Maybe you, your pet or your child had an accident in bed. Or the bed has become stained so often that the smell just can’t be eliminated by spot cleaning and airing the mattress out. Let’s look at the best way to remove urine smell from mattress.
When the Stains Are Old
One factor to consider is how old the stains are and how long the urine smell has been there. If the stains are old, you can use general deodorizing techniques like covering the mattress in a heavy dusting of baking soda, leaving it for 24 hours exposed to the open air, and vacuuming up the baking soda. That works for every type of odor imaginable. You can also try the baking soda deodorizing trick before you move on to more serious cleaners.
When the Stains Are Fresh
If the accident happened last night, you want to soak up as much of the liquid as possible before you try to neutralize the smell. If you’re dealing with a relatively fresh stain, you want to try a stain remover as soon as possible. If you have pets, you could use your pet stain remover on your mattress.
After all, human urine is pretty similar to that produced by your pet. Another option is natural enzyme cleaners you can use for blood, poop, vomit and other biological messes. Some people have that for cleaning up after pets or cleaning in and around the kitchen.
However, we don’t all have that on hand and you may not want to rush to the store to buy what you hope you’ll only use once. Let’s look at what else you could use to deal with a urine stain.
One option is mixing dye-free, bleach-free laundry detergent with an equal amount of [easyazon_link identifier=”B000GUP7KW” locale=”US” tag=”aquapponics-20″]hydrogen peroxide[/easyazon_link]. Some people add a spoonful of baking soda or salt to increase the grittiness and consistency of the mix. You can add a couple of drops of essential oils to the mix to replace the unpleasant odor with a more pleasant one. Lavender is popular since it is considered a sleep aid, but citrus scents work well, too.
Layer this mix on the urine stain. Let it sink in for at least an hour. Then scrape up the solid mixture. That doesn’t completely do the job, though. You’ll want to grab clean white rags or sponges and get them damp. Then press this into the urine stain. After the moisture seeps into the upper layer of the mattress, use a clean rag to draw out the moisture – and the urine traces with it. You’re essentially washing the upper layer of the fabric manually. Work from the outside of the stain inward so you don’t accidentally spread the urine traces you’re trying to remove.
While ammonia can neutralize urine smells, you should not use that at the same times as the hydrogen peroxide mixture. You could spray the diluted ammonia on the bed and dab it up as we described above before applying the hydrogen peroxide cleaning mixture. Or you could stay safe and use a neutral cleaning solution like a mix of lemon juice and salt.
The mix would sit on the stain for half an hour to an hour before you wipe it away with a clean towel. The lemon juice helps neutralize the odors and attacks the stain at the molecular level. You can dab the area with clean towels and dry it to remove the last of the cleaning mixture.
After You’ve Treated the Stain
At this point, you want to dry out the mattress to prevent mold growth. You could accelerate the process and further reduce odors by spreading baking soda on the mattress and leaving it for a few hours prior to vacuuming it up. If you don’t have the time, turn on the fans to air dry the mattress before covering it in sheets or a mattress cover. If you’ve already removed the worst stains, then this step can be used to minimize the general urine smell.