How to clean a mattress that has been urinated on

We teach you how to clean urine from a mattress, removing the urine stains and getting rid of the unpleasant odour from the mattress. Say goodbye to every parent’s headache!

How do you clean urine from a mattress? Everything you need to know

Damp stains are the most problematic stains on a mattress. If you have small children, at one time or another, you are bound to have to clean wee from the mattress. There are various remedies for cleaning a urine stain, from household remedies to commercial ones.

One of the most important things to bear in mind is the need to act quickly so the stain and smell don’t become incrusted in the mattress. Even if it's a superficial clean, given that weeing usually happens at night. You need to scrub the stain as soon as it happens, so you can clean it more thoroughly later. That way, you prevent worse problems from occurring.

You should also consider the type of mattress. Memory foam mattresses have become popular in recent years due to their excellent features, but they also require products that are friendlier to the fabric, like natural soap. Using a steam cleaner can also be useful to combat this type of stain.

What products do you need to remove urine stains from a mattress?

• Bicarbonate of soda.
• Vinegar.
• Hydrogen peroxide.
• Oxygenated water.
• Ammonia.
• Neutral soap or detergent.
• Gloves.
• Cloths.
• Sponge or scourer.
• Steam iron.
• Vacuum cleaner.
• Disinfectant.
   

Remove urine stains from a mattress step by step

• Act immediately. Even though it's the middle of the night, one of the keys is to act quickly and not allow the stain to dry, since the smell will also become incrusted. There is no need for a deep clean, but rinse the stain with warm water and soap and use absorbent paper to remove as much moisture as possible.

• Clean the stain. There are various tips:

• With vinegar: this consists of mixing a cup of white vinegar with three cups of hot water and scrubbing the mattress with a cloth or sponge.
• With bicarbonate of soda: as well as removing the stain it will also remove the smell. You need to leave it for at least 5 hours on the mattress to enable the unpleasant odours to disappear. Then vacuum the mattress to remove it and voilà!  You can also clean stains with soda crystals and with oxygenated water.
• You can also use a “magic formula”: 2 parts bicarbonate of soda, 2 parts vinegar, 1 part detergent. Apply them to the urine and you’ll notice the stain disappears after a few hours.
• If the above doesn’t work or the stain has already dried, you can try a mixture of bicarbonate of soda and oxygenated water, in a ratio of 3 parts oxygenated water to one part bicarbonate. Leave the mixture to dry completely and vacuum the residue when dry.
• Another trick is to mix 1 litre of hydrogen peroxide with 1 cup of water and 1/2 cup of bicarbonate of soda. Sprinkle it over the stain and leave for 30 minutes. Finally, remove the mixture and leave it to air dry.
• Another option is to spray the whole mattress with a disinfectant spray. This is a product that will get rid of all the germs and leave the mattress with a fresh and clean smell.
• There are also foams available for cleaning mattresses. These products are specially formulated to remove this type of stain.
• If there are still halos or marks around it. Ammonia is one of the best stain removers, but it should be handled very carefully, protecting the hands and face, and ventilating the room during and after use. Add a little washing-up liquid and a cup of ammonia. Wet a cloth or sponge with the mixture and carefully clean the stained mattress and leave to activate for 10 minutes. Then rinse the area with a damp cloth.
• Perfect finish with steam. You can use a steam cleaner for a perfect finish since, as with any other fabric, a mattress is susceptible to getting dirty or accumulating mites. Using steam, you will have a clean and disinfected mattress in half an hour, but you will need to wait a full day before using the mattress so it has time to dry. 
   

Remove the bad odour from a mattress that has been urinated on

The unpleasant odour is mainly produced by the accumulation of bacteria and, if the stains are not cleaned straight away, the accumulated damp also causes an odour.

To clean your mattress and remove the bad odour once and for all, you need to use products that have disinfectant and antibacterial properties as well as being able to remove the stain. White vinegar and bicarbonate of soda are the most widely used home remedies for this purpose. But, if you also want your mattress to smell “clean”, you can use any essential oil that you like.

You need to bear in mind that the mattress needs to be ventilated regularly. Although there may not be clear stains, a lack of ventilation can also make your mattress smell. In addition to cleaning it, you can use mattress protectors to help you to look after it.