Hometalkers, what's the best way to seal in odors in concrete?

Cindy H
by Cindy H
We moved into a house in which the cat was urinating in the concrete floor crawl space. We used Nature's Miracle, thought it was gone, and my husband painted it with DryLock. But now when it's humid the pee smells return. We can't access the cement now that it's been painted, so I'm thinking we seal it some more with Kilz or some other lacquer. Thoughts?
  4 answers
  • N C N C on Jun 04, 2012
    Oder mute takes out the smell. I have used it for the same thing. Order it online. It really works.
  • Cindy, did you seal the gaps around the edges of the french drain? Also you need to address the walls as well. Cats spray and a lot of the odors come from walls not just floors. This may be another source of your odors. Its a difficult odor to remove and it will take many tries to get it done. And even those with real good noses will smell things when you thing its all gone. I doubt the smell is coming through the paint at this point if you used DryLock paint on the surfaces. You may need to sand and seal all the exposed wood framing above your head in the crawl space. If any insulation remains, get it out. It will hold odors for years.
  • DeAnn L DeAnn L on Jun 05, 2012
    I don't know how long a black light will work on old spots of urine but if you used one to find where it's coming from also that might help
  • Peace Painting Co., Inc. Peace Painting Co., Inc. on Jun 11, 2012
    On bare concrete and plywood subfloor, we have used a cheap sealer like Thompsons water sealer. It's oil base and works to seal out the smell. Now, out of desperation, I think I would try an oil-base floor paint.