5 Important Pet Stain And Odor Removal Tips
f you have pets, there’s a good chance that at some point you’re going to need to deal with removing unpleasant stains and odors from your carpet. Fortunately, there are some things you can do to ensure that your pet’s accidents don’t ruin your rugs, carpets, and furniture. Carpet cleaning companies recommend these 5 important pet stain and pet odor removal and prevention tips that will keep your carpets looking and smelling fresh in-between professional cleanings.
1. Take care of your pet. Taking good care of your cat or dog is an important step in preventing pet odors and stains. Regularly bathing pets (especially large dogs with oily coats), for example, helps reduce dander and hair, which is difficult to clean up and can contribute to an unpleasant smell in your home (and can also trigger allergies and asthma attacks). Make sure your dog or cat is properly housebroken. Feeding your pet foods without artificial dyes may reduce the likelihood of a pet’s vomit staining the carpet.
2. Use an enzymatic cleaner. For relatively minor pet odor removal jobs, use an enzymatic cleaner. These safe, non-toxic cleaners break up urine bacteria, reducing or eliminating unpleasant smells. The amount of enzymatic cleaner you need to use will depend on strength of the odor. Also, be aware that strong odors (such as those that you can smell when you walk into a room), will take more effort to remove.
3. Use a carpet stain remover. If a pet stain remains after your initial clean-up efforts, try using a carpet stain remover to get rid of the stain. Avoid cleaners that contain ammonia, since ammonia smells like urine to your pet and may cause them to re-soil the carpet. Also, remember to test any cleaner on a small, inconspicuous area of the carpet before using, since some pet stain removal cleaners can damage the carpet fibers.
4. Try a black light. If your pet has been urinating on your carpet, a black light can help you locate soiled areas so you can then remove the stain. First, buy a black light at a hardware store or pet store. Then, after making the room as dark as possible, use the black light to find carpet stains you can’t otherwise see. Try to clean the stains as you work, so that you don’t miss any areas.
5. Look beyond the carpet. Sometimes, pet odor and pet stain removal and prevention requires a bit of detective work. If you are still having a problem with persistent pet odors, despite having hired an carpet cleaning company to clean your rugs, the problem might not be in your carpets at all. Pets can also soil furniture, drapes, walls and baseboards. In some cases, stains and smells may have even penetrated the floor below the carpet, which may then need to be sanded and treated in order to remove and prevent future stains and odors.
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