How to Get Rid of Cat Litter Stains
Being a cat owner comes with some undeniable truths; one of them being that you will eventually have to deal with a cat accident outside of the litter box. We can mostly figure out how to clean it out of carpets, but how do you get rid of cat urine from concrete?
If you're here, you probably have a cat who has urinated on a concrete floor either in a basement or garage. Unlike a soft surface that can soak in an enzyme cleaner, you may wonder how a urine neutralizer can soak into a porous material like concrete. It's tricky, but it can be done.
Cat urine is more concentrated than dog urine and cleaning cat urine from a concrete floor may take multiple treatments, but it will eventually come out with the right products and some elbow grease.
- Will concrete hold odors?
- Locate the source of the odor
- Can I clean cat odors with household cleaners?
- Can I clean cat urine with bleach?
- The first step in cleaning urine from concrete floors
- Enzyme cleaner for cat urine
- Recommended enzyme cleaners to get urine out of concrete
- Use a sealant to keep odors away
- How to stop your cat from peeing outside of their litter box
Will concrete hold odors?
A concrete floor might look smooth, but concrete is a porous material that has little holes all over the surface. Those little holes soak in liquid and also odors if you don't get to it right away. Just like stains, odors are also difficult to get out of concrete.
The uric acid crystals in urine can permeate the concrete and become difficult to remove, especially the longer it has taken to discover the problem.
Another issue with cat pee on concrete is that once you've cleaned the area, the smell can come back if moisture is introduced to the area, which basements especially can be susceptible to.
Locate the source of the odor
Unless you see a puddle on the floor, it can be difficult to locate the source of the telltale odor. You know it's there, but you don't know exactly where.
If you aren't sure where the source of the smell is coming from exactly, use a black light to find the source. Black lights will pick up all kinds of things, but you can usually tell what a former puddle looks like under the light.
Can I clean cat odors with household cleaners?
Most household cleaners aren't meant to clean pet odors and some of them even contain ammonia which will only make the situation worse. It is best to use a product specifically made to neautralize urine odors.
Can I clean cat urine with bleach?
The short answer is no. Do not try to get rid of cat urine from concrete floors with bleach. Bleach is a disinfectant, but it won't do anything for the smell.
Bleach is also a caustic chemical and if your cat has done its business in the basement or garage, you don't want your home to be eveloped in bleach fumes.
Leave the bleach under the kitchen sink and use something else.
The first step in cleaning urine from concrete floors
The first step in removing the cat urine smell from concrete is to clean up the area to remove the bacteria. Cleaning the area with a mop or deck brush is the easiest way to tackle this particular project.
We highly recommend Mister Max P-Bath Pre-Treater to neutralize the Ph before applying an enzymatic cleaner. This step is especially important if you have already tried to clean the area with soap or bleach.
Instead of using soap, which can make the cat odor worse, try soaking the area with white vinegar and let it dry.
Once dry, go over the area again with a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and baking soda. Scrub this mixture into the floor with a deck brush or a scrubber sponge and some old-fashioned elbow grease. Allow the mixture to sit over the area until dry, then clean it up with warm water.
Enzyme cleaner for cat urine
Once you have cleaned the bacteria from the area, now is the time to use an enzyme cleaner. Enzyme cleaners break down the ammonia and proteins in the urea that has been left behind and will continue to smell.
Even if humans can no longer smell it, your cat can and may end up marking the same spot all over again.
To treat the area with an enzyme cleaner, soak the area and work it in with a mop, deck brush, or sponge. Don't dry the area!
Cover the area with plastic to allow the area to remain wet so the enzyme cleaner has more time to soak into the concrete. Allow the area to dry on its own.
You may need to repeat this step depending on how long your cat has been using the spot as a litter box and how long the urine was in the area before being cleaned.
Recommended enzyme cleaners to get urine out of concrete
Most enzyme cleaners are only rated for soft surfaces like carpet and bedding as well as wood and tile floors. To get rid of cat urine smell from concrete, you will want to use a cleaner that specifically says that it will work on concrete.
Mister Max Anti Icky Poo Odor Remover
- Anti-Icky-Poo will remove any odor that was caused by a living...
- Anti-Icky-Poo uses a combination of proteins and enzymes that...
- Anti-Icky-Poo works effectively and without damage to surface...
Our go-to enzyme cleaner to clean the cat urine smell out of concrete is Mister Max Icky Poo , which comes in both a scented and unscented formula.
If you have a large area that needs to be cleaned, Mister Max Icky Poo can also be purchased in a gallon size.
Rocco & Roxie Stain and Odor Eliminator
- ELIMINATES STAINS, ODORS AND RESIDUE If it's gross, it's gone. Not...
- ENZYME ACTIVATED The key is getting to the problem deep-down. This...
- CERTIFIED GENTLE AND SAFE Chlorine free and color safe. Safe to use...
Rocco & Roxie Supply Professional Strength Stain and Odor Eliminator is another highly recommended enzyme cleaner for pet odors in concrete. If needed, Rocco & Roxie is also available in a gallon size .
If all else fails, try Trisodium Phosphate
If you have tried pre-treating the area and cleaning it with an enzyme cleaner and it stil smells, you may need to bring out the big guns.
I recommend this as a last resort because Trisodium Phosphate, or TSP can be corrosive and damage the skin. Be sure to wear rubber gloves made for cleaning, safety glasses, and protective clothing if you have to resort to this method.
To clean the area, mix a half cup of TSP per gallon of hot water and scrub with a deck brush. TSP will dry quickly, so work in small areas.
TSP may cause a reaction with the uric acid and create a stronger odor. This is normal and isn't cause for alarm. Allow the TSP to dry for about 10 minutes (if it dries too quickly, apply more), then brush away any residue with a heavy-duty broom and rinse it away with hot water.
Use a sealant to keep odors away
For tough odors you may need to seal the basement or garage floor after you have cleaned the area. Remember, even if you can't smell cat pee anymore, your cat might be able to.
As a preventive measure or if odors keep creeping up or if your cat revisits the area, repeat the steps above and seal your concrete floor with Kilz Primer.
How to stop your cat from peeing outside of their litter box
While it seems like an impossible task, you can get rid of the cat urine smell from concrete as long as you have the right products to do so.
If your cat continues to pee outside of its litter box, you might want to take him or her to the vet to find out why. It could be stress, illness, the box isn't cleaned often enough, or that your cat just doesn't like the location of their litter box.
If you have multiple cats, try providing at least one litter box with good-quality cat litter per cat and, if possible, have a litter box available on each floor of your home to help stop the problem before it starts or continues.
Last update on 2021-04-22 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
How to Get Rid of Cat Litter Stains
Source: https://yourpurrfectkitty.com/how-to-get-rid-of-cat-urine-concrete/