If you have spent some time around cats, you may relate to the dreadful feeling one gets when they smell the air and realize something is not right.
You go to check on that strange smell and then as you suspected, your formerly clean floor has been stained unfortunately.
If you own a kitty and you notice that it is starting to do it’s thing away from it’s litter box, then you need to act fast before it gets out of hand.
Just the seemingly simple task of removing the smell of cat pee from the floor can be straining, and trying to mask the unpleasant remaining smell is nearly impossible.
But, it is not impossible, so keep reading.
If you don’t want your little four legged buddy to continue peeing on your fine things then you have to neutralize the odor quickly and immediately almost.
So don’t wait until you have time, or feel like cleaning it up properly and do it right away instead.
If the smell is not eliminated, your cat may actually go and pee in that very same spot again….and again.
The biggest mistake cat owners make unknowingly is not cleaning the urine quickly enough.
So, keep reading to learn how to clean cat pee in simple steps…
Table of Contents
How To Clean Cat Pee -The Methods
On Carpets
When you first come to the haunting realization that your feline friend has peed on your beautiful carpet, the first thing you should make sure to do is to use simple paper towels to try and blot up the urine.
Try to soak it up as well as you can with them to begin with.
If the area is too large for this and you don’t want to waste too many paper towels, then you can also use a cloth towel instead.
You can also just use a used towel from the laundry bin, or some old clothes that are ready to be thrown away if you can’t find anything else to use.
You should stand firmly on the paper towels to really soak it up, and do that several times in an attempt to get as much out of the carpet as possible.
After you have done this and gotten out as much as you can with this method, you should saturate the damaged area with some water mixed with a few drops of dish detergent.
Most of us have some dish detergent at home, so it shouldn’t be too hard to get some.
Let the mixture sit in the area for about an hour or two, and for now DON’T SCRUB.
Next after you have waited, you need to gently blot up the area you need to rinse.
Rinse the same area again, but now use a wet sponge for this task.
After doing this, soak the area with club soda for about 10-15 minutes.
Next, remove the club soda by blotting it up and put some new paper towels or a cloth over the area itself.
Now you should just wait for the entire night with the cloth or paper towels in their place securely.
As it waits overnight, you should put something heavy on top of it to really weigh it down into the carpet.
The morning after you should remove the cloth or paper towels and carefully pour some enzymatic cleaner over the affected spot.
Do make sure you read the instructions first and follow the directions on the bottle closely.
These types of special cleaners have enzymes in them which will make the uric acid in the cat urine break down into ammonia and carbon dioxide.
These substances easily evaporate then, and this can get rid of that nasty cat pee smell once and for all.
You should let the enzymatic cleaner work well and soak into the carpet for around 10 to 15 minutes.
You should make sure to get every single spot on your carpet which got soaked, not missing any areas to be cleaned.
To properly complete the enzymatic cleaning process, the carpet should be completely dry.
When you are using these types of cleaners you should make sure not to use any other cleaning solutions with them. These solutions could make the enzymes ineffective and not work at getting the cat pee smell out of the carpet, which is what we are trying to do.
If your carpet still smells bad, even after doing this cleaning process, it could be the padding underneath causing this.
You can try to clean the area under the carpet and replace the padding if you must.
Use an oil based, stain blocking primer on the sub floor beneath the carpeting to neutralize the scent of the accident.
Hard Surfaces. -Hardwood floors, cement, linoleum and ceramic tiles
Sealed wooden floors can be mopped up with paper towels relatively easily which is good.
If your cat pees on your floor, try to remind yourself that at least it was not worse and look at the bright side of things, for you won’t have to rip up the floor completely.
You can clean wooden floors with ease using a wooden floor cleaner that is designed specifically to eliminate pet odors and related substances.
If the floors happen to be unsealed, soak the affected area with white vinegar for just a few minutes after blotting up the urine as well as you are able.
Next you should clean up the vinegar using paper towels ideally.
The next step is to use a sponge, adding more vinegar and scrubbing gently into the stained area.
Using vinegar, which is an acid helps to neutralize the alkaline salts in the cat urine stains.
You can also mix some baking soda into your vinegar to use on the floor as doing this will boost it’s unique ability to eliminate odors.
Then you can rinse it lightly with some regular water, and dry the floor gently with a cloth or paper towels.
Use an enzymatic cleaner after doing this and make sure to try the cleaner on some tiny spot on the floor beforehand to be safe, just in case it may discolor the floor or something like that.
You must repeat the cleaning process many times and make sure that the floor dries in between every time between the washings.
Keep your cat culprit away from the area you are working on cleaning until the smell has been completely removed.
You don’t need your cat in your way when you are trying to get things done, even if he is cute to look at.
If the unpleasant smell or stain are not removed after doing this, it may mean that the cat pee has soaked into the wood itself.
If this is the case, then you need to sand the part of the wood that is stained.
After sanding the floor part, seal the floor so that cat pee will not soak the wood.
For ceramic tiles, you only need to use a paper towel to wipe the pee up.
If the cat pee has not reached the grout, you can just simply clean it up with a tile cleaner, which is no big deal.
If though, it has spread to the grout you should use a mixture of water and baking soda to clean this.
Make it into a thick paste and spread that onto the grout, leaving it to dry like that.
When it has then dried you can just wipe it off and this will help remove the bad smell.
Clothes and Linen
Bedspreads or linens that should be dry-cleaned, and have cat pee on them should ideally be taken to a professional cleaner immediately.
It will become way harder to remove the bad smell if it stays in the material for a long time without any care.
If you can machine wash your clothes or linen then you should first rinse the area in the sink using cold water.
Don’t put the soiled fabric in your washing machine right away.
If you wash urine soaked clothes right away, the odor will set in and if any other clothes are being washed with it, you are in for a nasty surprise.
All the other clothes being washed at the same time will also end up smelling like cat pee and you will have an even bigger problem on your hands.
After rinsing the spot, use paper towels to dry it up a bit, don’t scrub at the material.
If you scrub at the fabric, the urine will sink even deeper into the cloth which nobody wants.
Soak the rinsed clothes in a bucket of oxygen bleach(not chlorine).
Use a half-cup and bleach for around 2 hours.
Next you should put the clothing in a mixture of 3 cups water and 1 cup vinegar.
Mix together with baking soda and let it stay for around 10 to 15 minutes.
After doing these steps you can safely wash your soiled clothes in the washing machine without worries.
You should use the cold water setting though to be safe and wash them without any detergent as well.
Then just let them air dry outside in the sun.
Drying in rain is not very effective at all…
If you can still smell the cat pee after doing all this, then you can try adding enzymatic cleaner to the load and do this again. Repeat until the bad odor is gone and let the clothes air dry once more.
Cushions and Upholstery
To clean these you need to soak the affected area of the cushion with water using a paper towel or a cloth to get up as much of the cat pee as possible.
Mix some water and vinegar and pour it over the stain for around 3 – 5 minutes. After the water and vinegar mixture is then dry, you should sprinkle some baking soda on the spot.
Use lots of it.
The next step is to sprinkle around one cup of hydrogen peroxide, with a teaspoon of dish detergent over the baking soda.
Before you do this though, I recommend you test this solution on a very small spot beforehand.
This is important because peroxide can bleach or discolor some fabrics and you don’t want to ruin your favorite pillow.
Then work the baking soda into the fabric to try to get the smell and stains out.
You should leave it then for a couple hours to dry, and when it is dry you can vacuum the remaining baking soda.
For tough stains you can simply repeat this process until you are happy with the results.
You can also try to soak the area with an enzymatic cleaner as well, letting it sit for 15 minutes before drying with some towels.
It is recommended though instead to let your cushions dry outside naturally in the air.
Mattresses
This process is almost the exact same as the method for cleaning cushions of cat pee.
You already know how to clean cat pee to some degree, but do keep reading still.
You need to soak the stained area with some water, using a towel or a cloth to remove as much urine as possible to begin with.
Next, slowly and carefully pour some enzymatic cleaner on the affected area and keep it like that for 15 minutes before blotting it up again with towels.
Place a few layers of lean towels over the mattress and then make the bed.
You should change the towels each day until the mattress is completely dry again. Then cover the bed with a big plastic sheet when it is not in use to keep your kitty from peeing on it again in the meantime.
When you have finished all your cleaning but can still smell the cat’s pee in your house, you will do well to investigate this mystery further.
Use a black light if you have one, but a black light will reveal any stains that are not visible to the naked human eye or the human nose.
The black light should be used to scan any floors, baseboards, walls and furniture which could have been affected and may be the source of the smell.
For the very best results you can place the light close up to the surfaces, but under the light any pee stains will glow.
You can use a marker to keep track of any areas that you discover so you won’t lose them again.
What To Avoid When Cleaning Cat Pee
You should not use ammonia or any ammonia based products on your upholstery or carpet.
These things have a pee like smell and this can attract your cat again.
It may encourage your cat to pee in that area, which defeats the whole purpose of using those types of products in the first place.
Steam or heat should not be used for cleaning any things your cat has peed on.
Heat can actually set the stain, so when washing any clothes make sure the setting is on cold. Also don’t use the machine dryer for any clothes if you can avoid it.
Also don’t use chlorine bleach on your clothes or linen which has cat urine on it.
When mixed with ammonia and cat pee, bleach can produce harmful gasses so be very careful. (1.)
Don’t ever combine bleach with ammonia!
Also remember not to scold or harshly discipline your little cat after it urinates outside of it’s litter box.
This does not work for most cats and the situation can worsen if you scold an anxious and nervous cats. Try to show patience and understanding.
Why Cats Ignore Their Litter Box
There can be many reasons why a cat would bypass or outright ignore their litter box and peeing anywhere in your home.
Nobody wants their cat peeing all over the place so this is definitely something one might worry about.
Your furry fellow could have some medical issue, behavioral issues, be reacting to changes in the house, or simply complaining about a dirty litter box.
If any of these things are the case then your pet is likely to find other places in the home to pee on and relieve itself.
It is important to find out the real reason why your feline would urinate where it shouldn’t be doing so.
Make sure to always clean it’s litter box regularly and keep it clean for your kitty to use.
It is best for cats to have an extra litter box to use in the home, and this may be something worth looking into if you can afford it.
Try to figure out if anything could have upset your cat or if there have been any big changes in the home and environment lately which could have thrown your cat off balance.
Maybe your cat feels uncomfortable using a certain type of litter boxes, and it needs a new one.
You should meet with your veterinarian if your pet continues to pee outside the litter box, as you can check if there is actually something wrong with your cat’s health that is causing this.
Your vet can also give you some advice and good tips on how to solve this problem.
Whatever the reason for your cats unpleasant behavior is, it is always important to clean the areas as soon as possible because doing that can help your cat stop behaving like this.
Did you enjoy our article on how to clean cat pee? let us know in the comments below.
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