Hardwood floors are usually the range of floors that exist in the world today. In 2 out of 5 houses, you can find wooden floors, usually hardwood that is properly polished and clean. Hardwood floors bring about a form of medieval beauty to the décor of the house and give a homely feeling. It is preferred to cemented floors because you can have the floors without much consideration for the usage of carpets and rugs as it is enough beauty to behold. Even with this beauty comes the cons of having such floors which are, being susceptible to wood termites, mould and rot and the worst of them all, pet stains. In a house where there are pets, like dogs and rabbits that have not been potty trained, just expect dark patches on the floors of the house. This is usually a result of their urine which then soaks into the floors. However, there are various ways of getting rid of pet stains on the floor and we will be discussing a few of them.
How To Repair Hardwood Floors With Pet Stains
Having black batches on the floors makes for the beauty of hardwood floors to diminish and there is a high risk of rot in such places because of the water on the floor because pet urines are watery-like. These are the several ways of removing pet stains and they include:
Hydrogen Peroxide: This is like water with an extra Oxygen element involved. When it is in its purest form, it is pale blue and can be used as bleach, antiseptic and oxidizer. In small doses, it can purify water and in large doses, it can clean anything including pet stains. It is also the first common fix for anyone that wants to remove recent pet stains on the wood. It works best when mixed with water to a certain degree by bleaching the stains and removing them completely. When applying it, allow it to soak for at least 20 minutes before cleaning with a Damp towel. You can apply it more than once as it is amazing when breaking down stains, leaving the floors looking shiny. It however does not work with stains that have gone to the root of the wood. When used alone, however, it can damage the colouring of the wood.
Baking Soda: This is one of the simplest ways of removing a dark pet stain from hardwood floors. The logic behind using baking soda is that since urine is acidic, baking soda comes in to break apart the component of the urine in its basic form. It not only removes the stains and moisture but neutralizes the odour coming from that area. If that area is damp and humid, do not mix with water but scrub the baking powder into the floor and let it dry. Then vacuum it off. If the area is dry, however, mix baking powder with water to make a paste and scrub it into the stain. Let it dry before you vacuum. This is the cheapest way of getting rid of stains as it uses household items and neutralizes odours. However, it works only on the surface or recent stains and not deep stains.
Vinegar: Vinegar makes the cleaning of urine stains much easier as it does not break down the stain but brings the stain up for easy cleaning. Vinegar can be used for a lot of things including the removal of pet stains and its application can also work in various ways. The first form of application is the mixture of vinegar and grapefruit oil. The usage is pure vinegar with a few drops of grapefruit oil. The addition of grapefruit oil is to help remove odours and the grapefruit has natural antiseptic properties. Spray the area with the solution and allow soaking before cleaning with a clean towel. The smell of citrus also repels your pet from that area to prevent a repetition of urinating in that area. The second application is the use of vinegar and dish soap. This is by adding 75% dish soap and 25% vinegar to the solution and scrubbing the area thoroughly. This solution however does not work on all kinds of stains.
Sanding and Refinishing: This is one method that is quite costly but completely removes the stains from the floors. This method requires removing the finish and refinishing the hardwood floor. Hardwood floors are natural floors that that although made from wood, they have to be finished and polished to bring out the beauty of the wood. With stains spoiling the beauty, there is a need to make use of sanding machine to remove the finishing coat and put a new one on it. First, use rough sandpaper which will strip off the finish completely and then the smooth or fine-grain sandpaper to smoothen and even out the floor where the stain is. Do not sand too deeply to prevent disruption or holes in the floor. After sanding, refinish and reseal the floor before waxing. There are two issues with this method, the odour would most likely remain and you might not match the stain and level perfectly. The best thing to do is hire a professional to work on this method to achieve the best result.
No method is perfect but at least one of these methods works at least 99% of the time. There is the method of combination where you mix all the past methods, except sanding and refinishing into one solution and usage of it. However, this method can be risky because it is likely to bleach the floor without actually removing the stains. When using the Sandpaper method, you can remove the odours also by using Vinegar and Grapefruit oil to scrub the entire floor. This also helps with repelling your pets from ever peeing in the house again. Expect each method to take time to work but the result will be a beautiful hardwood floor free of stains and odours.
