
When a cellular blind is fitted flat or on a gentle slope, in a roof lantern, a skylight, a cupola or a conservatory roof, gravity works differently. Over a season, small flies and insects find their way into the roof space, settle on top of the blind and, sadly, die there. Left alone they gather in the cells and can mark the fabric. It is completely normal, and nothing to worry about. It just needs seeing to now and then.
Safety First, Always
Roof lanterns and skylights are usually well above head height, so please take this seriously. Never overreach, never stand on the top step, and never do this alone if the blind is high up. Use a stable, correctly footed ladder or a small platform, have someone in the room with you, and if the height or the access worries you at all, stop. Give us a call instead, rather than take a risk.
The method, step by step
Part-open the blind. Run the blind to a part-open position so the honeycomb cells relax and open up. This gives you access into the pocket where the debris collects, without you having to touch or press the fabric.
Gently vacuum out the debris. With the soft brush attachment on a low setting, lift the dead flies and dust away. Hold the nozzle just off the surface and let the suction do the work.
Do not compress the fabric. This is the one thing to watch. Resist the urge to press, wipe or push the nozzle into the cells. Cellular fabric gets both its insulation and its crisp look from the air held inside the honeycomb, and crushing it flat takes the life out of it. A light touch keeps it looking new for years.
A cool hair dryer or a short burst of compressed air works well up here too, either to move insects the vacuum has not lifted, or as an easier alternative if a vacuum is awkward to carry up a ladder.
Motorised Blinds
Electric and motorised blinds
Most lantern and skylight blinds are motorised, and many of our larger cellular blinds are too. The rule here is simple: keep them dry.
Dry methods are all perfectly safe around a motor, so dusting, vacuuming, cool air and careful spot dabbing are fine. Just never let water run towards the headrail or the motor housing. If a motorised blind ever needs more than a surface freshen up, that is one to leave to us rather than tackle yourself.
Please Avoid
Three things never to do
These appear in so much online advice that we want to be clear about them.
Avoid: taking the blind down to wash it
Modern cellular blinds are precision fitted, often tensioned and frequently motorised. They are not made to be unclipped, dunked and rehung, and doing so can damage the fabric, the fittings and the mechanism. Everything your blind needs can be done with it in place.
Avoid: soaking or immersing the fabric
Bathtub washing is old fashioned advice that belongs to a different generation of blind. It can waterlog the cells, mark the fabric and ruin any room darkening or foil backing for good.
Avoid: rubbing, scrubbing or harsh chemicals
Gentle dabbing with a plain, barely damp cloth is all the fabric ever wants. Bleach, solvents and vigorous scrubbing do lasting harm.
When to Call Us
If in doubt, leave it to us
If a mark simply will not lift, if the blind is too high to reach safely, or if mould has appeared, please get in touch before you do anything else.
Mould is worth a special word. In conservatories and lanterns it is usually a sign of condensation or a small roof leak rather than anything to do with the blind. Prevention beats cure every time: keep the glass above the blind clean and deal with any leaks or condensation early, because once mould takes hold in fabric it is very difficult to remove.
Whatever the issue, the safest first step is simply to talk to us. As a Luxaflex® Gallery dealer and a BBSA member, we can advise on the right approach for your particular blind, and where it helps, come and take a look. There is never any need to take the blind down.
Not sure, or too high to reach safely?
Call us and we will talk it through and help you find the safest way.
0800 086 2989This guidance reflects our own experience of fitting and caring for cellular blinds across Scotland, and is offered in good faith to help you look after yours. Fabrics and finishes vary from blind to blind, so if you are ever unsure about your own, please check with us before you clean it rather than risk it. We cannot accept responsibility for cleaning carried out at home, but we are always glad to help.
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