How can I clean the smell of cat urine out of my garage and vents?
My cat peed in my garage a couple of times. I have cleaned it up the smell is still there in my garage very strong. Now it comes through my heating vents in my house. How can I stop this from happening?
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Nature's Miracle Urine formula, from pet store, or OdoBan (disinfectant and deodorizer) would be my best recommendations.
I wonder how it's getting in the vents from the garage. You might need your vents professionally cleaned if the cat also got into your vents.
A lot of people like using white vinegar with a couple of drops in a spray bottle.
The challenge is finding all the effected surfaces and saturating them and then wiping up the vinegar solution with a rag.
What is worrisome is that your HVAC is getting intake air from the garage. This means carbon monoxide, gasoline & yard chemicals smell also are coming into your home.
Check your gaskets around your door from your garage to your house. Maybe they should be replaced.
Buy a MERV 11 minimum furnace filter, a 12 will be better.
I am wondering Katie if you have items stored in your garage that the cat peed on that you might need to remove. Rugs, cardboard boxes, stored clothing, rags.
Hi Katie,
It does sound like a combination of spots where the cat peed around in the garage, you will probably have to go around and see if you can smell any other spots. I can't think of another way than to smell areas for more scent pockets. One thing that will help (over time) is to air it our and use Nature's Miracle.
Where is your air intake for your furnace, you might want to have that checked out too.
I am also concerned with your garage being connected to the home HVAC system. Garages should NOT be connected to the homes system. A separate heat source should be in the garage or none at all. Biggest concern is carbon monoxide leaking into the home. It's odorless, tasteless, and deadly. Doors from the garage to the home should be weatherstripped to prevent any fumes, odors from migrating into the home. 20+ years in the HVAC trade I and my crew never have connected a garage to the home HVAC. We also refused to install new systems in homes where the homeowner themselves connected the garage to the home.
Some of these may work
WD-40. Did a leaky oil pan leave a big ugly spot in the middle of your concrete driveway? To get rid of an unsightly oil spot, just spray it with a generous amount of WD-40 and then hose it down with water.
Soda (Coca Cola). Here’s how to remove oil stains from concrete drive-ways and garage floors: Gather up a small bag of cat litter, a few cans of cola, a stiff bristle broom, bucket, laundry detergent, bleach, eye protection, and rubber gloves. Cover the stain with a thin layer of cat litter and brush it in. Sweep up the litter and pour cola to cover the area. Work the cola in with a bristle broom, and leave the cola for about twenty minutes. Mix 1/4 cup laundry detergent with 1/4 cup bleach in 1 gallon (3.7 liters) warm water and use it to mop up the mess.
Oven Cleaner. Get those unsightly grease, oil, and transmission fluid stains off your concrete driveway or garage floor. Spray them with Easy Off No Fume Oven Cleaner in the BLUE can. Let it settle for 5-10 minutes, then scrub with a stiff brush and rinse it off with your garden hose at its highest pressure. Severe stains may require a second application.
Kool-Aid. Nasty rust stains on your concrete? Mix unsweetened lemonade Kool-Aid with hot water. Scrub and the rust stain should come right out.
Baking Soda. Salt and commercial ice-melt formulations can stain — or actually eat away — the concrete around your house. For an effective, but completely innocuous, way to melt the ice on your steps and walkways during those cold winter months, try sprinkling them with generous amounts of baking soda. Add some sand for improved traction.
Ammonia. Tired of those annoying discolorations on your concrete work? To get rid of them, scrub with 1 cup ammonia diluted in 1 gallon (3.7 liters) water. Hose it down well when you’re done.
Here are a couple of methods you can try.
https://www.petfinder.com/cats/living-with-your-cat/5-cat-urine-odor-removal-tips/
I second Tanner's product recommendation. Try Odoban it worked for us when we bought a property that had been used as a rental house and not taken care of.
The only success I have had in getting rid of cat urine smell is with Natures Miracle. https://amzn.to/2TC1rrJ
Hi Katie, you can use an enzymatic cleaner, but you need to know where the urine is
https://www.amazon.ca/URINE-Remover-Kitten-32-Ounce-Injector/dp/B0028H1HX2/ref=asc_df_B0028H1HX2/?tag=googleshopc0c-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=292930291608&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=14789916330695935604&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001388&hvtargid=pla-356218470958&psc=1
Wash the spots you find with one part vinegar and one part water, and two teaspoons of baking soda, then treat the areas with an enzymatic cleaner of the same type you used on your carpet. 9 Don't rinse the cleaner away. Cover the spots up and let the cement or concrete soak overnight for up to 24 hours.
Nature's Miracle, an enzyme cleaner that smells like oranges. works great!
Sorry for chiming in to this thread so late, but I just had to share this in case it helps someone out. I wish I had gotten this advice years ago as a cat owner.
My best advice?
Give the book " Ultimate Cat Secrets" a read.
It really is the only long-term solution to discipline your cat, OP.
This might come as a surprise to you, but your cat actually wants to obey you.
It’s kitty’s independent, sassy nature that makes you fall in love with him, but it’s this very attitude that makes it frustrating to train fun behaviours into your favourite feline.
Cats respond best to positive reinforcement – yelling, punishing or disciplining your cat just won’t work.
In my opinion, Ultimate Cat Secrets is a must-have for all cat lovers. It's not just a cat training manual – it’s one of the quickest and most comprehensive guides to living with a cat that I’ve ever seen.
The easy access audio format makes it a breeze to digest from your computer or your mobile device and the lessons inside are easy to implement. And if that’s not enough for you, ordering now will score you FIVE great bonuses:
1) How to toilet train your cat and get rid of that stinky litter box forever.
2) Extra tips audio program which includes basic first aid and tips on my favourite kitty calming remedy.
3) Pet medical recorder – an absolute essential for parents of asthma cats or any kitty with a chronic medical condition.
4) Downloadable transcripts of the entire program and all the bonus materials.
5) 100 recipes to pamper your feline friend.
I HIGHLY recommend it.
Here's a link to their site
I think you can buy something from the Pet store that will sort this for you!
We use Nature's Miracle. It is amazing. Works very well and is safe for use around pets.
Natures Miracle does work quite well... but you need to use enough of it to fully saturate the pee stain.... and you need to let it sit long enough for the enzymes in the Natures Miracle to counteract the enzymes and bacteria in the cat pee... don't wipe it up right away.. let it dry on its own.
Pre-cleaning with Baking soda and vinegar (cleaning vinegar, not just "white vinegar" or stronger....not for food use ... available at Lowe's and Walmart) Spray or douse the area with the vinegar and sprinkle liberally with the baking soda and let it sit until dry... then scrub with a brush and more vinegar with water... mop up until just damp and let dry.... then.... go over it liberally... get it WET with the Natures Miracle and let dry.....
Also.... any porous materials like cardboard will need to be thrown away, replace with a plastic, washable surface.... wood surfaces will need to be treated several times (until it absorbs enough Natures Miracle to reach all of the absorbed pee stain)
There is also a new product out there called "POOPH" (Cat Box and Regular) an industrial Odor remover (used in Sewage Treatment Plants)... I have had some really great success using it on cat pee stains.... after cleaning as above.... and just as with the Natures Miracle.... you need to use ENOUGH of it to thoroughly SOAK the pee stain, especially on surfaces like wood or concrete
PetZyme is also a product that should work on the cat urine.