Whether you’re cleaning up after a cat or dog, a young child or incontinent adult, it is difficult to remove urine stains and odors.
You probably have tried every cleaner on the shelf and still the stains and odors return. The reason that this type of stain is so difficult to remove is because of the uric acid crystals found in urine.
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Traditional products involving soap and strong chemicals aren’t able to work because they do not break down the uric acid crystals, and typical cleaners only mask the odor and then they return in a couple of days.
Fresh Urine Stains:
1 – First of all, it is necessary to remove once discovered as quickly as possible.
2 – DO NOT USE soap and water this will not work, as all the measure will accomplish is to push the stain deeper into the mattress or couch center where the odors will fester and become stronger.
3 – Use old towels and paper napkins to soak up as much of the urine as possible. Continue blotting until the area is only a little damp.
4 – Place a thick layer of paper towels over the affected area. Cover with newspaper. Stomp around on the newspaper for at least a minute to bring up as much of the moisture as possible.
5 – Rinse the area with clean, cool water. Do this frequently, and remove as much of the water as possible each time using either towels or a wet vac.
6 – Apply a pet stain remover to the affected area.
7 – Make the “accident zone” unattractive and/or unavailable to your pet and the appropriate “bathroom” area attractive as a way to retrain your pet. If possible, put the fresh, urine-soaked paper towel in the area where it belongs, your cat’s litter box or your dog’s designated outdoor “bathroom area.” This will help remind your pet that eliminating isn’t a “bad” behavior as long as it’s done in the right place.
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Dried Stains:
1 – Wet Vacuum: Use an extractor or wet vacuum cleaner to remove all traces of heavy stains in carpeting. Extracting/wet vacuum machines do the best job of forcing clean water through your carpet and then forcing the dirty water back out.
2 – Steam Cleaner: DO NOT USE steam cleaners to clean urine odors from carpet or upholstery. The heat will permanently set the stain and the odor by bonding the protein into any man-made fibers.
3 – Vinegar, Baking Soda and Water: Create a baking soda and water paste. Rub that mixture into the affected area.
Then use distilled white vinegar over it. After that use some clean towels to blot up the moisture. Repeat the process again, but no more than two times, as you might damage the fabrics if repeating the process to many times.
Rinse the area with water and leave the fabric in the sun to dry up a bit, or you can use a hair dryer to dry some more. Vinegar smell should be present for no more than two days, and after that bad urine smell should disappear.
4 – Hydrogen Peroxide: Hydrogen Peroxide can help you really well to remove urine smell. However, be careful though not to damage the fabrics with this chemical. Try it on a small spot first and leave it to dry out, and when you’re sure that no damage occurred, you can use it on the urine affected area.
5 – Odo Ban: Odo-Ban is a commercial product for pet urine smell removal. It is extremely easy to use, you just mix it up with water, spray on the affected spot, leave it to dry and there are no more foul odors.
6 – Ammonia & Oil Soap: Mix about the same amount of ammonia and oil soap, and dilute in water. Use that solution to clean up the affected area.
7 – Carpet stain remover: Try any good carpet stain remover if the area still looks stained after it’s completely dry from extracting and neutralizing.
However, your job will be more difficult if urine has soaked down into the padding underneath your carpet. In some cases, you may need to take the drastic step of removing and replacing that portion of the carpet and padding.
8 – Clean floors and walls: If the wood on your furniture, walls, baseboard or floor is discolored, the varnish or paint has reacted to the acid in the urine. You may need to remove and replace the layer of varnish or paint.
Try to replace them with washable enamel paints and some washable wallpaper which may respond favorably to enzymatic cleaners.
