How to get rid of the smell of baby, cat or dog urine on the carpet

A family with small children or elderly sick people may face the problem of urine smell on the carpet. But human urine does not have such a pungent “aroma” as, for example, cat or dog urine. This can be a real disaster, especially while a small pet is being trained to use the tray. Every time after an “accident”, taking the carpet to the dry cleaner is very expensive. And the floors will remain uncoated during this time. But there are ways to remove dog urine smell from carpet yourself.

Know the enemy by sight

Animal urine is a rather aggressive liquid and cannot be easily dealt with. For the fight to be effective, we need to understand what we are dealing with if this liquid gets on the fleecy surface of the carpet. Knowing what actually makes urine yellow and so “fragrant,” you can more clearly imagine how the problem can be solved.

• Unichrome. A substance that leaves those same yellowish stains on carpets. It cannot be removed with plain water. You will have to try hard to find the right product.
• Uric acid. An even more serious contender for purity. It is she who is responsible for the pungent, fetid odor. On the carpet it looks like small transparent crystals. But these crystals can increase the strength of the urinary odor upon subsequent wetting. In addition, they are very persistent: they are not afraid of water or even ethyl alcohol.But you can defeat them with the help of glycerin, alkalis or acids. Especially if these substances are heated.
• Urea. Also a urinary “flavor”. But it’s quite easy to remove: even plain water will help.

Accordingly, the main efforts should be directed towards getting rid of uric acid.

Do not try to get rid of the smell by airing or masking it with air fresheners. Of course, if guests unexpectedly show up, such methods can temporarily save the situation, but the molecules of flavors gradually mix in the air with the molecules of urine, which only makes things worse. Therefore, it is possible to completely remove persistent “amber” only by getting rid of its source – the stain on the carpet.

Traditional methods against urine odor

The surest way to defeat this smell at home is to begin the fight immediately, before it has time to penetrate deep into the fibers of the carpet, absorb and take hold there. After all, an old “aroma” is always sharper, more concentrated, literally hitting the nose. And it’s much more difficult to fight him. The first thing to do is to adsorb the liquid component of urine as much as possible. To do this, blot the stain with a dry cloth or paper napkins until the moisture is absorbed as much as possible. Next, cover the stain for half an hour with a napkin, on top of which a layer of crushed activated carbon is scattered. It will help dry up the “puddle”. Now you can get down to the main fight.

• Laundry soap.

As already mentioned, urea is afraid of glycerin. And it is contained in ordinary laundry soap. Using a sponge or brush, you need to soap the stained area, making sure that the pile is processed along its entire length, to the very base.After about half an hour, the soap is thoroughly washed off, moving from the edges of the stain to the center so as not to stretch it even more.

• Salt.

Cover the stain with several layers of ordinary table salt, leave it there for several hours, then clean it with a vacuum cleaner and thoroughly wash off the residue.

• Manganese.

You can try treating a dark colored carpet with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, and then wash it off with soapy water.

• Iodine.

Approximately 20 drops of iodine (or a little more) per liter of water is a sufficient concentration. The solution is also only suitable for dark carpets. The algorithm of actions is the same.

• Acids.

If the carpet is not light, you can treat the stain with fresh lemon juice and leave until dry. Or moisten the area that smells of urine, cover it with powdered citric acid (if the pile is light) and dry it too. There is no need to wash off these products.

But the mixture based on hydrogen peroxide must be washed off. To prepare it, take 10 ml of peroxide and add liquid soap (2 teaspoons are enough). The resulting composition is applied to the “marked” area, left until it dries completely, after which the remaining solution is washed out from the carpet as thoroughly as possible.

• Soda.

It can be used either in dry form (similar to salt) or in the form of a paste. The first option involves holding for two hours and then cleaning with a vacuum cleaner. To obtain a liquid product, you need to mix soda with peroxide to form a paste and treat the stain with it.

• Vinegar solution.

Take one part vinegar to five parts water. We moisten a multi-layer gauze napkin in the resulting composition, cover the stain with it and press well. After three minutes, we refresh the liquid and repeat the manipulation.We repeat this several more times until the smell of baby urine is completely eliminated.

Considering the fact that it is not always possible to determine whether the carpet is the result of a child’s surprise or water, and you don’t want to spoil the covering with chemicals, you can first make sure that cleaning is necessary. To do this, prepare a very weak solution of potassium permanganate, literally a couple of crystals in half a glass of water and drop it onto the stain. If there is no obvious smell of urine, you can simply dry the moisture.

The multi-stage method is more radical; it is used if the previous compositions did not help eliminate the foul odor.

1. Water is diluted with vinegar in a ratio of 3:1.
2. Treat contamination from a sprayer.
3. Wait until the stain dries but remains a little damp.
4. Generously sprinkle the surface with dry soda (if the pile is too wet, the soda will immediately begin to extinguish, reacting with vinegar, which will nullify all previous efforts, you will have to repeat everything again).
5. A solution of peroxide and dishwashing liquid is sprayed on top (dishwasher detergent is not suitable).
6. A chemical reaction will begin, during which the urine will gradually evaporate.
7. After complete drying, all that remains is to clean the carpet with a vacuum cleaner.

Another serious option is cleaning with chlorine-containing products. It has two undeniable advantages: it allows you to effectively remove the smell and scares away the animal from its favorite place (a cat or dog will not mark a place treated with bleach). But this method also has huge disadvantages:

• During cleaning there is a strong odor that takes a long time to dissipate;
• chlorine quite often causes allergies, especially in children and people with asthma;
• there is a very high risk that the product will “eat away” the color or disrupt the structure of the fibers.

After the carpet has been cleaned with a chlorine-containing compound, the room will have to be ventilated for a long time, and the carpet itself will have to be thoroughly washed using soap products (it is best to use ordinary laundry soap for this purpose).

What is important to remember

When carrying out such work, it is necessary to take into account the following nuances:

• During cleaning, it is better to isolate the animal from the room where the stained carpet is located, so that it does not accidentally inhale or eat the cleaning product.
• If there is a small child in the house, his access to the place of work is also blocked - for the same reasons. True, this is quite difficult to do, because the little restless one certainly needs to go where it is forbidden. In this case, it is better to clean the carpet after putting the baby to bed at night, so that everything has time to dry before the morning.
• After removing the smell, it is important to thoroughly ventilate the room and dry the carpet thoroughly, otherwise, instead of the smell of dog urine, the smell of dampness and mold will appear.
• If any of the ingredients in the cleaning formulations cause an allergic reaction in your household, you should look for another recipe.

If the “marks” were placed by a kitten or puppy, then until he gets used to using the litter box or waiting for a walk to relieve his needs, the baby will pee on the carpet again and again. Therefore, the smell will also need to be removed systematically. It is much easier to completely remove the carpet from this room while the furry baby is getting accustomed to toilet procedures.

Chemicals for removing odors

If all the above recipes do not give the desired effect (or there is no desire or time to tinker for a long time), you can use one of the industrial chemical compounds designed specifically to combat animal odors on carpets. They are produced in a large assortment, you can choose an option for any coating, for any degree of contamination. Such preparations deal with odor quickly and effectively, saving the effort, time and nerves of pet owners. Their specially developed formulas do not mask or muffle the odor, but break down uric acid into simpler substances, removing it without leaving a trace.

The only drawback is that industrial products will cost more than homemade ones. You can purchase such enzymatic preparations in specialized animal supply stores, pet stores, and veterinary clinics.

When choosing a specific product to combat the smell of animal urine, it is important to consider two important points: the type of carpet (fiber composition, length, color) and the mandatory strict adherence to the instructions for using the chemical product.

The most famous universal remedy is Vanish. It is whipped into foam and applied to the stain. Sprinkle soda generously on top and allow to dry, after which the carpet is cleaned with a vacuum cleaner.

Some of the products specifically designed to combat animal odor include the following:

• Udalix ultra. This stain remover is also whipped into a foam and allowed to dry. The product perfectly combats the pungent odor of uric acid on the carpet.
• Ecolife. Concentrated powder specifically designed to combat the odor of dog or cat urine and their marks left on the carpet. The product is diluted with water and left to act for some time.
• “Odor Eliminator”, Natures Miracle, Odorgone. These are sprays that simply need to be applied to the stained area by spraying. They are good because they do not contain any components that are harmful or dangerous to people or animals, but they allow you to efficiently remove the smell of dog or cat urine from the carpet.

You can get rid of the smell if a dog or cat peed on the carpet using other similar means:

• Odor Kill & Stain Remover;
• Urine Off;
• Pet Stain & Odor Remover;
• Just for cats Stain & Odor Remover.

Of the Russian products in this group, the following are distinguished by their high quality:

• "Zoosan";
• "DezoSan";
• Bio-G.

For carpets made from natural fibers, you can also choose suitable compounds with varying degrees of aggressiveness. For example, imported Cleansan or domestic Zoovorsin.

Before how to remove urine smell from the carpet using specialized compounds offered in pet stores, it is necessary to check whether the animal perceives it normally. Often, after such treatment, even the most peaceful and calm cat begins to behave inappropriately.

To ensure that none of these remedies bring unpleasant surprises, it is important to select them correctly for each specific situation, as well as strictly follow the recommended dosages, methods of use, and safety measures.

Do not harm the carpet

In fact, removing the foul odor of urine from a carpet without damaging the product itself is not the easiest task. This is especially true for the use of traditional methods.

It is possible that the recipe will help remove the smell without a trace, but at the same time it will make the carpet faded, damage the pile, stain it, or, conversely, bleach the dye. Sometimes, using the “weapon of popular anger” carelessly, you can literally burn through the treatment area.To avoid this, prudently follow these simple rules:

• Hot water is much more effective at using detergents than cold water. But you shouldn’t use hot water when cleaning carpets: you can ruin the structure of the pile.
• The sooner you start dealing with a urine stain, the easier it will be to deal with the smell. And vice versa: the longer the urine was in contact with the carpet pile, the deeper and more firmly it settled into it.
• When cleaning, do not move the brush against the direction of the carpet pile. Otherwise, it may end up breaking in the wrong position. It will look like a bald spot or a bald spot. In addition, with a constant unnatural slope, the pile experiences heavy loads - and the carpet in this place wears out faster.
• To remove urine stains and smells from carpets, do not use solutions that include sauerkraut, sauerkraut brine or tea. Traces of them are then almost impossible to remove.
• Laundry or dishwashing detergents may contain components that are aggressive to carpets and, as a result, affect the color or quality of the pile. Therefore, before use, it is recommended to test them on a small, inconspicuous area.
• The same applies to folk recipes: vinegar, peroxide, citric acid, chlorine are not safe for every carpet. Therefore, the rule here is the same: a preliminary test in an inconspicuous place.

So, in the fight against the smell of dog or cat urine on the carpet at home, there are many difficulties: it is important not to harm the household (especially small children) and the furry pets themselves, and not to spoil the described carpet even more... But if it is not possible to send the carpet to a professional dry cleaner, the purity and freshness of the latter will definitely be worth all the effort.