Help! It still smells of wee!

[kirstickle]

Well we have finally moved into our 20's Arts and Crafts house after 2 months of my other half getting the plumbing and central heating up to scratch and lovingly restoring the old floorboards downstairs. (They really do look great - still kind of old and worn but silky smooth to the touch, and a wonderful colour too ) The only problem is the downstairs loo (original boards in here too). Despite several bottles of antibacterial fluid and God knows what else being put down before he even thought about sanding the floor, it still really, really stinks of wee. He replaced the worst of the boards with new ones we had made, but it must have seeped along the floor further than we thought. I don't know what to do now as the boards have been sealed with a light coat of clear varnish (which we thought would do the trick!) How on earth do we get rid of the smell? There is another room downstairs too that was obvioulsy once used as a bedroom, and there is a massive patch of wee in there too. When OH sanded the boards the smell was overwhelming! We have shut the door on that room to be dealt with another time!! Short of replacing all the floorbards in the loo I really am at a loss as to what to do. Any ideas??

 

[Penners]

I've heard that using a steam cleaner to give the area a thorough steaming will often get rid of urine smells.

Alternatively, here's a recipe that I found online:

Create a baking soda and water paste. Rub it into the area and apply distilled white vinegar over it. Blot this up with clean white towels, and repeat it no more than two times. Follow that with a good rinsing of water, blotting up the moisture. It will smell like vinegar for a short time, but the urine smell should not come back.

 

[JoceAndChris]

I find this recurring stench highly suspicious. Are you sure you don't have a visiting tom cat?

 

[kirstickle]

I think our rather large German Shepherd would see off any visitibg tom cats!! There was an old man living here before us and it seems his aim was very, very poor! Penners - thanks for the recipe, I will give it a go. Just wish we had done it before we varnished. Ho-hum!

 

[Penners]

our rather large German Shepherd

Ach ja - here he iss. Und today he has brought viz him his cat-killing sheep. Her name is Adalberte.

 

[Carol]

We use white vinegar successfully on the occasional accident stains produced by our increasingly elderly cat. Have also tried stuff from the vet which worked very well on the pong. Presumably human is similar!

Mind you, the vinegar smells too!

 

[Schoolmarm]

It needs saturating with an enzyme based product. Will go and see if I can find a name.

Have you scrubbed with biological washing powder and water?

 

[Schoolmarm]

I haven't used these. I think the same as Joce, a tom cat has been helping out with the smell.
It really needed sorting before any sealing as it will be deep in the wood and you have only sealed off one side of each floorboard, leaving the other three sides to fragrance your house. Bleurghhhh!


Recommended from a doggy forum;

Urine-Off Urine Finder Torch
Urine-Off

Price For Both: £17.88 from Amazon
.......................................
Crossposted from a doggy forum;

"I use Simple Solution for pee smells, and there really is nothing like it, in my opinion. You mustn't combine it with other stuff as you can damage the active ingredients. It is a bit pricey, but with all over smells in an empty house, I would probably dilute it 1 part SS to 4 or 5 parts water, completely saturate ALL of the floorboards (so it sinks well in) and then leave to dry.

Simple Solution has enzymes and bacteria specifically selected for pee, poo and pet smells and I really do find it gets rid of the smell entirely."

 

[JoceAndChris]

What a great idea.

Penners, you're just trying to wind me up with your evil cat killing post.

I just can't believe this is ordinary human wee - that wears off. Tom cat scent mark doesn't, not for months and months. I've got it off my concrete floor with biological washing powder - but yes, if it's deep in the wood, and none of the above works, I might be inclined to get the Nitromors out - that'll shift the varnish, and it.

 

[kirstickle]

Honestly it is human wee. It muxt be years and years of incontinence (in the downstairs room the bed was soaked through with it) and really poor aiming (in the downstairs loo in the toilet area). Will have to give the bicarb recipe a go very soon. Even the dog doesn't sniff in there, and he loves a good sniff! Maybe I am just imagining it??? help me!! :shock: :shock: :shock:

 

[jocelyn plummer]

Kirstickle, the natural remedies suggested will be the most effective way of removing the smells, use of the proprietry cleaning agents will have simply made it worse.
I think that as the weather gets better,and the house will begin to dry out from the winter dampness and the saturation that the floors have had. Try to keep windows open as much as possible and get a good through draught.

It takes a surprising amount of time for wood to dry. How horrid for you.
Keep us posted!

 

[JoceAndChris]

This is just such a sad story to go to bed with. That poor old man, how could he have been left to get in such a state? Why was there no-one to notice and take care of him? It's heart-breaking!

Anyway, kirstickle, I'm sure Joss is right and time and through draughts will remove it. It will take a long time to erase those sad associations, but you will. Last week I took down the paper that had been left as a shrine - 20 years ago - to a dead wife - the house's mood has suddenly lifted. We're having lots of holidays this year to celebrate being very alive and able to. The previous owner moved here at the comparitively young age of 40 with his wife the same age- 4 years later she was dead and the house went to rack and ruin, he had to complete the project on his own. We have to enjoy each moment we have.

The things we inherit with our period properties are very curious, and a good reminder of how precious people are - if that doesn't sound too strange in the context of kirstickle's question.

 

[Andrew Bodenham]

Take up the floor boards. Burn.

You'll then be able to see where the wee has leaked to. Steam cleaning the joists etc. may well help, as will the products recommended by others. But unless you get under the floor you'll only ever be scratching the surface of this problem.

Very absorbent stuff, wood. I was once asked by a customer to renovate a rather fine Victorian toilet seat. Over the years it had become saturated, and when I started to work on it it stank. Even after paint stripper, boiling water, strong detergents etc. it stank. Eventually repeated washing with hot water & soda crystals got it into a fit state for sanding & refinishing. Your floorboards are likley to be in a similar state.

When we started work on our upstairs rooms there was an old toilet which had been quietly leaking for years into the floor void. I had to take up the floorboards, and then had to splice new sections on the floor joists where these had rotted through.

I think in your case that removal and replacement (or possibly very severe cleaning) will be the only way forward. I presume that you have had the toilet pan out and checkd for leaks under it?

 

[JoceAndChris]

Very absorbent stuff, wood. I was once asked by a customer to renovate a rather fine Victorian toilet seat. Over the years it had become saturated, and when I started to work on it it stank. Even after paint stripper, boiling water, strong detergents etc. it stank. Eventually repeated washing with hot water & soda crystals got it into a fit state for sanding & refinishing. Your floorboards are likley to be in a similar state.

quote]

I'm so glad you posted that as I have a very lovely old loo with a mahogany toilet seat and nice brass detailing, not sure if it's Viccy or turn of the last century - it's been there a long time and I definitely want to keep it. Soda crystals then, after Nitromors (it's varnished) thanks - not a job I'm particularly looking forward to!

 

[Penners]

Penners, you're just trying to wind me up with your evil cat killing post.

Moi?

 

[FamilyWiggs]

not sure if it's Viccy or turn of the last century

I hate to pre-empt Mr P.Edant - but surely "turn of the last century" was also Victorian! Otherwise we've just messed up Sam's homework... all his own work of course (except for all the Googling I did) 8)

 

[Flyfisher]

Er, wasn't QEII on the throne at the "turn of the last century"?

(Good luck with the homework marks, Sam).

 

[LadyArowana]

I hate to pre-empt Mr P.Edant - but surely "turn of the last century" was also Victorian! Otherwise we've just messed up Sam's homework... all his own work of course (except for all the Googling I did) 8)

Wouldn't the turn of the last century be 1999 or 2000 ?

 

[JoceAndChris]

Oh God, a nest of pedants! I think you might be right there your Ladyship and Flyfisher!

My loo might be Edwardian, or possibly later - done a huge search but haven't found one like it. And sadly I can't ask you lot, as I'm far too modest to photograph my sanitary arrangements.

*Robin - good job on doing Sam's homework- don't disapprove at all- I used to sneakily do my pupils' homework as they were all far too busy partying!

 

[FamilyWiggs]

*Robin - good job on doing Sam's homework- don't disapprove at all- I used to sneakily do my pupils' homework as they were all far too busy partying!

Well since you mention it 8) , I supose I could mention the facebook group I set up to help Sam with his maths homework. It is still recruiting new members (Thanks for being one of the founder members, Joce!) and is well worth a visit!

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=292339982321

[/shameless plug]