Pet Urine Odor Removal Process

Removing urine odor can be a frustrating and difficult problem to solve.  This information will help you understand the process Referral uses to  successfully remove pet urine odor.

Inspection Of Affected Areas

Before we can treat pet urine odor properly, the source must be found.  We use a combination of the following 4 inspection methods to identify each source of urine.

1. Our Nose: Since urine contamination smells, our nose will often lead us to the source of the problem.
2. Our Eyes: Usually urine stains are visible to the eye. However, sometimes a previous cleaning will remove the visible urine stains but the odor remains.  After using a black light you will learn that the damage may be more severe than meets the eye.
3. Black Light: A black light becomes a valuable tool in locating the exact areas in need of treatment because it makes use of special ultra-violet rays which are on the same wavelength as pet urine, thus allowing us to see exactly where the pet urine spot is.  The crystalline structure of dried urine causes it to fluoresce a dull yellow color under ultraviolet or “black” light.
   Urine is not the only substance that will fluoresce. Some soaps and detergents have components that fluoresce, even after rinsing thoroughly, as well as some fabrics and lint. These will usually fluoresce a bright white or even bluish hue, not the dull yellow of urine. However, even after the areas have been decontaminated of urine odor the affected areas may continue to fluoresce. Watch the video of a carpet inspection locating pet urine with a black light.
4. Moisture Detector: When bacteria attack uric acid, the bacterium leaves behind a crystalline waste which is hygroscopic; meaning that it constantly draws moisture from the environment. Although the contamination may appear to dry to the touch, our moisture detector will often alert us when it comes into contact with urine because of the minute traces of water molecules found in the bacteria waste crystals. Watch the above video of a carpet inspection locating pet urine with a moisture probe.

Choose A Treatment Method

After a thorough inspection, you may find urine contamination is much more severe than you thought.  Depending on the type of carpet padding and subfloor urine can soak down past the carpet into the padding, tack strip, and subfloor.  A small spot on the surface may have spread out into a large spot as it soaks in.  Urine decontamination often requires more than just a top cleaning of the carpet.  Each affected layer must be treated for complete odor removal.   Not all treatments can be guaranteed to completely remove the odor.  The severity and your expectations of the results will determine which treatment method you choose.

Treatment Method #1

Moderate Contamination
Deodorizer Saturation & Extraction
75%-100% Chance of Success – No Guarantee on Complete odor removal.

The pet has repeatedly contaminated the same spot. The carpet and pad are contaminated with urine. Although this treatment is a valiant attempt, it is NOT guaranteed to eliminate the odor, but it is often successful therefore avoiding the inconvenience of pulling the carpet and pad up and the cost of replacement.

1. First, the affected spots must be identified as explained above.
2. Next, we mix up a specialized oxidizing deodorizer on site using 200-degree water from our truck.  This solution will change the molecular structure of the urine.  From the top side of the carpet, we saturate the affected urine spots so it penetrates the carpet and padding to reach the source of the odor. We allow the solution to dwell for 30 minutes.  To learn what makes our oxidizing deodorizer different than other ‘deodorizers’ click here.
3. Then we use the Hydro-X, a special weight assisted tool to extract the cleaning solution and urine deposits from the carpet and padding.
4. Finally, we thoroughly clean, rinse and extract the urine and soil with our powerful truck mounted cleaning equipment.
5. Allow the carpet to dry.  It will take longer to dry then if just a normal carpet cleaning was done.  It may possibly require 1-2 days since the carpet and pad were saturated.  Airflow from fans will help it dry faster.
6. Replace furniture after the carpet and pad are 100% dry.

Treatment Method #2

Heavy Contamination
Pad Replacement – Floor Sealing – Deodorizer Saturation
Almost Guaranteed Odor Removal: 99.9% Successful

1. First, the affected spots must be identified as explained above.
2. The room must be emptied of furniture so the carpet can be pulled back.
3. The carpet is pulled back to access the affected area.
4. The affected carpet pad is removed.
5. The subfloor is swept and cleaned to remove contamination.
6. An odor barrier/sealer is applied to the subfloor, tackless strip, baseboard and wall if needed.
7. The affected carpet is saturated with a special deodorizing solution and allowed to dwell for 30 minutes.
8. The deodorizing solution is extracted from the carpet with our powerful truck mounted cleaning equipment.
9. New carpet pad is installed.
10. The carpet is reinstalled.
11. Allow the carpet to dry.  It will take longer to dry then if just a normal carpet cleaning was done. It may possibly require 1-2 days since the carpet and pad were saturated.  Airflow from fans will help it dry faster.
12. Replace furniture after the carpet and pad are 100% dry.

Treatment Method #3

Severe Contamination
Replacement
Guaranteed 100% Successful

Depending on the age & condition of the carpet and the severity of the urine contamination, it may be wise to consider complete replacement of carpet and pad especially if the cost of treatment meets or exceeds the replacement cost of new carpet/pad.   Even if the odor can be removed, pet urine may cause carpet delamination, in this case, replacement may be the best option.  The subfloor and any affected walls or baseboards must still be properly cleaned and sealed and then new pad and carpet can be installed.