How to get a pee smell out of a room

Mother has grown quite incontinent and despite having a supra pubic catheter placed, she still "leaks". She wears a pad, but doesn't change it often. It IS a hassle, I know. Also, she cleans out one catheter bag and doesn't get all the urine out. Then she hangs it up in the bathroom, with maybe a tablespoon or more of stale urine in it. She leaves the soaked pads in the bathroom also. She's had a couple of "overflows" on the carpeted areas, on her bed, though she does have a waterproof sheet, and also on her recliner. She just gets more and more of those "automatic" spray room fresheners in all different scents! They go off every 15 minutes to cover the smell, but upon walking into her apartment, you just get slammed with the stale urine smell.
I've cleaned the bathroom and carpet and recliner, but the smell just seems to seep into everything. Brother, whose home her apartment is in, refuses to replace the flooring with hardwood, so she has mostly carpet.
The smell is just gaggy. I've used pet cleaners, vinegar, organic cleaners and they all work for a few days, but then the smell comes back. Mother refuses to open windows, even on the nicest days. When I clean, I open them all and ignore her.
I'm sure her clothing now is all "soaked" to a point as well. She does her own laundry and is always immaculately groomed, but she smells, too.
She is aware of the smell, hence the room fresheners, but the root cause may be the incompletely emptied catheter bags combined with wet pads. She doesn't take her own trash out and the only thing I have ever said to her is "Mom, one of your room fresheners just spritzed me in the face."
I'm embarrassed for her, and the other siblings don't visit, so maybe this is just something I have to deal with? Oh, she also has 2 cocktails in the kitchen, adding their own special brand of funk and feathers. Gag. And occasionally, one of my brother's dogs will escape into mother's place and pee on the carpet and when I clean it, the water is sludgy black and thick. And holy moly does it stink!!

Caring for an elderly loved one often involves cleaning up urinary incontinence accidents. The AgingCare online Caregiver Forum is filled with people coming together to share valuable information with one another on common elder care challenges. We’ve compiled experienced caregivers’ best tips on how to remove urine odor from elderly clothes and get rid of stubborn incontinence stains.

Table of Contents Show

Removing Incontinence Odors and Stains: Tips for Family Caregivers
What kills the smell of human urine?
Does urine smell go away?

Removing Incontinence Odors and Stains: Tips for Family Caregivers

“They make products for cleaning urine that contain special enzymes, such as Urine Kleen, or you can use something like Nature’s Miracle that is sold in pet shops.” –vstefans

“Vinegar helps. I soak soiled items in vinegar, take them out while wet, hang them on a clothesline outside and hope for rain. Some things I can leave until nature removes the smell, but some I just keep washing.” –1healthyangel

“I wash soiled items in the hottest water I can, soak them in an oxy-based cleanser and baking soda solution, and rinse with vinegar. It sometimes takes two to three washings, but the urine smells all come out.” –Carlen

“Iodine scrub will neutralize smells in one washing. Use about one tablespoon in the washer. Usually iodine wash (one brand name is Betadine) is in the first aid section of just about any drug store. It’s dark red and the advertised use is to clean wounds.” –pamstegma and sandwich42plus

“I use a baking soda laundry detergent pod, add some grapefruit juice in with it and wash soiled items on a warm cycle. It seems to take the smell out.” –Kenneth08

“In the facility where I work, the staff uses a product called Peri-Wash to control the smell of urine. It works well.” –JackieMiller

“Borax and washing soda: 50/50 mix. Works every time for any kind of nasty odor. I use it on my dad’s bedding every day.” –Katiekate

“When I was washing my mom’s clothes (she was in a long-term care facility), members of the AgingCare Forum recommended 20 Mule Team Borax, which did help.” –freqflyer

“I have found that apple cider vinegar works better than white vinegar on incontinence odor.” –BoovieD

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“We use OdoBan with eucalyptus scent. The nursing home by us uses it, too. It works fabulously. You can get the spray one at Walmart and the gallon size at Sam’s Club. It smells wonderful and fresh. I put half a cup in the laundry and we spray it on the furniture and Mom’s mattress. It is a deodorizer and disinfectant.” –Flmother

“Use Morrisons Non-Bio laundry liquid. I mix that with a teacup of baking soda crystals, and then I put white vinegar in the fabric softener drawer. The smells are gone, much to my relief.” –SmellFree

“My adult daughter is a quadriplegic with an indwelling catheter that frequently clogs, so she bypasses. What I have found works is to rinse the urine-soiled clothes, towels and/or linens in cold water and add about a cup of Listerine (arctic mint I find is the best) and some Arm & Hammer liquid laundry soap. Then I put everything through a full wash with a bit of bleach and some more Arm & Hammer. The reason for the cold-water wash/rinse is because bodily fluids don’t do great when washed with hot water. It tends to cook the urine smell and stains right into the fabric, making them extremely hard to get rid of! So, always rinse in cold first! I also never wash her stuff with anything else. I always do all the household clothes, towels and bedding separately.” –Maggspie

What kills the smell of human urine?

Make a solution of baking soda, peroxide and any dish detergent. The combination of the three is often powerful enough to drive away strong urine smells. The solutions is eight fluid ounces of peroxide, three tablespoons of baking soda, and a few drops of dish detergent.

Does urine smell go away?

A bad smell in the urine often goes away on its own, especially when dehydration or something in the diet causes it. A person does not need to see a doctor if they can identify a harmless cause of their smelly urine, such as asparagus. Other causes need medical treatment.