A some point, nearly every cat caretaker needs to know how to get cat urine smell out of carpet. While removing that pungent smell from absorbent material like a carpets or rugs isn’t easy, it isn’t as impossible as it may seem. True, there are easier surfaces to clean, like linoleum and glazed tile, but carpet actually isn’t the biggest challenge when it comes to cat urine odor removal. Just be glad kitty didn’t pee on your mattress or sofa. And if he did, well, let’s just work on the carpet first. 🙂
Pin-Pointing the Piddle
On light colored carpets and rugs, you might be able to track down the majority of the cat urine on the carpet just by looking for stains and smelling for the source of the odor. On dark carpet or carpets with older stains that have been removed (except for the odor), sight and smell wont be enough to guide you.
To prevent your cat from being drawn back to urinate in the same area, you’ll need to find all the stains and remove all stains and lingering odors, even those you cant see or smell. Your cat, after all, has a stronger sense of smell and can detect odors you cant. The easiest way to find all the soiled areas is to shine a black light on them. There are several ways to do this. The black light will make any organic material, including urine, blood and vomit, glow faintly. You can then mark the areas with tailors chalk or masking tape so you can find them after you turn the lights back on.
The Cleaning Process
The first step is to check whether or not the urine has seeped through the carpet and into the floor below. To to this, just pull back the carpet and look for dark stains. Any staining here also requires cleaning since it, too, will give off odors. Clean this before you start on the carpet.
When you’re ready to work on the carpet, vacuum first. Next you can apply an appropriate enzyme-based cleaner alone, but you may have more success pretreating with a homemade cat urine odor remover. Just make sure your homemade cleaner wont kill the enzymes in your store-bought cleaner. Even vinegar can reduce the effectiveness of some enzyme products, so check the label on your cleaner to find out what will and what wont affect it. Let your homemade cleaner work as long as needed, according to the recipe you’re using, then blot it up with white cloths (colored cloths may bleed and stain the carpet).
After this you can apply an enzyme cleaners. With most formulas, you’ll need to cover the treated area with plastic and let it sit for 24 hours. After this time, blot up the cleaner or use a wet/dry Shop Vac or extractor to pull the moisture out. Make sure there’s plenty of air circulation in the room so the carpet dries quickly. Otherwise, periodically go over the wet area with a hairdryer on a low setting.
You can solve your cat’s inappropriate urination problems and get your home completely free of cat urine odors, but the solutions may not always be obvious. Instead of wasting time learning by trial and error, read the book Cat Urine Problems Eliminated to discover proven-effective ways to retrain your cat and regain your home.
