what can I do to get (fishy) throw-up smell out of my laminate floors?

[GraciesParent]

Long story short: sometime yesterday morning, and unbeknownst to me, Gracie threw up her oceanfish & tuna wet-food breakfast under a chair in my bedroom. I'd had the windows open all day/night, and we live a couple of blocks from a fish & chips place, so I *thought* the fishy smell was coming from the restaurant (which sometimes happens if the wind blows in a certain direction).

This morning, and after a restless and smelly night of thinking "WHY is that restaurant STILL frying fish at 1am?!?", I found the now-dried vomit patch (me: "OMG. DUH! THAT'S why the room stank!") and cleaned it up... but, hoo-boy, having a fishy throw-up sit unattended for a day = the smell does NOT want to come out the laminate floors today.

I've already tried hot water + vinegar + dish soap (washed the floor several times with this and it helped, but there is still a lingering fishiness); baking soda (let it sit for an hour, no difference); Nature's Miracle enzymatic cleaner (which works wonders on litter-box odours but, apparently, not so much on fish); and regular all-purpose cleaner (minimal effect).

Does anyone have any miracle solutions that might work and finally get RID of this stink? I have a sensitive nose, and I don't want a bedroom that smells like it was once a fish market.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. I know TCS has recommended a product called OdorKlenz - obviously directed at urine smells, but the product says it is for removing all kinds of other types of smells, as well. I have also heard of Fizzion and SCOE10x, safe on just about any surface, including wood. But, again they have been recommended mostly for urine. I am thinking that whatever you use, you might have to let it sit longer than an hour - maybe overnight or all day? Just block the area off, or close the door, to prevent Gracie getting too close to it while it sits there.

 

[GraciesParent]

Thanks for all the suggestions. :-) It looks like neither is available in Canada (where I am) -- at least, not in a size or at a price I'd buy. I don't want a huge jug of stuff that may or may not work, nor do I want to pay $60+ for a half-dozen Fizzion tablets! ;-)

I'll try again with some of the stuff I used previously, and let it sit overnight.

Still open to ideas, though!

 

[ladytimedramon]

Have you tried making a paste of vinegar and baking soda? or putting down the baking soda then pouring the vinegar over it so it fizzes?

 

[golondrina]

Are you sure Gracie hasn't thrown up somewhere else in the room?

 

[GraciesParent]

Thanks, folks!

Yup, ladytimedramon , tried that previously, too. The latter, anyway.

And, nope, golondrina , it was just the one throw-up. THANKFULLY. ;-)

I just now finished "icing" the patch of floor (like a cake) with a baking-soda paste (w/ water), and covered the area with an inverted baking pan to keep curious paws away. I'm going to leave it overnight, wash it off in the morning and hope for the best.

 

[FeebysOwner]

I just now finished "icing" the patch of floor (like a cake) with a baking-soda paste (w/ water), and covered the area with an inverted baking pan to keep curious paws away. I'm going to leave it overnight, wash it off in the morning and hope for the best.

 

[artiemom]

Natures Remedy? Look on Chewy. There are many cleaners. Fast delivery. ? Vinegar?

 

[Furballsmom]

I was thinking this too, nature's miracle or whatever it's called.

Any enzymatic cleaner should help with pet issues of whichever type

 

[GraciesParent]

Thanks, folks -- as noted in my original post, I already tried Nature's Miracle, and vinegar (on its own, diluted with hot water, with dish soap added, with baking soda, etc.). No dice, sadly. Or, SOME dice -- the vinegar + hot water + dish soap (x3 applications/washes) *helped* to some extent, but didn't get rid of the smell completely.

I'm letting the baking-soda "frosting" sit (now dried) for another day. It's totally covered, so there's no harm in leaving it for a really LONG time. Now that the smelly spot is blanketed in the frosting, which is also covered with a baking sheet, there's no odour at present. LOL.

More stank news as it breaks... ;-)

 

[Furballsmom]

I already tried Nature's Miracle,

oh, I apologize, I missed that! Maybe one of those heavy duty ones FeebysOwner mentioned will help, if the baking soda doesn't.

 

[GraciesParent]

THIS JUST IN: after leaving the baking soda + water plaster sitting over the affected area for three days, I finally chiseled it off, wiped it clean and... the smell is about 95% gone. You can still smell it a teeny bit if you put your nose right down to the floor, but I'm hoping that fades with time. And you can no longer smell it if you're just standing in the vicinity. So... PHEW.

In related news, Gracie had an identical tsunami throw-up this morning (same fishy food, same volume of throw-up!) but in the guest room. This time, I was there to witness it as it happened -- she'd had her breakfast (same breakfast she has every day), then must have had a big drink of water, because it was a huge watery, fishy wave. And this time, she threw up all over *soft* surfaces: a shaggy footstool and the carpet. :-( But I was able to clean it up immediately, hopefully thwarting any lingering smells.

After an initial clean up of the, ahem, debris field, I decided to try using (regular, human) shampoo to deep-clean the areas, and it seems (?) to have worked. Everything is now soaking wet but smells nice(r). I'll know for sure once it all dries.

Note to self: remove access to the water bowl immediately following breakfast. <sigh>

Edited to add: an hour later, and all soft surfaces have the fish smell returning as they dry. Back to the baking soda + vinegar!

 

[ladytimedramon]

On the soft surfaces try shaving cream. Mom used to use that after our pug.

 

[GraciesParent]

Interesting! I don't have any shaving cream, but if nothing works and my guest room winds up smelling like a fish market, I'll pick some up and try it. Thanks for the suggestion. :-)

 

[FeebysOwner]

Gracie had an identical tsunami throw-up this morning (same fishy food, same volume of throw-up!) but in the guest room...Note to self: remove access to the water bowl immediately following breakfast. <sigh>

Maybe it is not the water that you should remove, but rather the fishy food?? Or, depending how long she typically goes between her last meal of the day and her next day breakfast, the time is too long and the fish just sets off her stomach when mixed with whatever digestive juices have accumulated in her stomach? Things to consider...

 

[GraciesParent]

No, it's definitely the water. I would LOVE to get rid of the fishy food because I haaaaate the smell, but it's the only kind she'll eat -- and finish -- during the day. She gets duck or rabbit in the evenings, and finishes it... but she won't finish either if she gets it for breakfast! It'll just sit there all day, uneaten. ::: shrug :::

And she gets overnight kibbles, so she doesn't go too long without food.

She's typically a grazer, and it takes her a few hours to finish a meal. Occasionally, she finishes most or all of her wet food in one sitting. And it's only when she then has a big drink of water afterwards that she runs into trouble. The same thing happens if she eats a bunch of kibbles and then has a big drink of water. By contrast, on the few occasions where she throws up without having had water, it's always a scarf-and-barf situation, and the throw-up is much more dense/thick and easy to clean up.

We went through a LOT of trial and error with a multitude of different foods over several months earlier this year because she was so finicky and would often refuse to eat. I finally found a combo of wet and dry that has been working (i.e., she eats enough and gets the appropriate amount of calories) since the summer, so I'm reluctant to shake things up again.

But I may just start up again with a new, non-fishy food in the mornings and see how it goes. I cannot stand this stink.

 

[ladytimedramon]

Interesting! I don't have any shaving cream, but if nothing works and my guest room winds up smelling like a fish market, I'll pick some up and try it. Thanks for the suggestion. :-)

No problem. It worked 20 years ago before enzymatic cleaners were easy to find. We used it on carpeting and upholstery for stains both dog related and not. Make sure you get a white foam one not a gel. We used to scoop the heavy stuff off, cover it with the cream, scrub it in, let it sit, blot it up, and vacuum it off.

 

[CatladyJan]

https://www.hunker.com/12416761/how-to-get-odors-out-of-laminate-floors

It's quite possible that it just needs to dry for a while.

 

[GraciesParent]

Yeah, I left the baking soda paste on for almost three full days -- it dried into a solid plaster after an hour or so, and then I left it for another 70-ish hours. And that seemed to do a decent job on the laminate-floor incident.

Today I'm dealing with a new throw-up -- once again, fishy and watery, so it soaked through everything -- on carpet and upholstery. :-/

 

[GraciesParent]

Also, this is the most I've EVER talked about throw-up! LOL. Thanks to everyone for your contributions to the thread. :-)