stand-up urinator...and HOW TO GET RID OF THE SMELL???

[julia123123]

I have 3 cats and 4 litter boxes, 1 of which is in the closet of my little two-room attic office/craft room. I don't know who the guilty party was (1 elderly female, 2 1.5 yo boys, all fixed), but someone started urinating standing up. The urine went into the drawer of an old plastic multi-drawer cabinet and pooled in the bottom, some leaking out onto the floor beneath. My husband didn't smell anything (he's the litter box scooper), but when I went in there for something, it hit me right in the face. I found the urine puddle under the litter mat and the urine in the cabinet. This had clearly been happening for a LONG time.

Threw all that away, bought a taller (still open) litter box and moved it to the OTHER attic room, my office. I got to work on the closet. The floor is inexpensive vinyl. I scoured it with vinegar over and over again, and then bought a liquid enzyme cleaner. I soaked the floor and let it sit multiple times. The smell is mostly gone...I just get a whiff sometimes.

I went to move the new litter box back to closet and saw that there was urine sprayed just over the lip again. Threw THAT litter box away, scrubbed the floor and wall behind it with same method. Bought 18 gallon plastic tub, cut hole in side, put in closet, no more spray.

But. that. smell. The whole upstairs smells overwhelmingly of cat urine. I bought a blacklight and can't find a trace of urine anywhere, but the smell remains. I'm a crafter and have yarn, fabric, books, puzzles...I'm afraid that everything is going to be ruined by the smell. HOW do I get rid of it?!?

P.S. No one "stands up" in any of the 3 litter boxes downstairs...no troubles at all there! I want to leave a litter box upstairs for our elderly female, easy access, since she spends most of her time up here.

 

[tabbytom]

But. that. smell. The whole upstairs smells overwhelmingly of cat urine. I bought a blacklight and can't find a trace of urine anywhere, but the smell remains. I'm a crafter and have yarn, fabric, books, puzzles...I'm afraid that everything is going to be ruined by the smell. HOW do I get rid of it?!?

Here are a few articles on getting rid of pee odor :-

How To Get Cat Pee Smell Out Of Clothes And Linens - TheCatSite

How To Get Cat Urine Smell Out Of Carpet: Effective, Non-toxic Solutions - TheCatSite

How To Remove Cat Urine Odor From Your Home - TheCatSite

You can also try this brand which is quite popular amongst members here and I personally use it for accidental spills from my boy as it is pretty effective and it's available in my region.

If you use any enzyme cleaners or any liquid cleaners, get in a good soak and after that, pile thick newspaper on top of the spot an anchor it down with some heavy object and change the papers every two hours or so till the spot is dry to touch or if the spot can be cordoned off, direct a fan on it but more effective and fast drying will be the papers then have additional fan blowing after it's dry to touch.

 

[julia123123]

Thanks! I had seen those links before, but I'm mainly wanting to get the smell out of the vinyl floor. I used a generic Amazon enzyme cleaner but I will pick up some Nature's Miracle too. I'm desperate!

 

[heatherwillard0614]

Here is another cleaner to add to what tabbytom has already recommended

 

[cmshap]

I'm wondering if urine has gotten underneath the vinyl flooring.

Vinyl is good at stopping spills, but it is not always 100% waterproof. When soaked in a large amount of liquid and/or for a long time, liquid can sometimes seep through the seams in vinyl plank flooring.

Also, liquid can potentially make it's way under flooring where it meets a wall. Like if a lot of liquid is spilled right up against a wall.

This can be more likely if the flooring is older and/or if the quality of the installation was lacking. I have seen this happen under a leaky refrigerator in a brand new home. The installation of the flooring was likely rushed, and water got right through the vinyl kitchen flooring.

Just something to consider. If there is urine under the flooring you are going to have a much harder time getting the smell out. I hope that's not the case.

 

[heatherwillard0614]

I'm wondering if urine has gotten underneath the vinyl flooring.

Vinyl is good at stopping spills, but it is not always 100% waterproof. When soaked in a large amount of liquid and/or for a long time, liquid can sometimes seep through the seams in vinyl plank flooring.

Also, liquid can potentially make it's way under flooring where it meets a wall. Like if a lot of liquid is spilled right up against a wall.

This can be more likely if the flooring is older and/or if the quality of the installation was lacking. I have seen this happen under a leaky refrigerator in a brand new home. The installation of the flooring was likely rushed, and water got right through the vinyl kitchen flooring.

Just something to consider. If there is urine under the flooring you are going to have a much harder time getting the smell out. I hope that's not the case.

This is a good point and very possible.

 

[julia123123]

This is a good point and very possible.

I'm hoping this isn't the case. I slopped on both vinegar and enzyme cleaner and let the liquid stand, so that it would seep into the seams. I'm going to hit it hard with Nature's Miracle now!

 

[FeebysOwner]

Along the lines of what was mentioned above - what type of flooring is under the vinyl? I suspect that the urine has penetrated down to that level, and no amount of cleaning that you do to the vinyl is going to get rid of the urine that has soaked the underflooring, as it likely has spread beyond just the seams. If it is concrete, that takes special cleaners to eradicate odors because of the porous nature. If it is wood, it probably needs to be treated directly as well. This is in a closet, so is there a way to remove the vinyl in just the closet space, treat the floor underneath and replace the vinyl, even if it means using another kind of flooring?

 

[BellaBlue82]

Sadly, I agree - my girl cat Sadie is an "elevator" butt and I found she was urinating over the edge of the litter box (and it's taller) onto the floor. I cleaned the carpet, but it got into the wood flooring underneath. Nature's Miracle urine eliminator did help a lot, but I think a tinge of the smell will be there forever.

What I ended up doing was buying a vinyl cat litter mat that's way larger than the cat pan. The added trick on top of that was buying dog pee pads and putting one directly under the pan, on top of the vinyl mat. If she happens to elevate and pee over the side a bit, I just change the pee pad and the vinyl mat is there for extra protection.

Good luck, I hope this helps!

 

[heatherwillard0614]

J julia123123 BellaBlue82
Here are some litterbox ideas that would help with the elevator but and peeing standing up in general..
I hope you guys find at least one that works for you.

The Original DIY Mess Free Cat Litter Box

Say "see ya!" to messy, smelly litterboxes! This DIY litter box is simple to make, cheap, and IT WORKS. Plus, cats love it too - it gives them more privacy!

livingwellmom.com

"Dog Proof" Cat Litter Box : 4 Steps (with Pictures) - Instructables

"Dog Proof" Cat Litter Box: Litter pans are a problem. Especially when you have a large cat who can't fit in a small litter box and a dog who considers cat poop a delicacy. It's been a struggle to find a commercial litter box the cat can enter and the dog can't. &n…

www.instructables.com

 

[BellaBlue82]

J julia123123 BellaBlue82
Here are some litterbox ideas that would help with the elevator but and peeing standing up in general..
I hope you guys find at least one that works for you.

http://[URL]https://livingwellmom.com/original-diy-mess-free-cat-litter-box/

[/URL]

http://[URL]https://www.instructables.com/Dog-Proof-Cat-Litter-Box/

[/URL]

Thanks! At first I tried the tall box with a lid, then a bin with the lid off and a entry carved out. She refused to use either I think she's just too sassy for them! Lol
That's why i settled on the double padding, at least I can roll up the pee pad and throw it away and she doesn't turn her nose up at it.

 

[cmshap]

what type of flooring is under the vinyl?
If it is concrete, that takes special cleaners to eradicate odors because of the porous nature. If it is wood, it probably needs to be treated directly as well. This is in a closet, so is there a way to remove the vinyl in just the closet space

Given that this is a closet in a finished attic, probably wood.

I agree, if you really can't get the smell out with cleaners, I would rip out the vinyl inside the closet and treat the floor underneath.

This is a potential DIY project if you or anyone in your life is a DIY person, and are so inclined. Being inside a.closet is probably the best-case scenario for this problem.

 

[julia123123]

Along the lines of what was mentioned above - what type of flooring is under the vinyl? I suspect that the urine has penetrated down to that level, and no amount of cleaning that you do to the vinyl is going to get rid of the urine that has soaked the underflooring, as it likely has spread beyond just the seams. If it is concrete, that takes special cleaners to eradicate odors because of the porous nature. If it is wood, it probably needs to be treated directly as well. This is in a closet, so is there a way to remove the vinyl in just the closet space, treat the floor underneath and replace the vinyl, even if it means using another kind of flooring?

I'm not sure...maybe plywood over wooden beams? I'm going to try Nature's Miracle this week and if it doesn't work, I'm afraid we're going to have to pry up the floor of the closet.

 

[julia123123]

Sadly, I agree - my girl cat Sadie is an "elevator" butt and I found she was urinating over the edge of the litter box (and it's taller) onto the floor. I cleaned the carpet, but it got into the wood flooring underneath. Nature's Miracle urine eliminator did help a lot, but I think a tinge of the smell will be there forever.

What I ended up doing was buying a vinyl cat litter mat that's way larger than the cat pan. The added trick on top of that was buying dog pee pads and putting one directly under the pan, on top of the vinyl mat. If she happens to elevate and pee over the side a bit, I just change the pee pad and the vinyl mat is there for extra protection.

Good luck, I hope this helps!

We've got a really big "litter catcher" mat under the box. The problem is that the urine was hitting the wall and the plastic shelving and running down. This actually happened to me YEARS ago with my first ever cat. He started urinating in a big metal floor grate. It was too warm to use the heat and too cool for A/C (so no air flow), so I didn't notice the smell at first. When I did, I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. It wasn't until the grate started to rust that I was able to pinpoint it. The mess inside was so awful that I couldn't even face it. A sympathetic friend came over and scraped it out! I had to repaint the entire bottom floor with Killz because same cat started spraying everywhere once I got married and a man moved in. What a mess!