I have a house I am remodeling and I am try to get rid of some cat urine odor that has soaked into the subfloor. Does anyone have any suggestions on how this might be done?
Thank,
/Richie
I have a house I am remodeling and I am try to get rid of some cat urine odor that has soaked into the subfloor. Does anyone have any suggestions on how this might be done?
Thank,
/Richie
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Replies
Pet supply stores sell stuff specifically for that problem. Cat stink is bad news though. It may take several treatments to abate the odor, but other cats or dogs will detect it even if you can't and might mark it with their own scent. I used something called odor ban, which smelled fairly nice itself, but was pretty much a failure at descenting cats odor. Make sure you get the stuff from the pet supply. Also farm supply stores have some odor eliminator treatments.
Thanks. I have tried one odor eliminator that has worked somewhat, but not satisfactorily. Some people I know have suggested "Kilz" or "Forster 4020". I was hoping someone would know of a product that they have had success with. This is my first time using this site.
Try the search button. It's been discussed a couple times in the last several months or year. Some good info and funnies came out of it..
Excellence is its own reward!
"The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit.
The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are."
--Marcus Aurelius
Soak everything in apple cider vinegar.
Open the windows, and let the place dry out. If one app doesn't do it, soak everything all over again with the apple cider vinegar.
I do mean SOAK. I promise, the vinegar smell will dissipate. When it does, the cat odor will be gone as well. Don't bogart the Ghost
Quittin' Time
Burn the house down.
Sell the house.
Rip up the subfloor, the joists, and the basement ceiling.
Thoroughly soak the floor with the odour neutralizer that you can buy. Get gallons of it. Pray, even if you're an atheist.
rich- we have 5 dogs ,2 inside cats , 1 outside, got the picture..... we use stuff "natures miracle". i'm of a bit of a pain in the a** about people-pets co-habitation this stuff works. i like a seam-less home as possible when i drag my dis-shoveled posterior home. construction is a by in large a filthy business, and after 10-14 hours of that and i dont like coming home to a kennel environs so natures miracles helps with that problem(smell), that and a wonderful lady helps. give it a shot , for really radical problems i've heard apple cider, and also tri-phosphate solution (found at the orange box) but i'm not sure about that. bear
I got suckered into doing this for a friend once. Typical scenario, little old lady loved cats, had them for 10 years before passing on. He tried every kind of chemical/biological/nuclear product on the market, it still wouldn't get rid of the smell. So I ripped up all the subflooring I could get to and replaced it, along with several floor joists that had that distinktive aroma. I also had to pull out and replace all the HVAC ducts, as some of the cats thought the returns were cool outhouses. That did the trick.
Two coats of Kilz works. No worries. Just make sure you get it applied all along the edges of the subfloor and wall plates. (Of course, carpet and pad are not salvagable). If it's in the ductwork, though, you've pretty much got to replace all of that.
15 year history of 10+ cats/4 20# capacity litter pans..........3 dogs.........all indoors!!
Saturated basement floor and many "marking" posts throughout the house! Carpet, antiques, wood trim, cabinets, draperies, doors, metal ornaments, objects d'arts........all targets for assorted volleys in the continuous "piss'in contest".
Customer's request.........."Make the smell go away!
Lots of things tried.................only this worked!
Un-Duz-It
Bio-Enzymatic Pet Odor Decontaminate & Stain Remover
Customer Service Number 1-800-332-6037
Wonderful service..............will ship single gallons. Not cheap, not outrageous. Sure does an excellent job. Water based, 1 part Un-Dux-It/2 parts water, 4 hour life after mixing. Can't heap /;>) enough praise upon this product.
.........................Iron Helix
Richie,
I buy and rehab property for rentals. Cat and dog odor is a favorite as it drives down the price. a couple of years ago I bought one that had a rotweiler locked in it for three weeks. Do as Luka said and wash it down heavily with apple cider vinegar. Let it dry for 3 days or so. Then seal the area with Bins Zinseer sealant. Kilz orginal formula would work too but I like Bins better. 2 coats. Works like majic an you will be a hero. Heros charge extra! DanT
Thank you Dan.
: )
I have had cats for most of my life. I have dealt with the worst of situations. I have also dealt with situations as bad as, or worse than described in this thread, when working for others.
The apple cider vinegar has NEVER not worked. Period. If one soaking did not do the job, it never took more than one or two more applications. And the real proof was not in the fact that people could not smell the cat smell anymore, but in the fact that cats did not come back in, and immediately start spraying in the same places again. They couldn't smell it either. Therefore, did not feel the need to 'compete'.
Anyone who has tried this, and not had it worked, didn't really try. You really do have to soak the area at least as far in as the smell has gotten itself. That means a LOT of apple cider vinegar. Don't be a wuss and wimp out because the vinegar smells bad too.
If the problem is bad enough, then the smell from the amount of vinegar that has to be used, will be pretty bad as well. But... I absolutely assure you that if you give it time and ventilation, the vinegar smell will go away as well. And take the cat odor with it to boot.
Forever. This is not like those chemical treatments. Even when the area gets wet again, you will not smell that cat smell again. Not if you did it right in the first place.
As for laundry, drapes, etc.... a good cup and a half of lemon smell ammonia, per washerload is all that is needed there. Even took a very strong cat smell out of a genuine sheepskin that way once...
The real question is why the apple cider vinegar does not work on the clothes, and the lemon ammonia doesn't work on the floors...
:
Don't bogart the Ghost
Quittin' Time
Someone already mentioned some like Bio-enzyme. I have used something called BacZyme which is an enzyme that actually eats the bateria that is left in the pet urine and eliminates the odor. I get it at a local janitorial supply store and it comes in gallons. It's not too expensive and does a good job. I tried vinegar and the apple cider stuff but none of it really worked. I used BacZyme on walls, floors everything. I also had a boarding home for elderly women and used it regularly to clean the wood floors. I can't say enough good about it because it did a really good job! Good luck!
I have multiple cats and have had good luck with a product called Simple Solution. Available form the pet catalogues. May take mutiple soakings, but it eventually works.
Steve
I needed something for human urine. I renovated Taverns and Nightclubs for years. I remember the guy at the pet store saying the stuff he sold me would neutralize Boa Constrictor or Python urine. The stuff worked great!
Gordsco
Vinegar has been found to be a powerful product to remove the smell of cat urine. Mix white vinegar or apple cider vinegar in water to dilute it (usually 1:1 ratio) and spray the solution on any fabric or floor. Use an old hand towel or paper towel to dab or blot the solution.