How to get rid of the smell of mouse pee

Mice urine has a pungent smell. When this smell gets into carpeting, furniture and wood floors it can leave a permanent, intense odor that will linger in the whole room. Fortunately, you can get rid of the smell without resorting to expensive treatments and toxic chemicals you may not want to use to clean your house or your pet mouse's cage.

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Step 1

Rent a carpet steamer if you don't already have one; you can rent these from building supply stores for about $30 a day. Add carpet shampoo and follow the instructions for use on the steamer, remembering to empty the water container as it fills up. Go over the carpet a few times if the smell is really strong.

Step 2

Mix a solution of equal parts white vinegar and water. Add a few drops of essential oil such as eucalyptus or lemon. Shake the bottle and spray on the area with the bad smell. Let it sit for a while, but don't let it dry out yet.

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Step 3

Cover the affected area with baking soda. Rub it into the damp carpet or rug over the vinegar solution. Alternatively, you can add one or two tablespoons of the baking soda directly to the water and vinegar mixture in the spray bottle. If you're using this on a wood floor, mix the baking soda in the spray bottle with the water and vinegar instead of rubbing it into the floor. Spray the solution on the floor, and leave it there for a couple of hours before wiping it up. Vacuum the rug or carpet once dry. Use the baking soda and vinegar solution to clean your mouse cage once a week. Let it dry and add clean bedding material.

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Step 4

Rub into the carpet or rug a mixture of any dish soap (just over a teaspoon) and 7 fluid oz. of 3% hydrogen peroxide, if the smell is still there after the baking soda and vinegar treatment. You can apply this onto the baking soda while the carpet is still damp. Applying it onto the baking soda will make it easier to remove afterward, since the dry baking soda will act as an absorbent.

Step 5

Steam clean the area after you have let it soak in the baking soda and vinegar mixture for a while. Do this step if the odor problem was especially bad. Otherwise, just wait until the area dries and then vacuum well.

Step 6

Wait a couple of days and see if the smell of urine has gone. If it's still there, you may need to repeat the process.

If you aren’t sure you smell mouse urine, testing with a blacklight is one way to spot their urine; however, UV lights also illuminate other substances, so separating mouse urine from detergents or lubricants may be difficult.

The smell of mouse pee may vary, and although it is not as intense as cat urine, it has a distinct foul odor. If you’re dealing with a strong mouse odor in your home, there is likely an infestation of mice behind it as individual mice only leave droplets of urine. Find mice urine near nesting sites and along any paths that mice travel at night.

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Table Of Contents

1. Getting Rid of Mice Urine Odor
   • Removing the Mice Urine Source
   • Washing Fabrics to Remove Lingering Odors
   • How to Get Rid of Mouse Urine Smell with White Vinegar
   • Using Baking Soda as a Way to Get Rid of Mouse Smell Inside
   • Absorbing Foul Odors Around the Home
   • Creating an Air Freshening Sachet
   • Homemade Mouse Odor Eliminator
   • Use Lemons to Tackle Urine Odors
   • Remove Urine Smells from Wood with an Enzyme Cleaner
   • Absorb Odors with Baking Soda
   • Quickly Get Mouse Urine Smells Out of Your Home
   • Steam Cleaning
   • Disinfecting with a Bleach Solution
   • Using a Disinfectant to Clean Rat Urine
   • Checking Your Home’s Insulation
2. Prevent Mouse Activity
   • Repelling and Trapping Mice

Getting Rid of Mice Urine Odor

A single mouse leaves hundreds of drops of urine around your home in a day. Because mice travel along the same routes, their urine builds up in the same spots over time.

If you have carpet or rugs in areas where mice travel, removing mouse urine smell may require penetrating cleaning methods to remove the urine from fibers that absorb the odor and cleaning urine stains from non-porous surfaces.

Removing the Mice Urine Source

Mice and larger rodents enjoy nesting in enclosed spaces where they remain undisturbed. Ideal locations in your home include drawers, the back of kitchen cabinets, and the rear of closets.

If you find rodent droppings, which are easier to spot, it’s a safe bet the same area has rodent urine. Although cleaning rodent waste is best left to professionals, you can clean the room with the right equipment.

Tackling mouse smells in your home first involves finding, removing, or cleaning anything that mice urinate on. Wear protective clothing covering all exposed skin, including gloves, a face mask or respirator, and protection for your eyes.

Use paper towels to collect rat droppings and dispose of all waste in the trash. Wash all clothing separately from the rest of your laundry and thoroughly wash your hands after cleaning.

Washing Fabrics to Remove Lingering Odors

After cleaning your home to get rid of rat urine smells, you might feel like the smell is hanging around your house. Even if rodents didn’t urinate there, it doesn’t stop soft fabrics like curtains, pillows, bedding, and even clothes from smelling like pee because of the smell in the air.

To disinfect, wash these fabrics with color-safe bleach and hot water. If you can’t confirm certain items were peed on, handle them using protective gloves and wash your hands afterward.

How to Get Rid of Mouse Urine Smell with White Vinegar

As you clean out the source of the foul smell in your home, it’s essential to freshen up any surfaces that might hold onto foul odors. Vinegar is a common household ingredient that effectively cleans and eliminates odors.

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Vinegar Spray for Mouse Urine Odors

• ¼ cup distilled white vinegar
• ¾ cup water
• Spray bottle

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Combine water and vinegar in an eight-ounce spray bottle to clean and freshen mouse activity areas. Spray-on fabric and upholstered surfaces that handle water-based cleaners.

Note: Include your favorite essential oil to add a fresh scent around your home.

Using Baking Soda as a Way to Get Rid of Mouse Smell Inside

When cleaning mouse urine stains from carpet or fabric, you must break down the urine and pull it from the material to get rid of the smell. Baking soda is an everyday item that doubles as a cleaner and deodorizing agent.

Pour baking soda onto the area, or mix it with water or vinegar to create a paste. Leave the baking soda to sit overnight before vacuuming or wiping away. Because baking soda may lighten colors, avoid using it on colored fabrics without testing in a small area first.

Absorbing Foul Odors Around the Home

If you’re working on getting rid of mice urine odor, it might benefit you to leave out coffee grounds to help absorb and eliminate the odor in the air. The smell of fresh coffee grounds is robust, and when used as a deodorizer, coffee grounds effectively eliminate foul odors.

Leave a bowl of coffee grounds in places around your home that still smell like rat urine to resolve residual odors. If the smells last more than three days, replace your bowl with fresh grounds.

Creating an Air Freshening Sachet

If it is a struggle to remove the smell of rodent urine from your home, using an air filter to trap and eliminate odors could help. Many air fresheners only mask odors, but an air sachet designed to draw in and trap odor particles eliminates smells instead of covering them.

Activated charcoal or charcoal treated with oxygen to open microscopic spaces inside the charcoal is the perfect tool for absorbing urine odors.

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DIY Air Freshening Sachet

• Activated charcoal
• Cotton fabric
• Glue
• String (optional)

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Cut a circle out of your fabric at least eight inches in diameter. Pour a tablespoon or two of activated charcoal in the middle of the fabric circle and gather the edges together to glue or tie shut. Leave this sachet around your home in areas that need freshening.

Note: This method is excellent for quickly neutralizing the smell of a dead mouse.

Homemade Mouse Odor Eliminator

If you discover a trail of mouse urine on your carpet and want to eliminate the smell, make a homemade cleaner with hydrogen peroxide and baking soda. These two ingredients are excellent cleaners that break down and remove odors from fabrics.

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Homemade Urine Odor Spray

• 2 cups hydrogen peroxide
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoon liquid dish soap

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Combine ingredients into a 16-ounce spray bottle or a bowl, and gently swish to combine. Which method you use depends on what material you’re cleaning. A bottle is ideal for spraying furniture, but using a sponge with a bowl of the mix is best when getting rid of mice urine odor on the carpet.

Use Lemons to Tackle Urine Odors

Lemons are known for their strong tart flavor and distinct smell, which is perfect for eliminating unpleasant odors. To absorb mouse urine odors, soak a sponge in lemon juice until saturated. Squeeze out excess liquid and leave the sponge in target areas around your home to absorb bad smells.

To fill your house with a fresh scent, peel a lemon and simmer the peel in a pot of hot water. If fruit flies aren’t a concern, leave a few slices of lemon out to absorb strong odors from mouse urine.

Remove Urine Smells from Wood with an Enzyme Cleaner

If you spot signs of mouse activity or droppings on wooden dressers or tables, use an enzyme cleaner to get rid of the urine smell after disinfecting the area. Enzyme cleaners kill odor-causing bacteria and use natural ingredients like citrus to do the job.

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Make-Your-Own Citrus Enzyme Cleaner

• 4 cups warm water
• 2 cups lemon peels
• ½ cup brown sugar
• Container
• Spray bottle

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To create a cleaner for mouse urine, add your ingredients to a container and shake until the sugar completely dissolves. Leave the lid off this container to allow natural gasses to escape.

Allow the mix to sit for 2 weeks or more, then strain the liquid into a spray bottle. Apply this mixture to mouse urine stains and rub the surface with a cloth to remove the smell.

Absorb Odors with Baking Soda

To create a passive odor fighter, use baking soda and essential oils to absorb foul odors. Baking soda neutralizes unpleasant odors; baking soda with a freshening agent like essential oil helps get rid of bad smells.

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Homemade Mouse Pee Odor Absorber

• Plastic container
• Plastic wrap
• Essential oil
• Baking soda

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Fill a container with baking soda and add a dozen drops of your favorite essential oil. Cover the container with a lid before shaking to mix the baking soda and oil. Cover with plastic wrap and use a fork to poke holes in the top.

Leave the absorber around your home in spaces that smell heavily of urine from rats. Replace the container as it loses its effectiveness.

Quickly Get Mouse Urine Smells Out of Your Home

Mouse urine lingers even after you clean the cause of the smell. Over time, the odor fades; however, proper air circulation is the best way to get rid of mouse smell quickly. After cleaning, open windows and turn on fans to create airflow. The stagnant air blows outside as fresh air fills your home.

Steam Cleaning

If you find urine of any kind, whether cat pee or urine from rodents, on upholstered furniture fabric, getting rid of the stain may not pose a problem; however, dealing with a lingering smell is an issue. Because furniture cushions often have a core wrapped in foam, any spill seeps through the outer casing and into the middle of the cushion.

Steam cleaning kills bacteria and removes dirt with hot vapor, not chemicals, making it the most eco-friendly way to get rid of mouse smell on your furniture. Follow the care instructions for your furniture to remove odor and stains safely.

Disinfecting with a Bleach Solution

The CDC recommends using bleach to clean and disinfect areas soiled by rodent urine or droppings when getting rid of mice urine odor. The safest bleach solution is one heavily diluted with water.

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Bleach Solution Cleaner

• 1 ¼ cups water
• 2 tablespoons chlorine bleach

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Mix the solution and add it to a spray bottle or use a sponge to apply to surfaces to disinfect. Leave the bleach mixture on the urine spot for five minutes before wiping with paper towels. If you find dead rodents, follow the same steps of spraying and disinfecting before removing the rodent and disposing of the body.

Because chlorine bleach causes colors to run, only use this option on hard surfaces. Use commercial disinfectants for upholstery or absorbent surfaces.

Using a Disinfectant to Clean Rat Urine

When cleaning rodent droppings and urine, the Centers for Disease Control recommend soaking the area with a disinfectant. Use a commercial disinfectant to treat the area and follow the label instructions for guidelines on diluting the disinfectant.

After leaving the disinfectant on the soiled area for the allotted time specified on the label, clean the area with paper towels and dispose of the waste in the trash. Thoroughly disinfect contaminated household items or wash them separately from the rest of your laundry.(..)

Checking Your Home’s Insulation

Because mice enjoy resting in warm areas where they aren’t disturbed, the insulation in your walls makes perfect nesting material. If you’re following signs of mouse activity and find holes behind cabinets that lead to spaces behind walls, you could have a rodent infestation in your walls.

We recommend a professional contractor to inspect behind your walls and get rid of mice in ceiling without access. A pest professional decides whether it’s possible to save insulation. An alternative to replacing insulation is a fogging treatment to disinfect it.

Prevent Mouse Activity

If you’ve dealt with a mouse infestation in the past, it’s crucial to avoid it again. Mice like living and nesting in warm environments, so as temperatures drop, many mice seek shelter indoors.

To keep mice out, investigate foods and remedies that kill mice instantly and properly store all possible food sources, including grains, pet food, and other dry goods like bread and cereals. Keep them in glass or metal containers to prevent mice from smelling them; mice cannot chew through them.

Sealing the entry points to your home is another way to keep mice out. Use caulk to fill holes in your foundation or doorways. Use steel wool as an easy DIY mice repellent in vent openings to prevent mice from entering. It may also be wise to use mothballs in chipmunk holes around attic entry points.

Repelling and Trapping Mice

If you currently have mice, and the number seems manageable, using traps is one option for controlling their numbers. When setting up mouse traps, wear gloves to avoid leaving your scent on the trap, which causes mice to avoid it. Rather than using cheese, try a smear of peanut butter to entice any mice.

Mice dislike the smell of many essential oils, and using them around your house is an excellent way to deter mice activity. Get mice out of car vents the same way. Apple cider vinegar is an alternative to oils.

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Anti-Mouse Essential Oils

• Peppermint
• Cayenne
• Clove

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The easiest method to use scents that deter mice is to soak cotton balls in essential oil and leave them around the house. Places where mice usually gather include the back of cabinets and behind large appliances.

Unlike most smells and stains, dish soap isn’t enough to eliminate the odor that mouse urine leaves in your home. To completely remove all traces of mice and the bacteria they leave behind, use strong natural cleaners to disinfect and eliminate rodent odors.

We hope our ideas on how to get rid of mouse urine smell helped and that you’ll share our guide on Facebook and Pinterest with your friends who need help getting rid of mice urine odor in their houses.

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