How can I get rid of a cat urine smell in our new home?

Question

We just purchased a new home and they kept cats in the sun room. We tore up the carpet and used an alcohol based primer on the concrete floor and walls. We've also washed all the woodwork and rubbed pure vanilla into it. IT STILL STINKS! I think the smell is coming from the woodwork, but I'd take suggestions for the whole room because I'm not sure. Anybody have any experience with us?

Answer 1

Spray the floor with white vinegar and water (try equal parts in a spray bottle).  It's cheap, it's effective and it'll counteract the ammonia smell of the urine.

I've tried the fancier products with little success and much disappointment.

Answer 2

I would recommend a spray product like lysol just sprayed all over the room, but you have probably already tried that, so try this: First, try scrubbing the entire area with a mixture of lysol, soap and lemon juice. Rinse down with water and if the smell still persists, try this. Sprinkle the room with baking soda and then take a spray bottle of either hydrogen peroxide to the area. Be sure to test this in a discreet area first though since it will bleach some carpets and upholstery. If the smell is still there, call a proffesional! There is probably some kind of odor removal company in your yellow pages!

Answer 3

Nature's Remedy brand has always worked for me in the past.  It is almost miraculous in how completely it removes urine and odors.  There are other brands as well at various pet stores.  They are formulated especially to remove this sort of thing.  Alcohol and Vanilla are not.

Most of them have some sort of biological component that "eats" the offending substance as well.

Answer 4

pure baking soda all over the house and let it sit for about 3 days

Answer 5

Mark D has a very good suggestion; enzymatic cleaners actually "eat" the odor-causing matter in cat urine.  

Other posters are correct that vinegar helps neutralize cat urine odor, but then you have a vinegar odor to deal with.  Not pleasant; I've tried it.

I have 9 cats, and I use Killz on my walls whenever one of them sprays.  My Killz is water-based, but it seals the odors away.  Only one of my cats is a sprayer, fortunately.

If the odor is in the woodwork, you may have to replace the woodwork.  I have had to replace baseboards in a house I bought; the owner had two small dogs who apparently peed in one corner and the baseboards were in terrible shape.

Answer 6

We had a house like this once!  It was a nightmare.

We used a steam cleaner on the carpet with hot water and vinegar.  You can get wand steamers to use on cement and wood work, that might give you the same results.  We used my mother-in-law's (the wand cleaner) and it seemed to help.  The trick was definitely to use very very very hot water and vinegar.  We also used Folex (purple writing on a white spray bottle--get it at Lowes in the carpet cleaning section) and it got rid of a good portion of it.  The steam and vinegar took up the rest.  We used the folex on the cement (even though it is made for carpet.)

It is really hard to get out, and we never got it out entirely, but we definitely made a huge improvement.  Eventually, we just primed and painted the floor with kilz, and then put carpet over it, and it nearly eliminated the odor, but I can't say it was 100%.