Keeping pets can be an incentive experience for anyone but caring and cleaning up after them is what usually causes many concerns that affect our hygiene. The most common house pets that people keep are cats and dogs which have a habit of urinating on coaches, sofas and any other upholstered furniture that you may have. Many people usually clean up pet urine and odors but they never get rid of the smell completely.
It is important to get rid of pet odors completely because once a pet can smell its personal odor, it will keep returning to relieve itself on that same area thus give you more work in cleaning and making your retraining efforts useless. Here are some of the recommended ways that you can use to remove pet odors from upholstery.
· Step. 1
The first step when removing pet odors from upholstery is by finding the soiled spot as fast as you can and removing the waste immediately. This is because urine stains and odors only take a short time to be absorbed in your upholstery. Discover the urine spot by using your nose to detect any distinct smell that often smells like ammonia.
You can also do this with the help of a back light since pet urine easily shows under a back light. Then mark the area for easy recognition when you turn on the lights to clean. Remove the waste and try absorbing the urine waste using a cloth towel, especially if it is still fresh because this will prevent the stain from being absorbed into the fabrics of your upholstery thus causing bad pet odors.
· Step. 2
Take out the affected items e.g. cushions and throw pillows from your coach if possible and lay them flat on your floor. If you realize that your entire coach is stinky, then you will have to remove everything and eliminate the pet odor by spraying the coach with a deodorizing solution, water solution or vinegar. You can also utilize the upholstery attachment on your vacuum rod to get rid of any loose hair and debris available.
Do this by vacuuming all sides of your cushions and pillows without forgetting the coach itself. Ensure you pay attention to any cracks. However, if you have the unzip option on the fabric covering your cushions; you can launder them using your washing machine so as to remove the pet odors. When laundering, use only cool water and bleach free detergents.
· Step. 3
Check for any persistent pet odors from your laundered fabric. If you are still able to smell pet odors from the fabric you have washed, you will have to wash the items for a second time and add an enzymatic cleaner so as to completely remove the persistent urine smell.
You can as well fill up a spray bottle with a mixture of white vinegar and water and spray it on your coach because vinegar helps to entirely remove even the smelliest pet odors. However, note that your coach will have a strong smell of vinegar for sometime before the scent fades away. Avoid using chemicals with strong odors such as ammonia when laundering because this scent will only encourage your pet to continue urinating in that area.
· Step. 4
You can still be able to remove pet odors from a dried stain by using high quality pet odors neutralizers which are available at pet supply stores. Do this by reading and following the cleaner��s directions for use i.e. testing the cleaner on a small hidden portion of the fabric to ensure that it doesn��t stain. If the area tested does not discolour, use an extraction machine together with an upholstery cleaning product to take out as much moisture as possible.
You can also remove dried stains by renting a wet vacuum cleaner because this machine is used to remove any traces of heavy stains and it is also very economical. Ensure that you only use plain water when using the wet vacuum cleaner because it does not work well with chemicals. Avoid any steam cleaners when getting rid of pet odors from your upholstery as the heat will permanently set stains on your fabric.
· Step. 5
If all your home remedies fail, you can as well hire a professional cleaner to help you remove pet odors from your upholstery. This might sound costly but in real sense, it will not be as expensive as throwing away your furniture due to extremely bad pet odors. Professional cleaners from your local hard-wares or home improvement stores will help you identify the appropriate odor removers that will completely remove pet urine and odors from your upholstery.
· Step. 6
Another way you can use to remove pet odors from your upholstery is by retraining your pet to relieve themselves at the right designated place. This is because frequent urination by the pet is a common occurrence on pets that are younger and have not undergone full training to go outside or use their litter box.
Retraining your pet might take a week or more; therefore during this process treat your pets with patient so as to encourage them to do the right thing. Ensure that you place newspapers or paper towels near your pet��s litter box so that you can help them recognize where they are supposed to relieve themselves.
Anyone who has pets can attest to the fact that pets unexpectedly leave stains and odors around the house. As a pet owner, it is your duty to get rid of pet odors from your upholstery using the steps we have mentioned above. You can also prevent further accidents by discouraging your pets from marking their territories. However, if your pet starts urinating suddenly in inappropriate areas, it might be a sign of a disease therefore you are advised to visit the vet but if this is not the case, it is important that you clean pet urine and remove pet odors from your upholstery, as soon as you detect any stinky smells.
Doing this ensures that your environment remains fresh and clean despite the fact that you have pets around. Note that, if all your plans of removing pet odors from upholstery fail, you can consider renting a rug doctor with upholstery attachment, odor removers and upholstery cleaner which can save you a lot of stress and also leave your upholstery looking all new.