The Right Way to Clean Your Sewing Machine – Sewing Machines Los Angeles

It is recommended that you clean your Sewing machine after using your machine for a while or at least once a year.

To keep your work area clean, you should lay something under the machine to prevent oil and dirt from getting everything dirty. I usually just use newspapers if I got it handy. Here is check list of other tools you need to clean: kerosene, fine steel wool, a small toothbrush (can be a used one), toothpicks, Q-tips, a cotton lint free fabric, oil specially made for sewing machines, WD-40 and a screw driver. Please be cautious and do not use alcohol as it will ruin the finish and paint on your machine. Trust me, this is from personal experience.

Using the lint free cotton fabric mentioned earlier and remove all the excess grease residue off of your Machine. The grease that has hardened due to not maintaining your Machine for some time, if ever, needs to be broken down and dissolved. In order to break down and wipe of the grease, marinate the grease with a tiny bit of kerosene or WD-40. Please allow time for the grease to dissolve. If you haven’t cleaned in a while and the grease is stuck on their, you should let it soak overnight. To do so, tip your Sewing machine so the hardened greasy part sits on the Kerosene soaked cloth. For your safety complete this process in a location away from flames and a very ventilated area. When the grease is broken down and removed, you can oil the machine with sewing machine oil. Make sure you utilize oil that has been made for sewing machines. If you’re wondering where to oil the machines, in the correct locations, please refer to your owner’s manual.

Use your soaked end of the Q-tip with the WD-40 or Kerosene to remove the remainder of the grease.

Remove the thread on the machine by removing the throat plate also known as the needle plate. The thread might be wound around the shaft. With the toothbrush mentioned earlier, remove link from under the thread spindle and inside the cover of your Sewing machine.

It’s a great idea to clean the internals of your Sewing machine while you’re at it. I hope you are familiar with your machine enough to be able to do so. This involves removing and detaching all the mechanical parts that can be unscrewed and removed. These parts include the face plate, presser foot, bobbin cover and flywheel. However, it’s not necessary to remove the motor. As a rule of thumb keep all your parts in a area easily found. If you don’t know which part is which you can label them so you don’t end up with any extra parts! Now, the removed parts should be completely sprayed and then allow to soaked with WD-40. Thereafter, make sure the parts are wiped clean with your lint free fabric. Not only is the WD-40 a cleaner, it actually lubricates and protects the metal components.

Whatever you do, do not lubricate the motor. However, you can wipe down the motor housing. I say not to lubricate the motor for two reasons. One being that electric motors need little lubrication and you can damage the motor by lubricating it too much.

Once the motor is wiped down, it’s time to check the tension of the belt. Pull the belt a little with your fingers to check to see how much play the belt has. There should be one and half inches of play room. If your belt is worn out, replace the belt with a new one. If you look straight back from the light switch you can find the screw that releases the belt. You can replace the belt by loosening this screw. You’ll be able to remove the belt if you loosen that screw. Please do not remove the screw as it will loosen the motor. Slide the new belt on, align the motor in its position and tighten that screw back up. Check to see if the belt tension is at its right measurement. The motor will be strained if the belt’s play is too little. On the other hand if the belt is too loose your machine won’t be as powerful as it should be. For optimal performance, take the time and make sure the belt has the proper tension. It will be worth the time spent.

If the metal parts of your machine are lightly rusty, it’s really easy to remove. Using the fine steel wool, gently rub the rusty parts.. If some of the rust doesn’t come off by just using the steel wool, you can assist by spraying it with WD-40 or putting a little kerosene on it. The steel wool should not be used to remove anything but the rust. As it will leave scratches and damage the finish.

Upon the completion of your clean-up of your Sewing machine, be sure to tighten the screws up. Machine jams, machine damage, grinding and rattling of your machine can be caused by un-tightened, loosened screws.

At last using the lint free fabric, rub some baby oil on the exterior of the machine. Wipe any extra baby oil. This will help preserve the exterior of the machine and give it a nice show case shine.

Use the money you save by making your own clothes. This can only be achieved if you up keep the maintenance on your sewing machine.