How To Clean Fresh Urine Out of a Mattress in 7 Easy Steps

It’s never an enjoyable task, but it’s something we all have to do at one point or another in our lives: clean urine out of a mattress. It’s not a fun experience, but it’s important to know how to handle this type of situation (especially if you’re the parent of a small child who’s going through a bed-wetting stage).

And since doing it right is so important, we’ve compiled this article about some methods that you can use to help remove urine stains and smells out of a mattress. Luckily, it’s a relatively straightforward process, provided you act quickly (since stains and smells can set in very quickly). We’ve also included some tips for getting already-dried urine stains and smells out of a mattress, because sometimes you just can’t get to the stain in time.

This step should be pretty obvious, since your bedding is presumably soiled with fresh urine as well. In any case, remove the bedding from your mattress and put it aside for now (or throw it into a washing machine if you can do so quickly, but don’t waste too much time on the washable bedding since your priority is to wash the mattress and keep it from staining and delaying too long can cost you).

Baking soda will help to remove any lingering moisture that you couldn’t get with the towel or sponge, and will also help with the odor. Let the baking soda sit for a time, and then vacuum it up off the mattress.

While there are mattress cleaning mixtures available for sale at certain stores, if you’re dealing with a fresh pee stain you’re not going to have time to drive across town for a magic cleaning spray. As a result, we suggest a more traditional method: combine some vinegar and warm water.
Vinegar is good for odor and stain removal, and will be very effective in helping to eliminate the pee stain. The easiest way to apply the vinegar is with a spray bottle, since it allows you to apply the mix without completely saturating the mattress. Make sure to spray the cleaner on all affected portions of the mattress, and then let it sit for several minutes.

Once the cleaner has had time to do its work on the stain, dab up any remaining liquid just as you did earlier in step two.

Just as you did in Step 3, sprinkle baking soda onto your mattress. This time, however, you’ll need to let it sit for several hours instead of several minutes. Generally, it’s a good idea to let your mattress sit like this for anywhere from ten to eighteen hours; this allows time for your mattress to dry out completely. (It’s important to make sure your mattress is entirely dry before using it again, since lingering moisture of any kind can lead to mold and mildew.)

By now, your mattress should be dry and ready to use. Remove the second round of baking soda with a vacuum cleaner and check the affected areas of the mattress. If the stain and the smell are removed to your satisfaction, you’re all set to go! You can now return your mattress to your bed, put your clean sheets and covers back on, and return to your normal routine.

As mentioned above, it’s easiest to clean pee out of a mattress when the incident is fresh, since there hasn’t been enough time for the urine to soak in deeply and damage the mattress irreparably. But sometimes you can’t always clean the mattress right away, or your child may not let you know that they’ve had an accident in bed until it’s too late, leaving you to wonder if there’s any chance of getting those smelly stains out at all.

Luckily, you’re not doomed! Getting older urine stains out of mattresses can be a bit more difficult, but it’s not totally impossible. Here’s a method we recommend:

We suggest gently dampening the stained area with a wet washcloth, but make sure not to rub or scrub the stain, since this can do more harm than good. Also don’t completely soak the mattress, because that will cause the stain to sink in deeper. All you want to do is moisten the stain and dilute it.

Borax is quite powerful and will dilute both the stain and the odor from the urine, so we suggest sprinkling Borax onto the stain and rubbing it in. Be generous in your application of Borax when you sprinkle it on the mattress and make sure it covers all of the stained area.

As a precaution however, make sure to not let any Borax powder linger on your skin; it can cause skin irritation much like baking soda and other cleaning agents do; if you’re concerned about this, you may want to wear rubber gloves when rubbing the Borax into the stain.

Your mattress will still be slightly damp from the moisture from Step 1 and the Borax from Step 2, so it’s important to let your mattress air out until it’s entirely dry. We suggest setting it outside to dry in the fresh air, or placing it in a well-ventilated room where it can dry out effectively. If necessary, you can set up a fan to increase air circulation in the room.

You may use a towel to brush off any lingering Borax powder, but it’s often easier and less messy to use a vacuum cleaner. Whatever method you choose, be sure to remove as much Borax residue as you can from your mattress.

Now that the Borax has been vacuumed off, you should be able to assess the state of the urine stain; it should, thanks to the treatment, be gone entirely or at east significantly diminished. If you’re satisfied, you may now return your mattress to your bed frame.

As you can see, removing pee stains and the odor that accompanies them is relatively easy, whether the stain is fresh or old. Just remember not to panic and keep calm; pee stains in mattresses are something that everyone has to deal with eventually, and if you just keep in mind the tips we’ve given to you here, you should be more than ready to handle it.