How to Get Urine out of Mattress: a Step-by-Step Guide

There comes a time when every parent wonders how to get urine out of mattress. 

So, you let your child have just a little bit too much watermelon, or perhaps he drank too much of his favorite tea just before sleep - if you're a parent or have been growing up with younger siblings, you probably already know where this is going. 

Yep, it’s 3 AM and you hear a faint voice saying “Mommy, I’ve wet the bed…” We’d probably all agree that it’s not the most pleasant surprise.

You throw the child’s pajamas into the washing machine, change the child into fresh ones, strip the bed, and throw it all into the washing machine, too. But what do you do with the mattress? It’s not very washing machine-friendly, is it? So... Do you have to buy a new mattress now?

Well, sadly, it isn’t machine-washable. Therefore, you’ll have to come up with a different way of getting urine out of mattress. I admit, it doesn’t seem like such an easy task at first, but I’m here to help you with that. Follow this guide and you’ll find out how to get urine out of mattress easily. 

What is Urine Made out of?

Before you start the battle of learning how to get pee out of a mattress, you must first find out what you’re fighting against. While we might think we know what pee is, do we really? Well, it’s a liquid that comes out of your urethra, but what is it made out of?

Human urine is 95% water and 5% urea^[1], a waste product made in the liver. It’s usually rather clear with a hint of yellow and the smell isn’t usually too strong, unless it has dried out. However, if you’ve ever forgotten to consume the needed amount of liquids, you might have noticed that it tends to become darker, sometimes even with a hint of orange. 

While, ideally, the urine is clear and has a somewhat weak smell, there are factors that might influence the smell or the colour of it. Surely, there are some serious factors such as illnesses that might change the colour or the smell of your urine, in which case you should immediately see a doctor, but there some minor influences to it. 

Some of them being certain drugs. If you’ve taken antidepressants, some type of antibiotics, or diabetes medication you might have noticed it already, but drugs may make your urine smell fishy, or some notice, that it makes their urine smell like their medication. 

Another factor influencing the smell of the pee could be the food that you eat. If you binged out on some garlic bread you might notice that your urine smells stronger than usual. The same goes for fish, onions, asparagus^[2] and quite surprisingly, brussel sprouts. So, monitor your food first if you notice foul-smelling urine. 

Another factor that we’ve mentioned before when talking about the colour that also influences the smell is dehydration.

We can’t just not mention it before getting to the part of how to get urine out of mattress. When you’re dehydrated the ratio of water to urea changes, making the percent of urea higher in your urine, resulting in a foul smell. So, don’t forget to drink your water!

Now that we’ve figured out the main facts about the urine, it’s time for action. Let’s figure out how to clean urine from a mattress, 

How to Get Urine out of Mattress?

So, this is the part that you’ve come here for. The accident happened and you have to deal with it. Also, you have to do it quick. So, let’s get to action. Below you’ll find the necessary steps to take when you need to to learn how to get urine out of mattress. 

Get up

The first step of learning how to get pee out of a mattress might seem pretty self-explanatory, but the first thing you have to do is get up and start acting. No matter, how sweet the sleep is, you have to act now. So, curse if you need to, but get out of bed and get ready for cleaning. 

The longer the urine stays in the mattress, the harder it will to clean it and get rid of the smell. Also, the chances of it leaving a stain will be much higher if it’s not cleaned as soon as possible. So, don’t waste your time. 

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Wash Everything Machine-Washable 

The next step in this “How to Get Urine out of Mattress” guide is to wash everything that’s machine-washable. Strip the child off their pajamas, take off all the bedding and sheets and throw them into the washing machine. If it’s not machine-washable, soak it in water and detergent and make sure to deal with it later. 

While the article emphasizes the importance of getting urine out of mattress, you shouldn’t forget about other objects affected. It is equally as important to act fast when taking care of clothes or sheets, as urine is also more likely to leave stains when not taken care of immediately. 

While they might be more easily replaceable, you still should try to save as much as you can. 

Towel Dry the Mattress

The next step you should take following the guide of how to get urine out of mattress is towel dry the mattress. It might be quite obvious but the towel is used to soak up the moisture. However, don’t make the critical mistake of wiping the spot with the towel. 

It’s not going to help and it might make it even worse, making the urine go deeper to the mattress and making the chances of urine leaving a permanent stain even higher. What you have to do is carefully blot the spot with a towel without applying too much pressure. It won’t take too long, so after you’ve done it for a few minutes, move on the next step. 

Prepare the Solution

The next step in how to clean urine from a mattress is making the solution. It’s time to prepare a solution for deep-cleaning the mattress. So, let’s see the ingredients needed:

• Spray bottle 
• White vinegar
• Warm water
• Essential oil (optional)

What you have to do now if you want to know how to get urine out of mattress is mix white vinegar and warm water in the ratio of 1:1, so you have equal parts of them in the spray bottle.

If you have some essential oil around, it would be great if you could put some of it in the spray bottle. That would make the mattress smell good and help you get rid of the unpleasant smell. 

Okay, what if it’s an emergency, and you don’t have white vinegar around? You might start thinking that you’re doomed, but don’t worry there’s an alternative method which doesn’t require white vinegar. 

Vinegar can be switched for detergent powder. However, you won’t need as much of it as you did with vinegar. A few teaspoons should be enough for a regularly-sized spray bottle. 

So, when you have put in all the ingredients, make sure to give it a few shakes to mix it well and prepare to use it. 

Spray the Mattress

What you have to do now if you want to figure out how to get urine out of mattress is to take your prepared spray bottle and start spraying the affected area. In fact, you might want to spray a bit beyond of it, just to make sure, in case there’s some urine spread further underneath the surface. 

You should spray liberally, the surface has to appear wet, you might have to make some more of the mixture if your spray bottle is smaller. Then you should let it sit for a few minutes. 

Dry the Area and Repeat 

After you’d let it sit for a few minutes you should once again grab a clean and dry towel and blot the area with it. It’s important to try to get as much moisture out as possible. 

After you’ve done this it would be the best if you repeated the spraying and drying process again. It might take more than two times of cleaning if the stain is especially large or smelly. So, it’s better to spend some time cleaning than regretting it afterwards. 

Apply Baking Soda

How many usages of baking soda could you think of? When I think about coming up with baking soda usages, I realize that naming them could even be a party game, this products seems to have a never-ending list of ways to use it. Getting urine out of mattress is one of them, especially getting the smell out. 

Now you must be thinking, what does it have to do with the question of “how to get urine smell out of mattress?”One of the baking soda’s usages is getting smells out of things. It’s not at all different when it comes to  how to get urine smell out of mattress. So, you should take some baking soda and sift it everywhere urine was. 

Once again, you might want to go a little beyond the area that was soaked by urine, just to be sure. As the saying goes, better safe than sorry. It’s better to waste a little baking soda than to go through the whole process only to later realize that you didn’t get all the source of the smell out. 

Leave it be 

What you have to do now if you want to complete your journey of how to get urine out of mattress is… do nothing! You may rest after your tough battle against the urine-soaked mattress.

You have to leave the soda on the mattress for the next 10 hours. The longer the better. So, you or your child might have to sleep in the guest room. 

Vacuum the Baking Soda

After you’d let it sit for the needed time, you’ll be left with an otherwise clean mattress except for baking soda residue. You’ll need to get rid of it, as I bet no one likes sleeping on baking soda. So, you’ll have to take out your vacuum cleaner and start vacuuming. 

If you did all the steps correctly, the mattress will most likely be clean and have no smell, apart from the essential oil’s, if you used it. Now, let’s get to another part, what if the stain isn’t fresh?

What if the Stain is Old?

As we’ve established before, it’s best to act fast when you notice that someone has wet the bed if you want to successfully complete your mission of how to get urine out of mattress.

So, what if you notice a stain from the night before? Do you have to throw out the mattress or accept your fate as someone who will always have their mattress stained with pee?

Well, no. There are still things that could be done. While it might not be as effective as treating a fresh stain, it is still possible to do it, so let’s see how to get pee out of a mattress if it isn’t fresh. 

Prepare the Mattress

Just like you did in the fresh stain version, if you want to know how to get urine out of mattress you’ll have to strip the bed and make sure to wash all affected objects such as clothes or sheets. 

Make the Mixture

This time it will be a little different from the one you used before. Make a mixture of 8 ounces of hydrogen peroxide, 3 tablespoons of baking soda, and you’ll also have to squirt a bit of dish soap in. However, don’t shake it up this time!

Spray the Solution and Leave it to Dry

Spray the solution on the affected area. Once again, spray liberally, you likely won’t use too much. However, unlike the last time, you should let it dry on its own instead of blotting it dry like you would have done if the stain was fresh. 

Vacuum the Baking Soda

After it dries, you will notice the remnants of baking soda on the mattress. You should vacuum it up so that there’s no more residue left. 

You might have to repeat the process a few times to fully get rid of it. So, have patience and you’ll do it!

What about Animal Urine?

You might be thinking, as I didn’t mention animal urine anywhere in the text, is it the same way if you want to know how to get urine out of mattress for pets? Well, yes and no. If it’s a dog - you’re safe just use the same methods you used with human urine. 

However, if it’s a cat’s pee you might have to take your cleaning a bit further with an enzymatic cleaner. If you’ve ever owned a cat, you must know that cats’ urine smells worse than humans’. That’s because of the amino acid called felinine. 

So, you should follow the instruction on the cleaner. Also, you must now be thinking about how to get urine smell out of mattress when it comes to cats - actually, some additional baking soda would do no harm. 

Conclusions 

If an unlucky accident has happened and you’ve ended up with a pee-soaked mattress, you must be wondering how to get urine out of mattress. Well, it’s not that hard to do.

Also, you won’t likely need to buy anything as it can be done with ingredients that you have at home: white vinegar (alternatively laundry detergent powder) and baking soda.

So, if you complete all the steps mentioned in this article, you’ll most likely end up with a clean mattress once again. However, keep in mind that the process is a little different if the pee stain isn’t fresh. 

Definitely try out this method! If all else fails, or when cleaning it you realize that you actually need a new mattress and decide that instead of cleaning it you should throw it out, then you must be looking for a new mattress. I’d advise you to check out Saatva or Puffy and find a new comfortable mattress.

Scientific References

1. Souhaila Bouatra, Farid Aziat, Rupasri Manda et al. "The Human Urine Metabolome"

2. Maria Wagenstaller, Andrea Buettner "Quantitative Determination of Common Urinary Odorants and Their Glucuronide Conjugates in Human Urine"