How to Get Pee Out of a Mattress Using Simple Household Items

Vinegar and baking soda can help keep urine stains and odors at bay in your mattress

Boy with his puppy reading a book on bed
Photo: Miguel Sanz / Moment / Getty Images
Boy with his puppy reading a book on bed
Photo: Miguel Sanz / Moment / Getty Images
SKILL LEVEL
Easy
COMPLETION TIME
15 minutes
COST
Up to $25
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What you'll need:
TOOLS
  • Spray bottle
  • Old towel
  • Vacuum
SUPPLIES
  • White distilled vinegar
  • Laundry detergent
  • Baking soda
  • Cold water

We’ve all been there: waking up to a urine-soaked mattress, whether it’s from a child or a pet, is never a good feeling. Urine not only leaves unappealing stains on your mattress, but the odor can also linger for days or weeks. Luckily, it’s possible to clean the pee out of your mattress to reduce the risk of staining and get rid of the odor, and you can do it using things you likely already have around your house. In this guide, we’ll explain how to clean urine out of a mattress so you can get back to restful, easy sleep.

Prepping to Clean Pee Out of a Mattress

Before you get started cleaning your mattress, there are three important things you should know. First, and most importantly, using household cleaning items like vinegar and laundry detergent won’t disinfect the mattress, so if you’re looking for a deep clean, you may need help from a professional who can use more effective cleaning solutions. Professional house cleaning costs more than a DIY solution, but you’ll usually get better results.

Second, it’s crucial that you start the cleaning process as quickly as possible. The longer the urine soaks in your mattress, the more likely it is to set, which promotes staining and could make getting the odor out more difficult.

Finally, if you have urine on a memory foam mattress, it’s important to note that moisture and liquids will cause the foam to deteriorate more quickly. Rather than using the liquid cleaning solution mentioned in this cleaning guide, you might consider just using baking soda to draw out the moisture or calling in a professional to get the job done without causing further damage to your mattress.

  1. Remove and Wash Your Bedding

    Putting bedsheets in the washing machine
    Photo: Anne Boonkerdthinthai / iStock / Getty Images Plus / Getty Images

    First, strip all of the bedding off of the mattress and run it through the laundry. That should include the following, if applicable and possible:

    • Top sheet

    • Bottom sheet

    • Mattress protector

    • Pillowcase(s)

    • Washable comforter

    For the best results, run a partial wash with just water, let the machine drain, and then do a complete cycle with laundry detergent.

  2. Mix and Apply Your Cleaning Solution

    Spraying mattress with homemade cleaner
    Photo: Andrei Zonenko / iStock / Getty Images Plus / Getty Images

    Next, mix your white distilled vinegar with cold water in your spray bottle in a 1:1 ratio. You should use at least one cup of each, but you may need to mix more based on how much urine is in your mattress. You can also add a few drops of laundry detergent to help clean the area and start the process of masking the odor.

    Apply your DIY cleaning solution liberally to the mattress wherever the urine is, and let it sit for about 2 to 3 minutes.

  3. Blot With a Towel

    Using towel to blot away moisture from mattress
    Photo: Andrei Zonenko / iStock / Getty Images Plus / Getty Images

    Blot away excess moisture with an old towel. You can wash the towel afterward or toss it if you prefer. Avoid rubbing the mattress to get the urine out, as this can actually push it further into the mattress. You could also risk damaging the outside of the mattress, depending on the material.

  4. Sprinkle Baking Soda Over the Area

    Liberally sprinkle baking soda over the entire wet area. The baking soda will absorb odors and reduce the risk of that lingering pee smell in your mattress. It will also soak up any residual moisture from the urine and the cleaning solution you used.

    Let the baking soda sit for 8 to 10 hours.

  5. Vacuum Your Mattress

    Using vacuum to clean bed mattress
    Photo: DZIANIS BARYSAU / iStock / Getty Images Plus / Getty Images

    Finally, vacuum your mattress to remove the baking soda. If you still see stains or smell a urine odor, you can repeat the entire process to mask it or further remove it.

    It’s best to use your vacuum without aggressive attachments. Avoid using a roller brush or similar attachments, and instead, gently use a regular brush attachment. More aggressive options could damage the material on the outside of your mattress, especially if you’re cleaning a memory foam mattress with a cloth cover over it.

DIY Vs. Hiring a Pro

Cleaning pee out of a mattress is a simple process that doesn’t require any experience or special tools, so you can tackle it on your own using things you probably already have around your house. It’s possible to reduce the risk of lasting stains and lingering pee smells in your mattress using the cleaning process above.

However, vinegar, baking soda, and laundry detergent aren’t true disinfectants. If you’re concerned about bacteria growing in a urine-soaked mattress, we recommend calling in a professional housekeeper or cleaner. They have special tools and more aggressive cleaning products that can truly disinfect the mattress.

Additionally, if you’re dealing with old, stubborn urine stains that have set in, it’s best to call in a professional. A mattress cleaner near you can handle the job for a relatively affordable price and leave you with a clean, stain- and bacteria-free mattress.

Frequently Asked Questions

Leaving pee on a mattress for an extended period of time will make it harder to remove the moisture, increase the likelihood of unappealing stains forming, and make the urine odor linger for a longer time. Ideally, you should start cleaning a urine-soaked mattress immediately. You can start by spraying a 1:1 solution of white distilled vinegar and water over the stain and then blotting it out. Then, sprinkle baking soda over the affected area, let it sit for 8 to 10 hours, and then vacuum it out. If the issue persists, you might need to dispose of your mattress and replace it.

In most cases, yes, you can save a mattress that a pet or child peed on. You have two options: begin a DIY mattress cleaning process immediately or call in a professional to disinfect and clean the area. In either case, the goal should be to clean with a liquid cleaning solution and then remove the moisture using towels and baking soda. A professional cleaning service may also use enzymatic cleaners to break down the urine, which will help avoid stains and lingering odors.

Over time, a urine-soaked mattress will lose the pee odor on its own as long as it dries out completely. However, it’s best to help the process along either by calling in a professional mattress cleaner or by using household cleaning products like white distilled vinegar and baking soda to remove the moisture and the odor. You may want to consider replacing your mattress over cleaning it if you have multiple stains or odors that are persistent.

You can use baking soda to start getting the urine odor out of your mattress. Baking soda is highly absorbent and soaks up odors, so it will not only draw the urine out of your mattress but it can also get to work fighting the lingering smell. You can also use an enzymatic cleaner to break down the urine to make it easier to clean. Just keep in mind that you need to remove enzymatic cleaners from the mattress after use, as leaving them on could be dangerous.

In some cases, yes, it’s safe to spray hydrogen peroxide on your mattress, but the solution can damage memory foam mattresses, so you should only use it on non-memory foam mattresses. If you have a standard spring mattress, you can mix hydrogen peroxide with cold water in a 1:1 ratio and spray that on your urine-soaked mattress. If you’re cleaning pee out of a memory foam mattress, swap out the hydrogen peroxide for white distilled vinegar, or call in a professional mattress cleaner to avoid doing damage to your mattress.

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