Dog Urine Odor Removal

Info_lover | Jul 6, 2010 |

0 Comments | Rating: 0

There are times when our furry companions can have 'accidental releases', especially during the early stages of a puppy's housebreaking. Health issues and advanced age can cause a dog to urine on the carpet as well – not to mention those times when Fido simply cannot 'hold it' any longer. Whatever the cause is, successful dog urine odor removal will require some time and attention but doesn't have to leave you with any headaches! You should read on if you want to learn how to remove dog urine odor.

Flushing the Stain

Removing dog urine odor from carpet is easiest to do when the pool of dog urine is discovered while it's still fresh, but we all know that doesn't always happen. If you come across an old, dried urine spot, the first thing you need to do is to make it resemble a fresh urine spot as much as possible. You can achieve this by "flushing" the area. You will need these following tools:

a black light
clean paper towels and newspapers
a pitcher of cool water or a carpet cleaning machine

The black light works by helping you find out exactly where the urine is hiding. What you see in normal light may not be the only remaining urine stain. When the room is very dark, you can turn on the black light and it will help reveal any dog urine spot as a bright, glowing area. The urine spot should be then outlined in some way, using a chalk or maybe a long piece of yarn.

Next, you can proceed to flush that stained area with large amounts of water, but it is very important that you use only cool water as warm temperatures can cause the urine (as well as its odor) to permanently bind with carpet fibers. If you happen to be using a pitcher, the water can be carefully poured over the entire area. The spot needs to be rinsed well but should not be saturated with water. A carpet cleaning machine will make it easy to apply sufficient water without wetting the carpet over-excessively. If you use a machine, you only need to add clean water to the tank at this time.

Once the urine spot is wet enough, the water will work to dissolve the urine molecules thus loosening their grip on the carpet fibers. This way, you would have made an old stain 'fresh' again.

Absorbing Urine

From this point on, both old urine stains and fresh urine stains can now be treated the same way. The smell of dog urine tends to linger in a room, even after cleaning the urine stain. This is because some of the urine will still be lurking in the lower layers of the carpet and padding. With some patience and hard work, you can get rid of most of the urine stain and remove any remaining urine odor.

Newspapers are pretty cheap, highly absorbent, and can be discarded after use, which makes them particularly helpful for soaking up dog urine. That said, you cannot place newspaper directly on top of the carpet as the ink will bleed. Rather, you should lay down a few layers of towels with many layers of newspaper on top.

Standing on the absorbent lawyers will provide the necessary pressure to soak up the urine from even the lowest layer of the carpet and padding. The towels and newspapers should be replaced with dry ones and then stood on again until virtually no more urine can be absorbed. This may take you some time to do this, but leaving dog urine stain in the carpet will basically guarantee a urine odor later on.

Cleaning

To clean the area, you have several choices:

Commercial stain remover which contains 'live enzymes'
Plain white vinegar
Solution of hydrogen peroxide, liquid detergent and baking soda

Enzymatic Cleaner

Most commercial stain treatments will get rid of the visible stain, but for effective dog urine smell removal, you will have to find a product which contains live enzymes. These products are generally labeled for use on pet accidents, and chances are you will find them at a pet store rather than a general retailer.

The enzymes work by surrounding and digesting the bacteria in the urine that causes odor. Once the bacteria are digested, there will not be any of those unpleasant odors left. The enzymatic cleaner must be applied according to the label instructions.

Vinegar

Plain white vinegar can naturally neutralize odors that are caused by urine. This is an extremely effective dog urine odor remover. All you have to do is pour a solution of equal parts water and vinegar over the area and then work the solution gently into the carpet fibers. Like you did before, the liquid should be then absorbed with towels or it can be extracted using a wet-dry vac or a carpet cleaning machine.

Homemade Oxy-Cleaner

The main ingredient that is used in commercial oxy-based cleaners is hydrogen peroxide, and you can make an effective version of it at home. You will have to mix the following ingredients in a jar:

1/2 cup of 4% hydrogen peroxide
1/2 cup of baking soda
1 teaspoon of liquid detergent
1 quart of water

You can then spray or pour the solution over the stained area and then work it gently into the fibers, rubbing in a gentle circular motion. The baking soda is a natural odor neutralizer, and the peroxide enables the solution to penetrate every carpet fiber. Once you have worked the solution into the carpet fibers, you can then proceed to air-dry the area and vacuum any baking soda that is leftover.

What to Avoid

Instead of helping with dog urine smell removal, ammonia will only worsen the situation. Urine tends to contain huge quantities of ammonia, and adding ammonia to the stained area will only make a dog think that this is the correct place for relieving himself. At the same time, regardless of what cleaner you choose, you will need test it in an inconspicuous area before using it. After applying the cleaner, you must then check the area thoroughly for any discoloration or fading of color. This is to prevent your carpet or furniture from being discolored.