Pets can be a great source of joy and companionship, but they can also leave behind unwanted messes, especially when it comes to urine.
Whether it’s on carpet or hard flooring, pet urine can leave lasting stains and odour if not dealt with promptly and effectively.
There are many articles on the internet on how to treat pet urine stains & odour using household items such as distilled vinegar, baking soda & even dish soap! We want to share with you the best & most effective way to safely clean away pet urine mess without causing any long-term damage to your precious flooring.
In this step-by-step instructional blog post, we’ll provide you with professional carpet cleaning tips from our expert team on how to effectively remove pet urine and odour from your flooring safely at home.
We will cover the following:
- Why pet wee makes your carpet & flooring smell
- Clean away new urine stains & prevent odour - What to use
- Clean & treat old set-in urine stains & odour - The most effective products & method
- Cleaning away urine from hard flooring
- Do's & Don'ts
Why pet wee makes your carpet & flooring smell
Pet urine needs to be cleaned properly as soon as the accident has happened. Sometimes this is not possible, but as soon as this issue is realised, the sooner it is treated in the correct way it will prevent a build-up of deeply set in pet urine, which could cause smelly issues further down the line.
Your flooring becomes smelly after pet wee accidents as the flooring absorbs the urine, allowing the ammonia and bacteria to release foul odours which can be hard to treat & remove.
Pet urine odour can only be removed properly if it is treated with products that can remove or neutralise the odours, by the break down of the ammonia & bacteria.
This is why we will only suggest methods that will achieve this.
New Urine Stains on Carpet or Fabric
This treatment can be used on all fabric surfaces, such as rugs, sofas, pet bedding etc.
You will need the following:
- Paper towels / Kitchen roll / clean cloth / sponge for absorbing the surface urine
- Pet pro urine & odour destroyer or a different pet enzymatic cleaner
- An empty spray bottle or bowl to mix the cleaner
- Cloth / Carpet Cleaner extraction machine for extracting water & treatment
- The first step in removing urine from carpet or fabric is to act fast. Place a thick layer of paper towels over the wet spot and allow to absorb. Apply pressure if necessary to soak up all fluid from the saturated surface, to prevent too much urine from setting into the surface
- Dilute 5:1 (1 part solution to 5 parts water) of Pet Pro Urine & Odour Destroyer in a spray bottle or mix in a bowl
- Liberally apply on the affected area to soak in - you'll want the diluted solution to soak in as far into the carpet pile as the urine has sunk in to make sure all of the odour is removed.
- Extract with water in a carpet cleaner machine or by hand with a cloth
- Allow area to dry
Enzymatic cleaners are bio-based cleansers designed to work on a molecular level to break down and remove odours at the source. Choose an enzyme-based cleanser, or a solution with high levels of deodorisers, made specifically for pet stains.
Dried Set In Urine on Fabric and Carpets
This treatment can be used on all fabric surfaces, such as rugs, sofas, pet bedding etc. as well as hard flooring.
If you discover a dried urine stain, you can use the method mentioned above to treat it. Leave the solution to soak in for 1-2 hours before extracting & drying out.
If this doesn't work, or the area that requires treatment is larger than one small accident (all of your carpet is in need of a deeper clean) - A deeper form of cleaning will be required.
What you will need:
- Carpet Cleaner machine - These can be hired at popular supermarkets or diy shops, or even delivered at home.
- Pet pro urine & odour destroyer
- Pet Pro Carpet Shampoo or a specific pet carpet shampoo treatment
For this deeper clean we are going to use the power of both the Urine & Odour enzymatic cleaner & the Pet Pro Carpet Shampoo with an extraction carpet cleaner machine to give the carpet or upholstery the most effective deep professional clean to remove dirt, bacteria & ammonia causing foul odours.
All of Dirtbusters carpet cleaning solutions are compatible with wet carpet cleaner machines.
- Prepare the room / area / surface in which you intend to clean, by removing items out of the way for easy access, and hoovering away any dirt particles
- Make yourself aware of the instructions of your carpet cleaning machine if you haven't used it before
- Set up your carpet cleaner machine in the area which needs cleaning
- Add the Pet Pro Carpet Shampoo -
For a carpet cleaner machine with 1 tank:
Machines with 1 tank for both water and carpet shampoo, use 10ml of carpet shampoo with every 1 Litre of clean, warm water.
For a Carpet cleaner machine with 2 tanks:
Machines with separate tanks for clean water and cleaning solution, dilute Clean & Deodorise 50:50 in the solution tank e.g. fill up the tank halfway with water and the rest with carpet shampoo
Pro Tip - Use warm fresh water, this will help give an effective professional standard clean, as it will help the solution break down soiling easier. - Next add a capful of the Pet Pro Urine & Odour Destroyer to the solution tank, along with the Pet Pro Carpet Shampoo (mentioned in step 4).
- The solution in the carpet cleaner machine is ready for you to start cleaning
If you have never used a carpet cleaner machine before, follow the below tips:
- Don't make the carpet too wet. Wetting the underlay can cause mould growth & bad smells.
- Start cleaning from the farthest point and clean in stripes to avoid going over an area twice.
- Use the appropriate settings for your carpet's level of soiling and foot traffic.
- Clean slowly to allow the machine to complete the cleaning process.
- Change the water tanks when the dirty water tank is full and empty it outside or in the toilet.
- Let the carpet dry completely before putting furniture back and leave the room empty for at least five hours.
- Don't forget to empty and rinse the water tanks of the machine after use.
For cleaning upholstery, make sure to check the compatibility of the fabric and avoid over-wetting it. Allow it to dry completely before using it again.
Removing Urine Odour From Hardwood
Removing urine odour from hardwood floors can be difficult since urine can saturate the wood. However, there are a few methods to try.
- Use Pet pro multi-surface cleaner
- Use Pet pro odour eliminator spray
- Or use both
If the urine is a fresh accident, like with carpet and fabric it is vital to absorb as much urine as possible to prevent urine penetrating the hard floor surface. Once the urine has been absorbed, we recommend using the Pet Pro Multi-Floor Cleaner to ensure all the urine has been effectively removed.
Using either a multi floor cleaner machine or a bucket and mop, dilute the cleaning solution as follows:
In multi floor machines follow manufacturer tank instructions or 1 part Multi Floor Solution to 5 parts water. That’s 100ml of solution to 500ml of clean, warm water.
Use the same dilution rate for a mop and bucket, using warm water.
Simply clean the floor using either of these methods and allow to dry.
The simplest pet odour treatment for all surfaces
If the odour isn't too bad, there isn't much urine staining, you have removed the urine or there wasn't much there to begin with, you can simply use our Pet pro odour eliminator.
This will eliminate all types of pet odours.
This can be simply sprayed onto any surface safely to help eliminate bad odours.
We, however, do not recommend using this instead of treating urine directly and removing the soiling. It is best used in-between deep cleans, and for not too serious odours.
Do's & Dont's
Do:
- Treat urine stains immediately
- Soak up as much urine as possible if able to do so
- Use enzymatic pet urine cleaner
- Use a carpet cleaner machine for deeper cleans (You can hire if you do not own one)
- Contact us for advice or help
Don't:
- Use any non-specific carpet cleaning treatment products such as vinegar or baking soda, Dish soap, bleach or any other harmful chemical on your flooring
- Let urine set in
- Use a normal vacuum to remove fluids
- Ignore the issue
- Over saturate the carpet with solution
Summary
You can safely remove unwanted pet urine odours from your surfaces at home using the correct product and method. To avoid further foul odours we recommend following the professional advice of using a pet enzymatic treatment to breakdown the urines ammonia and bacteria at the source, for the most effective clean.
