House Reeks of Cat Urine

[Stephanie]

Hi, I am moving in to a new house. For a year, feral cats had free access to
the house, and used one room as a latrine (the upstairs tenant let them in
and out). The urine had caked up to one inch thick in some places, and
turned to a mold-like caked urine matter. It damaged the wood flooring, and
the wood was wet for a long time. The house reeked to such an extent that it
was the worse smell ever. Like someone had died there. I wanted to vomit.
After leaving, the odor stayed on my clothes indefinitely until washed.

The landlord cleaned the urine-mold off, and used lemon cleaner, but the
house still smells. Not as bad, but I still smell urine on my clothes when I
leave the house.

This is what I am thinking of doing:

Inundating/flooding the house with pure bleach. I mean everywhere! I bought
8 gallons the other day. Wall, floors, ceilings, windows, cabinets, etc.
Should I dilute the bleach? I'd rather breathe bleach than urine anyday. The
walls are white, and the floors are junk (jagged exposed aging wood
planks--like living in a barn!!), so I pretty much don't care about damage.
Will bleach damage the color by the way?

Also, the landlord has hundreds of empty cat food cans (unwashed) in the
basement, which smell. Will this odor rise into my first floor apartment?

Thanks!

[Nan]

On Thu, 25 Mar 2004 21:04:06 -0500, "Stephanie"
<Stephanie9000@hotmail.com> wrote:

>Hi, I am moving in to a new house. For a year, feral cats had free access to
>the house, and used one room as a latrine (the upstairs tenant let them in
>and out). The urine had caked up to one inch thick in some places, and
>turned to a mold-like caked urine matter. It damaged the wood flooring, and
>the wood was wet for a long time. The house reeked to such an extent that it
>was the worse smell ever. Like someone had died there. I wanted to vomit.
>After leaving, the odor stayed on my clothes indefinitely until washed.
>
>The landlord cleaned the urine-mold off, and used lemon cleaner, but the
>house still smells. Not as bad, but I still smell urine on my clothes when I
>leave the house.
>
>This is what I am thinking of doing:
>
>Inundating/flooding the house with pure bleach. I mean everywhere! I bought
>8 gallons the other day. Wall, floors, ceilings, windows, cabinets, etc.
>Should I dilute the bleach? I'd rather breathe bleach than urine anyday. The
>walls are white, and the floors are junk (jagged exposed aging wood
>planks--like living in a barn!!), so I pretty much don't care about damage.
>Will bleach damage the color by the way?
>
>Also, the landlord has hundreds of empty cat food cans (unwashed) in the
>basement, which smell. Will this odor rise into my first floor apartment?
>
>Thanks!

Are you buying, or renting?
If buying, I'd go to the expense of tearing up and replacing the
floors.
If renting.... I think I'd keep looking for an apartment if the
landlord can't manage to keep his properties clean.

Nan

[davefr]

Move

On Thu, 25 Mar 2004 21:04:06 -0500, "Stephanie"
<Stephanie9000@hotmail.com> wrote:

>Hi, I am moving in to a new house. For a year, feral cats had free access to
>the house, and used one room as a latrine (the upstairs tenant let them in
>and out). The urine had caked up to one inch thick in some places, and
>turned to a mold-like caked urine matter. It damaged the wood flooring, and
>the wood was wet for a long time. The house reeked to such an extent that it
>was the worse smell ever. Like someone had died there. I wanted to vomit.
>After leaving, the odor stayed on my clothes indefinitely until washed.
>
>The landlord cleaned the urine-mold off, and used lemon cleaner, but the
>house still smells. Not as bad, but I still smell urine on my clothes when I
>leave the house.
>
>This is what I am thinking of doing:
>
>Inundating/flooding the house with pure bleach. I mean everywhere! I bought
>8 gallons the other day. Wall, floors, ceilings, windows, cabinets, etc.
>Should I dilute the bleach? I'd rather breathe bleach than urine anyday. The
>walls are white, and the floors are junk (jagged exposed aging wood
>planks--like living in a barn!!), so I pretty much don't care about damage.
>Will bleach damage the color by the way?
>
>Also, the landlord has hundreds of empty cat food cans (unwashed) in the
>basement, which smell. Will this odor rise into my first floor apartment?
>
>Thanks!
>

[Tony Hwang]

Stephanie wrote:

> Hi, I am moving in to a new house. For a year, feral cats had free access to
> the house, and used one room as a latrine (the upstairs tenant let them in
> and out). The urine had caked up to one inch thick in some places, and
> turned to a mold-like caked urine matter. It damaged the wood flooring, and
> the wood was wet for a long time. The house reeked to such an extent that it
> was the worse smell ever. Like someone had died there. I wanted to vomit.
> After leaving, the odor stayed on my clothes indefinitely until washed.
>
> The landlord cleaned the urine-mold off, and used lemon cleaner, but the
> house still smells. Not as bad, but I still smell urine on my clothes when I
> leave the house.
>
> This is what I am thinking of doing:
>
> Inundating/flooding the house with pure bleach. I mean everywhere! I bought
> 8 gallons the other day. Wall, floors, ceilings, windows, cabinets, etc.
> Should I dilute the bleach? I'd rather breathe bleach than urine anyday. The
> walls are white, and the floors are junk (jagged exposed aging wood
> planks--like living in a barn!!), so I pretty much don't care about damage.
> Will bleach damage the color by the way?
>
> Also, the landlord has hundreds of empty cat food cans (unwashed) in the
> basement, which smell. Will this odor rise into my first floor apartment?
>
> Thanks!
>
>
Hi,
I'll just move away from there.
Isn't that an option?
Tony

[Phisherman]

An enzyme cleaner would be more effective (and safer/healthier) than
bleach. Inquire at a large pet store. Open windows for ventilation.
You may want to consider a shellac-based sealer over the wood. I'm
curious to why you would move into such a place?

[Momzilla]

"Stephanie" <Stephanie9000@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:WLKdnZPVofj1E_7d4p2dnA@comcast.com...
> Hi, I am moving in to a new house. For a year, feral cats had free access
to
> the house, and used one room as a latrine (the upstairs tenant let them in
> and out). The urine had caked up to one inch thick in some places, and
> turned to a mold-like caked urine matter. It damaged the wood flooring,
and
> the wood was wet for a long time. The house reeked to such an extent that
it
> was the worse smell ever. Like someone had died there. I wanted to vomit.
> After leaving, the odor stayed on my clothes indefinitely until washed.
>
> The landlord cleaned the urine-mold off, and used lemon cleaner, but the
> house still smells. Not as bad, but I still smell urine on my clothes when
I
> leave the house.
>
> This is what I am thinking of doing:
>
> Inundating/flooding the house with pure bleach. I mean everywhere! I
bought
> 8 gallons the other day. Wall, floors, ceilings, windows, cabinets, etc.
> Should I dilute the bleach? I'd rather breathe bleach than urine anyday.
The
> walls are white, and the floors are junk (jagged exposed aging wood
> planks--like living in a barn!!), so I pretty much don't care about
damage.
> Will bleach damage the color by the way?
>
> Also, the landlord has hundreds of empty cat food cans (unwashed) in the
> basement, which smell. Will this odor rise into my first floor apartment?
>
> Thanks!
>
>

I think this is a job for the Health Department. Why are your moving here?

[Stephanie]

"Tony Hwang" <dragon40@shaw.ca> wrote in message
news:agM8c.3849$R27.3615@pd7tw2no...

> Hi,
> I'll just move away from there.
> Isn't that an option?
> Tony

you and Dave are funny. :)

The house is big-time "dump" (filthy, jagged, creaking floors and filthy
walls; poor electrical; debris all over the outside; no door locks, out of
code, leaking radiators, fire hazards, etc.), but it's actually a great
deal: 2 stories of a house (9 rooms--including two kitchens--and 2 full
baths) for only $560 a month. I desperately need the space, since I have a
growing home-based business.

the smell has gone done quite a bit (only 10% as strong as it originally
was), but it still smells. I think bleach will do the trick (keep my fingers
crossed).

[Stephanie]

"Momzilla" <dada_yadaREMOVE@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:p46dnV3BI-pjA_7d3cwC-w@speakeasy.net...

>
> I think this is a job for the Health Department. Why are your moving
here?
>
>

Well, it's actually a good deal. For only $560 a month, I get two floors of
a house with 9 rooms, including 2 kitchens and 2 full baths! I need the
space for a growing home business. The smell now is not too bad (only 10% of
what it was originally) but I still need to get it out.