S.B. asks from Fort Riley, KS on March 30, 2010
Carpet Smells
My toilet overflowed into the hallway. Now my house stinks so bad. I need ideas of how to get rid of the smell without having to rip the carpet up.
Thanks a bunch!
So What Happened?™
Thank you all for the suggestions. So far, I have put down baking soda. I let it sit overnight and haven't vacuumed it up yet. I don't smell anything offensive anymore. I am hoping this solved it. I did scrub the carpet pretty well before I posted my question. I am thankful for all the responses.
Featured Answers
D.W. answers from Indianapolis on March 30, 2010
In the case of a toilet, I'd recommend calling a professional carpet cleaning service so they can use the appropriate products on it to clean and pull all the liquid out of the carpet/pad.
Good luck.
1 mom found this helpful
More Answers
T.C. answers from Des Moines on March 30, 2010
Fabreeze makes a carpet spray that works wonders. You may have to repeat the process twice, but the odors will be eliminated. We had some spring seepage in our basement and this product took the damp smell right out.
3 moms found this helpful
D.W. answers from Indianapolis on March 30, 2010
In the case of a toilet, I'd recommend calling a professional carpet cleaning service so they can use the appropriate products on it to clean and pull all the liquid out of the carpet/pad.
Good luck.
1 mom found this helpful
J.K. answers from Phoenix on March 30, 2010
I second the baking powder comment... good luck!
1 mom found this helpful
J.S. answers from Philadelphia on March 30, 2010
about once a year, i rent a RUG DOCTOR from my local grocery store. It is a heavy duty carpet cleaning machine. You can still treat your rug with baking soda and oxy clean, but this machine will do the washing and scrubbing for you. Check out your local grocery stores and see if they carry them. It was less than 30 dollars to rent for 24 hours.
1 mom found this helpful
K.S. answers from Minneapolis on March 30, 2010
SOL-U-MEL is a miracle cleaner. It can be mixed with water and sprayed on as an air freshener and odor remover. I spray it on our carpet to get out dog accidents. Its also a stain remover if used in its concentrated form.
1 mom found this helpful
P.H. answers from Portland on March 30, 2010
We got rid of really bad dog pee smell by using baking powder. Cover the wet area until it is completely white from the baking soda. Let sit as long as possible (8 hours recommended) then vacuum. We had to repeat the process but it worked. We also kept the window in that room open as much as possible for a couple of days.
1 mom found this helpful
S.H. answers from Honolulu on March 30, 2010
in addition to the other good suggestions, you want to make sure the flooring underneath the carpet/sub-flooring (especially if the sub-flooring is wood), has no water damage... or that it too can dry out... otherwise, perhaps it will just stink as well and not dry and perhaps mildew can grow.
Do you have a portable space heater or something? Maybe using that to dry out the carpet/sub-flooring too...
good luck,
Susan
1 mom found this helpful
R.N. answers from Kansas City on March 31, 2010
Other than the cleaners others have suggested, I would set up a dehumidifier for a few days to suck up all the moisture. However, I tend to think that carpet is easily ruined and you may very well have to replace it. :-(
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