Replaced carpet but still smells

amother

Mon, Oct 28 2019, 10:56 pm

Previous owners of the home had a small dog and a few cats. The 2 rooms where the cats specifically stayed and one other room still have a very strong smell. What can I do?? Diffusers and air freshener don’t help Sad

amother

Tue, Oct 29 2019, 7:11 am

thunderstorm wrote:

Did you paint the walls? Sometimes the walls are what absorbs the smell of the animals for some reason.

Yes, repainted the walls. I didn’t replace window shades or closet shelves. Should I rip them all out?

nchr

Tue, Oct 29 2019, 7:14 am

Have you seriously aired out the room? That's really all you need to do in addition to replacing the carpet and sanding the wood underneath if there is any. Air out for a week or so....

amother

Tue, Oct 29 2019, 7:19 am

nchr wrote:

Have you seriously aired out the room? That's really all you need to do in addition to replacing the carpet and sanding the wood underneath if there is any. Air out for a week or so....

It’s cold here so I’ve only left the windows open for a few hours at a time.

We didn’t think to sand the sub floor/wood. Anything to do now?

nchr

Tue, Oct 29 2019, 7:25 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

It’s cold here so I’ve only left the windows open for a few hours at a time.

We didn’t think to sand the sub floor/wood. Anything to do now?

The wood or subflooring is not a must, but airing out for a considerable amount of time is a must. You'll need to do that and you'll see a huge difference (but definitely for a few days at the minimum and obviously not when it rains).

lavenderchimes

Tue, Oct 29 2019, 8:27 am

If the animals had a lot of accidents, it could have soaked through the carpet into the underfloor. Little to do about that, now, unless you have the funds to tear up the carpet again and treat the underfloor. So, let's hope it's NOT that. Clean EVERYTHING with a white-vinegar solution. EVERY SINGLE SURFACE. Ad some lavender oil to your cleaning solution. Daven to Hashem and hope for the best!

amother

Tue, Oct 29 2019, 8:43 am

lavenderchimes wrote:

Oh man I hope it’s not that!! So what should I be cleaning with vinegar? The windows and built in closet shelves? How much vinegar and what else to mix with it?

Amarante

Tue, Oct 29 2019, 9:59 am

Unfortunately if the rooms had carpet in them, the urine most probably soaked through the carpet and permeated the wood subfloor and that is what is causing the permanent odor. That kind of continual untended moisture would just soak right through the carpet and pad.

I am not sure what can be done after the fact. You can follow some of the advice but your best bet might be to invest in a very good electric deodorizer and/or room deodorant.

Miri1

Tue, Oct 29 2019, 10:19 am

Try a patch test first:
Perhaps sprinkling baking soda on the new carpet and leaving it there for a while would help. Not sure if every vacuum can handle it though - anyone with experience?
Baking soda absorbs so it might help a little even through the carpet.
Also run a HEPA air purifier for a few days.

I do know somoene who had a bad smell of urine in the house (though no history of pets).
It turned out there was a damp area in the basement crawl space that was creating the smell, so who knows, perhaps something like that could be the source.

Miri1

Tue, Oct 29 2019, 10:36 am

lavenderchimes wrote:

Do call the carpet people, it may not be such a big deal to pick up the carpet again. Usually when people "tear up" the carpet it's because they're not keeping it. Find out if they can carefully lift it off in order to treat the sub-floor.

lavenderchimes

Tue, Oct 29 2019, 11:14 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Oh man I hope it’s not that!! So what should I be cleaning with vinegar? The windows and built in closet shelves? How much vinegar and what else to mix with it?

Miri1 made a good point about the carpet - it might not be that hard to pull it up and treat the floor underneath. But I would still try everything else, first. Get the family out of the house for a day, or bundle up, and air the place out. And wipe everything with a vinegar solution - it really doesn't matter how much, though you can find "recipes" on google, I'm sure. I just dump some in a bucket, add warm water and whatever soap. Just DO NOT mix with bleach, because that will make a toxic gas. A few drops of lavender will help. Wash literally everything. The walls, ceiling, baseboard, doors, trim, windows, curtain rods, blinds, shelves - ALL of the things should be washed. Fabrics should be laundered, add a 1/4c. white vinegar to kill potential smell problems.