How to clean a wool coat at home (and when to take it to the dry cleaner)

Check the care label first

Before you do anything, find the care label, usually sewn into a side seam of the lining. It tells you what the maker says the coat can take.

• A circle in a square, or a plain circle with a letter in it, means dry clean. "Dry clean only" in words means exactly that.
• A washtub with a hand means hand wash. A washtub with a number gives the maximum temperature for a machine wash.
• A crossed-out washtub means do not wash in water at all.

Coats are made of more than the outer cloth. Interfacing in the collar and fronts, shoulder pads and a sewn-in lining can all shrink or pucker at different rates when wet, even if the wool itself would survive. If the label says dry clean, follow it. Our guide to reading a clothing care label explains the other symbols.

Brush it regularly

A clothes brush is the most useful thing you can own for a wool coat. It lifts dust, crumbs, hair and fluff before they work into the fibres.

1. Hang the coat on a sturdy hanger or lay it flat on a clean table.
2. Brush downwards, in the direction of the nap (run your hand over the cloth: one way feels smoother).
3. Use short, light strokes, paying attention to the shoulders, collar and cuffs, where dust and skin oils build up.

Do this every few wears, and always before you put the coat away for the season. A lint roller helps with pet hair, but a brush does more for the cloth.

Air it out to freshen it

Wool coats pick up smells from cooking, smoke, damp buses and storage. Often all they need is time and air.

• Hang the coat outside on a dry, still day, out of strong direct sun, or by an open window, for a few hours.
• Give it space in the wardrobe afterwards rather than squashing it between other coats.
• If it has been rained on, let it dry naturally on a wide hanger at room temperature. Never dry wool on a radiator or near a heater; direct heat can shrink or distort it.

For stubborn smells on a second-hand coat, our guide to getting smells out of second-hand clothes has more ideas.

Spot clean small marks

Deal with spills while they are fresh, and test anything you use on an inside seam or hem first.

1. Blot (do not rub) the mark with a clean, dry cloth to lift what you can.
2. Mix a few drops of wool or delicates detergent into cold water.
3. Dab the mark with a cloth dipped in the mixture, working from the outside of the stain inwards so it does not spread.
4. Dab again with a cloth dipped in plain cold water to remove the detergent.
5. Blot dry and leave the coat to air dry on a hanger.

Avoid hot water, which can set some stains and felt the wool, and avoid ordinary biological detergents, whose enzymes are designed to break down proteins, and wool is a protein fibre. For grease, oil, ink, wine or anything large, a dry cleaner has better tools than a kitchen cupboard, so tell them what the stain is when you drop the coat off.

Steam, don't iron

Creases and a flattened nap usually drop out with steam. Hang the coat in the bathroom while you have a hot shower, or use a handheld steamer held a few centimetres from the cloth, keeping it moving. Let the coat cool and dry on its hanger before you wear it.

If you must use an iron, follow the care label's temperature, put a damp cotton cloth between the iron and the wool, and press rather than slide. Pressing directly on wool can leave a shine that is hard to remove.

When to use a dry cleaner

Home care keeps a coat fresh day to day, but a professional clean is the safer choice when:

• the label says dry clean only and the coat needs more than a brush and an airing
• there is a large or oily stain
• the coat is tailored, heavily structured or has a delicate lining
• you are storing it for the summer and want it clean first, as moths are drawn to wool that has food or body oils on it

Once a season is often enough for a coat you wear regularly. Store it clean, on a wide hanger, in a breathable cotton cover rather than plastic.

Buying or selling a second-hand wool coat

A coat that has been brushed and cared for is often in better shape than its age suggests, which is why second-hand wool coats can be such good buys. When you are browsing, ask the seller for a photo of the care and composition labels, and see our guide to telling if a wool coat is good quality for what else to check.

If you are selling one, a quick brush and an airing before you photograph it makes a real difference to how it looks on screen. Photograph the labels, mention any marks honestly, and add the chest, shoulder, sleeve and length in cm if you can. Measurements are optional on Rewear UK, but buyers find them helpful.