Home page » Home and comfort » Wardrobe care
Author of the article
Svetlana Pavlikhina
Reading time: 6 minutes
AA
A litter box-trained pet (cat) usually does not create trouble for its owners. There are situations when a pet can mark the carpet, shoes, and clothes. The smell of cat urine is pungent, unpleasant, and quite difficult to remove from clothes. There are many ways that help get rid of difficult-to-remove amber.
Why is the smell of cat urine so persistent?
Cat feces contain uric acid, which crystallizes quickly. It is impossible to remove such a substance with plain water: the liquid does not dissolve it.
After washing or washing, as soon as the fabric dries, the smell appears again. When uric acid begins to decompose, thiol is released, which has an unbearable stench.
The urine of cats contains a special enzyme with which the animal marks its territory. It is caustic and difficult to remove.
Special substances
It may be necessary to get rid of the smell of an elderly person’s urine when it has already become ingrained. A similar situation arises when a patient with incontinence lived in the room. This stench permeates not only the air, but also all surrounding objects, sometimes you even have to resort to cosmetic repairs.
To stop the smell, you can try some special products. These include drugs like Sanera Enzym and Odor Gone. They are used according to the instructions exclusively in diluted form using a spray bottle. Their acquisition is expensive, however, marks from chairs or sofas are removed instantly.
Vanish is considered a cheaper product for cleaning coatings and upholstered furniture; you can also use it.
As for bleach, although it removes the unpleasant odor, it is very toxic. If necessary, it is better for her to clean the toilet. In a room with a bedridden patient, try to use safe medications so as not to aggravate an already difficult situation. The same applies to the fumes of ammonia, which takes a very long time to dissipate and can be difficult to get rid of.
First steps after cat urine gets on clothes
Uric acid, which gives cat feces a strong odor, dissolves well in alkali, alcohol, and acid.
After cat urine gets on the fabric, you should not wash the item immediately. First, the caustic substance should be blotted with a paper napkin or soft cloth, then the problem area should be soaked with alkaline or alcohol compounds.
A foul-smelling stain on clothing is treated with the following readily available means:
- vinegar;
- glycerol;
- soda;
- lemon juice;
- alcohol (vodka).
They dissolve urea and prevent the smell from becoming embedded in the fabric. After treatment, you can remove the smell by washing the item with powder or gel.
Old smell
If measures to remove the smell of urine are not taken in a timely manner, it will simply permeate the entire room. Moreover, people living here will get used to it and will not feel it. It will be unbearable for guests.
To combat old aroma, drastic measures are needed. In some cases, it is necessary to remove the floors and re-cover the walls; sometimes it is enough to change the mattress or bedspread, or buy new carpets. Although sometimes the smell is absorbed very deeply even into the base of the sofa and bed.
You can try washing curtains, tulle, tablecloths, clothes and bedding. And if it doesn’t help, you’ll also have to buy a new one.
Home remedies to get rid of odor
To save your favorite item from an unbearable smell, they use compounds that are found in every home. They dissolve urea and eliminate a pungent odor similar to ammonia.
Hydrogen peroxide
The stain on the damaged item is thickly sprinkled with soda. Pour 100 ml of hydrogen peroxide into a spray bottle, add any detergent (1 tsp), dilute with water. Its volume should be 2 times the total volume of the mixture of soda and product.
The resulting solution is thoroughly shaken and sprayed onto a section of fabric sprinkled with soda.
When soda and peroxide interact, a reaction begins, the mixture foams because oxygen begins to be released, which pushes the embedded urea out of the fibers.
The mixture is left for 2-3 hours, after which the clothes are washed as usual. Baking soda and hydrogen peroxide help remove odor completely, even from dried stains.
Vinegar
The odorous liquid (urine) is removed with an absorbent napkin, then covered with soda.
You should not wipe away cat urine with a wet cloth - this will increase the smell of feces. Colorless table vinegar is mixed with water in a ratio of 1:3.
Soak the stained area on the clothing with the resulting mixture and leave for 1 hour. Afterwards the item is washed in the usual way.
Baking soda
The bulk substance is diluted with a small amount of warm water to make a paste. Apply this mixture in a thick layer to the stain and leave to dry.
When a crust appears, the product is removed and the item is washed with powder or laundry soap.
Potassium permangantsovka
Potassium permanganate is also used to neutralize cat ambergris.
An unpleasant aroma will not linger on clothes for a long time if they are soaked for an hour in a slightly pink solution of potassium permanganate (delicate, thin, snow-white items cannot be kept in this solution).
After soaking with potassium permanganate, the item is washed with powder, and conditioner is used when rinsing.
Lemon juice
Squeeze the juice from one lemon into a suitable container, then soak in it the area of the fabric on which the cat urine has fallen. After an hour, the item is washed in the usual way.
Iodine
The pharmaceutical product helps to remove even old, persistent, unpleasant odors. Iodine (about 10 drops) is dissolved in 1 liter of water.
Soak the contaminated fabric with this solution and leave until completely dry. Then the item is washed.
Using the same method, you can wash a cat urine stain from the floor and forever discourage your pet from defecating in that place.
Alcohol
You can also use vodka to remove odor. The caustic liquid is blotted with an absorbent dry cloth and an alcohol solution is applied to the urine stain.
When the alcohol has evaporated, the item is washed with a strong-smelling powder.
Citrus essential oil
Orange, lemon, and grapefruit oils are suitable for these purposes. Oil solutions have a strong aroma that eliminates cat odor.
Remove urine from clothing with a napkin, then wipe the affected area with a cloth soaked in essential oil and leave for 30 minutes.
Clothes are washed with a powder that can deal with greasy stains, because such contamination can remain from the essential oil.
Glycerol
The substance breaks down urea well and removes unpleasant odors. To begin with, urine from clothes is blotted with a napkin.
Afterwards, glycerin is applied to the entire stain and left for half an hour.
The product is washed off from clothes with running water, and the item is washed with powder and conditioner.
Dental rinse
If the stain is fresh, use mouthwash. The cat urine is blotted with a cloth, a rinse aid is applied, and left for an hour. The stain is washed under running water and the item is washed.
Fighting stains on a mattress
A baby in the house means real happiness, joy, fun, pleasant chores. When the time comes to wean off diapers, the baby can please his parents with urine stains on the mattress and children's things. Every new mother must know the tricks and secrets that will help remove baby urine from furniture and clothes.
If we are talking about a mattress or mattress pad, then the information will be extremely useful for pet owners. It is advisable to immediately remove a fresh stain, otherwise an unpleasant odor will appear, which will “delight” all household members.
Removing urine stains from the sofa
List of suitable means:
- baking soda;
- dishwashing liquid;
- vinegar 9%%
- hydrogen peroxide;
- spray;
- paper napkins.
Old stains can be removed differently; the proposed method will not work.
Step-by-step instruction:
- Lightly moisten with a damp sponge, the solution will reveal its properties in full force.
- Dilute table vinegar in water, taking into account the ratio of one to three, then apply evenly to the surface to be treated. You can place napkins on top, otherwise the liquid may spread to the sides.
- Apply a thin layer of soda, it should slightly extend beyond the boundaries of the ill-fated stain.
- Pour one hundred milliliters of 3% hydrogen peroxide, a little boiled water and 1 tablespoon of dishwashing balm into a container with a spray bottle. The total volume of the finished solution is at least 200 ml. It must be shaken thoroughly and sprayed over the treatment area.
- Leave for 2 hours, this is enough time for the chemical reaction to take place. When soda and peroxide come into contact, a huge amount of oxygen is released. The technique allows you to break down the most caustic, insidious components present in urine.
ARTICLE FOR YOU
How and with what to remove paint stains from clothes and linen
The proposed method is very simple, but effective when it is necessary to treat a mattress or mattress pad.
Stain removers
Household chemicals
To remove unpleasant cat odor, substances are used that can break down urea and remove it from the fabric. Gels, detergents and washing powders with active oxygen are especially effective: they help quickly remove the smell of cat urine from clothes.
You can use products with alkali (laundry soap) or with chlorine, which has the ability to combine with any substances and dissolve them.
Laundry soap
Gray soap (72%) has good whitening and deodorizing properties.
To remove the smell of cat urine from clothes, blot the unpleasant-smelling liquid with an absorbent napkin.
You shouldn’t rub too hard: you can increase the area of contamination, and the pungent smelling substance will be absorbed deeper into the fabric.
Laundry soap is lathered well in warm water, and the contaminated area is rubbed with a softened bar in a thick layer.
The item is processed from the front and back sides. Then the clothes are left for half an hour and then washed with scented powder.
Chlorine
This substance can only be used on white fabrics. Light stains form on colored items after using chlorine.
A product containing chlorine, for example, Whiteness, is applied to the stained area and carefully washed off . Rinse off the liquid under running water, then wash the clothes as usual.
How to remove unwanted trains from fabric
Before you try to remove an unpleasant odor from clothes, you should analyze its origin. This will help you choose the most suitable product for cleaning things. Let's figure out what will help eliminate the smell that appears from various sources of pollution.
Sweaty train
Some people suffer from a disease called hyperhidrosis, which causes excessive sweating. At the same time, it is impossible to remove a specific smell from a stinking jacket or a smelly shirt using conventional methods. In such situations, removing the unpleasant loop occurs as follows:
- First you need to mix baking soda with clean water until you obtain a paste-like consistency.
- The resulting mass should be actively rubbed onto problem areas.
- After half an hour, you will need to spin the clothes in the washing machine.
Sometimes you need to remove the smell of sweat without washing. It is quite possible. To carry out the hygienic procedure, you just need to treat the stained areas with medical alcohol. After two to three hours, iron.
The smell of a second hand store
All items sold second-hand are pre-treated with formaldehyde, which has a specific smell. This is necessary to kill all microorganisms that may have remained from the previous owners of the clothing. You can remove the unpleasant odor that formalin exudes by following simple steps:
- mix five liters of clean water and twenty milliliters of ammonia;
- immerse second-hand goods in the resulting solution;
- after a couple of hours - wash in automatic mode.
Express methods for cleaning clothes
You can quickly get rid of the harsh cat odor only with special means. They are sold in pet stores.
The most convenient preparations to use are sprays.
The fastest and most effective:
- Bio-GM. The drug is available in the form of a spray. It contains bacteria that feed on the waste products of living organisms. Immediately after application, the product begins to act. After half an hour, not a trace of the smell will remain.
- DezoSan in the form of a spray can cope with any, even the strongest and oldest odors. Within half an hour after application, the cat scent disappears.
- Urine Off is a professional product that is safe for animals and people. This is a biological cleaner that destroys almost all organic contaminants and removes odors. Also suitable for old urine stains.
How to eliminate the smell of cigarettes and tobacco?
To get rid of the aromas of smoke, cigarettes and tobacco, you just need to wash your clothes . If the smell is very ingrained, you need to use pre-soaking. In this case, it is recommended to add citric acid or the juice of half a lemon to the soaking water.
It is also recommended to use special conditioners , which are used when rinsing, quickly eliminate unpleasant odors and prevent things from quickly absorbing various odors.
The smell remained on the fabric
If the smell remains after cleaning, you can repeat the procedure, increasing the time of contact of the cleaning substance with the damaged fabric.
For washing you need to use only scented powders with conditioner.
It is worth trying to use professional products from a pet store to remove cat odor.
Removing ingrained odor
Only chlorine or a professional product can deal with such stains and odors. Chlorine is used with caution.
Professional preparations are selected taking into account the quality and properties of the fabric. There are complexes of products to eliminate unpleasant odors.
After treatment, the item is rinsed under running water and washed several times.
Is it possible to quickly get rid of a musty and unpleasant smell?
- Ordinary vinegar works well against unpleasant and musty odors. When washing, add 100 ml. substances directly into the washing machine;
- Soda is highly effective. When washing it is worth adding 200 g. powder, and after washing the items will have a pleasant aroma;
- If things have already been washed and have acquired a musty smell due to the fact that they were put in the closet not dried, you should take a glass dish, pour coffee beans into it, and put it in the closet. The next day there will be no trace of the unpleasant aroma;
- Keeping a brightly scented soap in your closet or keeping a bag of lavender are great ways to always have scented clothes on hand.
Why do cute cats do this?
As you know, cats are very clean animals, and they act this way not because of their harmful and obnoxious character, but by their nature. Under no circumstances will they go to the litter box if it is dirty by themselves. In the case where several cats live in a family, much more incidents happen, because they cannot tolerate the smell of others on their territory.
Pets tend to mark interior items, furniture, bedspreads, shoes and even clothes, thus showing their dominance in a given territory. Over time, the animal can be weaned from this kind of habit, but during the period of re-education, unpleasant situations can still arise periodically.
Important! Pets can play pranks in other ways. And you will have to eliminate the results of all these tricks until you understand the reasons and eliminate them. Tips from our following articles will help you deal with the consequences, as well as prevent some of these situations:
- DIY scratching post for a cat.
- How to remove scratches from furniture?
- Anti-vandal wallpaper from cats.
- DIY cat ladder.
How to prevent the problem from happening again?
To prevent another incident, it is necessary to find out the reason why the animal marks things. If the problem is that your pet is sick, he needs to be shown to a veterinarian and undergo a course of therapy. It is also important to keep the tray clean so that the cat feels comfortable going into it. At the same time, it is necessary to exclude harsh treatment of the pet, because it can express protest and resentment in this way.
Sometimes cats begin to “mark” their territory when they feel the need to mate. In this case, it is necessary to organize mating or castrate the animal.
If the cat “has chosen” the same place, you can treat it with a substance that repels animals (vodka or lemon juice). You can also place a piece of foil on this place - the animal will not want to walk on an object with a smooth shiny surface.
If the owner caught the cat at the scene of a “crime,” it is necessary to take it by the withers and lift it, thereby demonstrating that it did the wrong thing. After this, you need to poke his nose into a stain or puddle and take him to the tray.
Sometimes there are such clean animals that they separate places for going to the toilet “in a small way” and “in a big way”. In this case, you will have to purchase another tray. If there are several cats living in the house, each of them should have its own litter box. It is important that the cat litter box is located in a secluded place, preferably dark. Then the pet probably won't urinate where it wants to.
We suggest you read: How to remove dried and fresh blood from white or colored fabric. how to remove dried blood from clothes