How to Remove Dog Urine Smell From Concrete

How to Remove Dog Urine Smell From Concrete

Pet urine smell in concrete can ruin a home or shelter. I’m able to solve this problem for my clients so I thought I would share how to remove dog urine smell from concrete. Concrete is extremely porous and absorbs odors quickly. For example, daily cleaning can disinfect the surface of the concrete but the bacteria hides deep inside the substrate causing awful smells to continue.

You can permanently solve this problem by sealing your concrete with Creto Deep Penetrating Sealer (DPS), Resist All, or Kennel Concrete Sealer. By applying one of these sealers to a concrete substrate, it neutralizes the preexisting bacteria and locks out any new odors from entering. They all have slightly different characteristics so I’ll explain these as best as possible.

Creto DPS

Creto DPS is my favorite out of the three penetrating sealers we carry. It crystallizes through the concrete making it completely waterproofed. What makes it different is the fact that it soaks in much deeper than the other sealers. Hence the name Deep Penetrating Sealer. The only downfall is that it is not hydrophobic. That means water does not bead up on the surface. Subsequently, a surface sealer can be applied over it unlike the other penetrating sealers. So, a non-breathable coating like Poly Shine or Sweet & Easy Sealer can also be used to prevent urine smell by not allowing any liquids to penetrate due to their hydrophobic nature. These sealers leave the concrete with a beautiful finished look. Liquids then bead up on top of the concrete ready to be rinsed away and no smell is created. Here’s how you do it…

Cleaning and Preparation

1. Any concrete that has urine odor should have any preexisting surface sealers or paint removed. This can be done using an over the counter floor strippers like our SCR1600 floor stripper or Scorch, pressure washer, or a floor machine equipped with stripping pads. Then the floors need to be thoroughly cleaned / degreased to remove any stripper residue.
2. The concrete needs to be prepped by doing a light sanding, grinding or acid etch. This will open up the pores of the concrete and allow the substrate to absorb the new sealer. A pole sander, floor machine with diamond pads, or using an acidic cleaner like Revive and mop can be used. Rinse the floor well after using the acidic cleaner. To clarify, this will neutralize the acids and get the concrete ready for the next step.
3. Clean the floor with an enzyme cleaner like our Kennel Cleaner. The enzymes in these cleaners break down the bacteria in the concrete and neutralize the odor. Similarly cleaners like Xtacular also have bacteria that keep eating away at the bad bacteria for a couple weeks after applying the cleaner. These types of cleaners are the best on the market.

Sealing the Concrete

1. After the floor is prepped and cleaned, it’s now time to seal. Make sure that the temperature is above 50º for the next three days. Pour the DPS onto the floor and either mop or roll it across all areas until the entire floor looks wet. Keep moving puddled areas to the dry areas, keeping the concrete wet with sealer for 30 minutes. Reapply sealer as needed during that time. After 30 minutes remove any excess sealer with a dry mop or wet / dry vac. Allow the areas to cure for 24 – 48 hours.
2. Now it’s time to apply the surface sealer. These sealers are usually applied using a roller. If you’re going for a finished concrete look you would need to roll on two coats. In contrast, if you’re going to put a laminate tile or carpet over the concrete only one coat is needed. Watch our videos on how this process is done.

Kennel Concrete Sealer

Here’s how to remove dog urine smell from concrete using Kennel Concrete Sealer. Kennel Concrete Sealer treats the top of the concrete, neutralize the urine smell, and lock any bad bacteria into the concrete so it can’t escape. In addition, it increases the density of the concrete. This makes the top of the concrete impenetrable. Water, urine, or other liquids bead up on the top of the concrete and are very easy to clean up or rinse off. This sealer doesn’t need a surface sealer applied over it and are considered stand alone sealer. It lasts around 20 years but the hydrophobic characteristic will wear off after a couple years of daily cleaning. Kennel Sealer comes in a concentrate so after mixed with distilled water, one gallon will treat 2,000 square feet!

Maintenance Sealer

Maintenance Sealer can be applied over Kennel Sealer every couple of years to bring back the hydrophobic feature of the sealer. This sealer is also much cheaper than Kennel Sealer which makes it very cost effective.

Application

Prep the concrete in the same way as described above. Make sure that the temperature is above 50º for the next three days. Spray the sealer onto the concrete using a pump sprayer until the surface of the concrete has a moist appearance. Apply more sealer to any areas that are absorbing fast. DO NOT allow product to puddle. Spread around any puddled sealer using a push broom, floor squeegee, mop, etc.. A second spot application should be applied immediately after the first application to areas that dry faster than the majority of the surface. Allow the areas to cure for 24 – 48 hours.

In conclusion, when you follow this step by step process it will permanently remove preexisting pet urine odor from concrete and will prevent it from coming back. Use this in your home, kennel, vet clinic, dog walk, or outside patio. This can also be used in places like San Francisco where homeless urinating on the sidewalks is prevalent.

Resources

Here’s another article about the subject: Stop Urine Smell In Concrete

Here’s the application info for Kennel Concrete Sealer: Kennel Concrete Sealer TDS