If you’re a homeowner asking, will professional carpet cleaning remove pet odors, you’re certainly not alone! Many families don’t feel complete without their four-legged companions, but owning a pet isn’t without challenges. Keeping carpets and upholstery clean and odor-free is often one such issue faced by many pet owners.
DIY carpet shampooing and steam cleaning are not always effective at removing pet odors; in some cases, they can actually reactivate the enzymes in pet waste that create odors, making the smell worse! Odor neutralizers and proper professional extraction techniques are needed to ensure proper pet odor removal.
Along with making pet odors worse, improper carpet cleaning techniques can mean wet carpet backing that eventually creates a musty, mildewed smell. Poor-quality cleaning can also leave behind lots of dust, air pollution residues, cigarette smoke and ash, and other irritants with unpleasant odors.
To ensure you’re keeping your home’s carpets in good condition and smelling their best, check out some added information about cleaning needed to remove pet odors and some other vital details about carpet shampooing overall. These tips will help you decide the right cleaning method for your home so you can enjoy your four-legged friends without worrying about unpleasant messes, stains, and smells!
Professional carpet cleaning does remove some odors as well as dirt, dust, mud, and other such debris, but don’t count on your DIY shampooing to remove all pet smells. First, note that hot water activates the bacteria in the urine that gives it that unpleasant smell, as said, so using steam or shampooing can actually release pet odors, not eliminate them!
This problem is aggravated by pet stains that have soaked into the carpet pad. Over time, you might not notice any urine odors, but once steam or hot water reaches that carpet backing or its underlying padding, you might then notice unpleasant pet odors coming from your carpets.
A homeowner should also note that sprays and other such treatments used during or after carpet shampooing often just mask pet odors rather than eliminate them. Once the chemicals in those sprays wear off, you might notice unpleasant pet odors that you thought were long gone. Not removing rinse water completely can also allow mold and mildew to develop along the carpet backing or underlying padding. This, too, will increase the risk of unpleasant smells long after that shampooing or steam cleaning
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This is why it's important to hire a professional for carpet cleaning to remove pet odors or dog pee. They have the experience and expertise to use the correct odor neutralizers and cleaning methods that homeowners don't have access to!
While hot water might activate the bacteria in urine and other such waste materials, this doesn’t mean that carpet shampooing or steam cleaning is ineffective at removing all dog and cat smells. Remember that animals might get into household trash or be around dead animals, bringing those unpleasant smells into the home with them.
Professional carpet shampooing can often remove those animal smells and the smell of a dog that’s gone too long without a bath or proper grooming. Carpet shampooing or steam cleaning can also pull up the fresh waste that a dog or cat might have tracked over the carpet recently, removing those unpleasant odors as well.
There are a few tricks for getting pet odors out of carpets permanently. The first is to tell a carpet cleaning professional that you’re hiring them to address pet stains and odors rather than for a standard cleaning! This will alert them to the need to bring specialty odor neutralizers and to be prepared to tackle tough stains and odors.
A cleaning contractor will also typically pull up the carpet and clean its underside, to remove soaked-in urine and ground-in waste that’s made it's way along that backing. They will also use a UV light to spot pet stains that are no longer visible. This ensures that he or she won’t overlook any such stains and will get the carpets completely cleaned.
A carpet cleaning contractor can also clean the carpet padding underneath the carpet backing as needed. If pet urine has soaked into the padding, it might have crumbled or otherwise degraded. If this is the case, it’s best to simply replace that damaged and stained section or all the carpet padding completely.
Professional carpet cleaners will pull up carpet sections, as said, and clean the underside of carpets rather than just the top. This helps remove stains and ground-in materials and the odors that go along with them.
Professionals also apply odor neutralizers. These neutralizers don’t mask or cover up bad smells or create competing scents to “drown out” those unpleasant odors. Instead, they actually change or absorb the chemicals that create smells. Neutralizing those chemicals removes smells completely.
When cleaning a carpet, note that professionals also know how to manage the job properly so that no extra rinse water or detergent is left behind. In turn, you’re less likely to experience mold and mildew growth and their accompanying unpleasant smells when you invest in the services of a professional carpet cleaner.
There are several tips you might consider for avoiding carpet odors and then eliminating them naturally. Check out a few suggestions and then discuss these with a carpet cleaning professional near you as needed:
Homeowners should also budget to replace their home’s carpet every 10 years at most, as carpet fibers will lock and hold dirt, dust, and odors over time no matter how well you maintain and clean them. Padding will also degrade over time and need replacing. Swapping out old carpets for new ones after so many years is an excellent choice for ensuring your home always smells clean and fresh.
Because you don’t want to activate the enzymes in dried urine and release those accompanying smells, it’s typically recommended that you call a carpet cleaning professional for dry cleaning services. As with dry cleaning clothes, carpet dry cleaning uses specialty chemicals and very little if any water to break up and remove old stains and bothersome odors.
A professional carpet cleaning contractor will also be able to pull up the carpet so he or she can clean underneath the backing, as said, and remove dried urine from the padding underneath. This will ensure a thorough clean without reactivating those enzymes and making any unpleasant odors even worse!
If you don’t want to use chemicals to remove dried dog urine or other bothersome stains from your home’s carpeting, consider mixing white vinegar and water in a 50-50 ratio and adding this mixture to a spray bottle. Spray the affected area generously and then use a sponge to push it into the carpet itself gently.
Let the mixture sit for about 15 minutes, so it has time to work, and then blot it up with a clean, dry paper towel. Repeat this process as needed to remove any stains and odors. Vacuum the carpet afterward to ensure you’ve extracted as many irritants as possible.
Allowing your pets needed access to the outdoors or a clean litter box to relieve themselves is the best way to avoid urine stains on carpets! Never assume that a pet “should” be able to hold their bladder a certain amount of time, and remember that cats need a clean litter box or they simply won’t use it. Pets also need to feel safe when relieving themselves, so ensure you keep noisy and energetic children away from them and their litter box.
If you’re busy training your pets on where to relieve themselves, try using orange and vinegar scents around the home, as these are very unpleasant for animals and they are likely to avoid such smells when they need to relieve themselves.
If a pet has repeated accidents or consistently relieves itself inside the home when they have full access to the outdoors or a clean litter box, it’s probably time for a trip to the vet. Your pet might have health concerns that affect their bladder and needs medication or a change in their diet.
Traditional carpet shampooing is often not recommended for removing pet odors and is not a job homeowners should attempt on their own. If you don’t extract shampoo or detergent properly and thoroughly, this can result in a sticky residue getting left; that residue then attracts more dirt and dust than before!
Shampoo residues can also tamp down or flatten carpet fibers, creating a worn and dull look. In turn, your home’s rugs might look worse after shampooing than before. To avoid this risk, always rely on the services of a professional for any carpet cleaning you need to have done.
Your carpet cleaning contractor should recommend the best carpet cleaning method for your home, but note some vital details about various cleaning options so you know what to expect or ask about when you schedule your next rug cleaning service.
Note that odor neutralizers are not always included in these carpet shampooing methods, so it’s good to discuss those needs with your contractor. He or she can apply such neutralizer as needed to ensure your carpets smell as clean as they look!
Carpet Cleaners of Rhode Island is proud to offer this information to our readers, and hopefully, we’ve helped answer the question, will professional carpet cleaning remove all pet odors? If you’re in the state and need expert floor or upholstery cleaning, trust our reliable Rhode Island carpet cleaning contractors. We offer free quotes and guaranteed services, so call today to find out more.