How to de-Cat an appartment? Simple solutions wanted.

August 30, 2019, 11:04 AM

0-0

My sister's appartment desperately need new tenants. She had a stroke almost two years ago and the place has become a money pit for us.

She used to keep two cats, long gone, and the place has a stuffy feeling to it. Wife and I realised we were allergic tocats just from visiting the place. It's been cleaned and ventilated but I still have the choking feeling when I enter the appartment.

We got no fancy products this far south of the Rio Grande.

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August 30, 2019, 11:19 AM

RHINOWSO

Does it have carpet?

If so, rip it all out and re-carpet or tile the place. If they pissed all over the place, I recommend letting it air out for awhile after tearing out the old stuff and putting baking soda on the smelly areas. My first house had little dog and cat that pissed everywhere and we did this, then left the windows open for several days as we repainted the whole house.

Re-painting can also help get rid of old smells.

August 30, 2019, 11:20 AM

Turning_gal

Baking soda, hydrogen peroxide, white vinegar and soap.

If humidity is present due to rain the uric acid smell may return in which case only an enzyme cleaner will do the trick. You can google different products for that.

August 30, 2019, 11:34 AM

erj_pilot

You can try this:

If it has carpeting, have you had it steam cleaned or shampooed? If the carpet is 10+ years old, you might consider replacing it.

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August 30, 2019, 11:57 AM

Krazeehorse

If you pull the carpet I would probably paint a coat of Kilz on the subfloor before recovering, especially if you are putting down new carpet. Maybe not so important if you are laying sheet vinyl.

August 30, 2019, 12:04 PM

0-0

Place doesn't have carpet. Doesn't have the obvious cat pee smell either.
It smells stuffy. Maybe because i discovered i'm allergic right there, i wasn't aware before. But to me it feels like i'm breathing through a cloth.
Then l feel like trying to swallow a cotton ball that won't go away.

Place kind of smells like a closed tin roofed room in a hot humid day
I'll have to pay more attention to the furniture.

Definitely NOT the classic cat pee all over the place, crazy old lady's place smell.

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August 30, 2019, 12:11 PM

Russ59

Does it have central HVAC? Clean the filters?

I lived in southern Chile where homes has hardwood floors or concrete. Lots of waxing and polishing.

August 30, 2019, 12:15 PM

Nismo

Maybe it's not a pet issue, maybe mold?. What is the humidity level inside the place? My Grandparent's place has swamp coolers and gives off the stuffy feeling.

August 30, 2019, 12:16 PM

RogueJSK

Any carpet, furniture, and drapes likely still has cat hair/dander and cat odor. A deep, professional cleaning (like a steam cleaning) may help, but likely won't be able to get 100% of it.

quote:
Originally posted by Russ59:
Does it have central HVAC? Clean the filters?

If it has central HVAC, there's likely cat hair/dander all through the ductwork. You can try to have someone come clean the ducts, but that's not simple.

Plus, like the fabric in the home, you're unlikely to be able to clean it all out, and anyone with cat allergies may continue to notice it.

August 30, 2019, 01:09 PM

PASig

Every wall, ceiling and floor needs to be thoroughly cleaned. It sounds like it’s dander which is bothering you and it does the same to me. You get like a tightness in your chest, get wheezy like an asthma-like reaction?

Dander is like a fine almost invisible substance.

August 30, 2019, 01:36 PM

DJ_Boston

I bought an ozone generator on amazon. it worked wonders on the cigarette smell in the used car we bought for our son.

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August 30, 2019, 01:42 PM

MikeinNC

The cats dander is in all the ducts and fabric of any furniture...only way to get rid of it is to throw away the furniture and clean the ducting...and spray everything with hydrogen peroxide or a enzyme cleaner

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August 30, 2019, 04:48 PM

0-0

quote:
Originally posted by PASig:
Every wall, ceiling and floor needs to be thoroughly cleaned. It sounds like it’s dander which is bothering you and it does the same to me. You get like a tightness in your chest, get wheezy like an asthma-like reaction?

Dander is like a fine almost invisible substance.

THIS!

Now, how do i get rid of it, short of burning the place down?
Suddenly, vacuum cleaning seems counter productive.
I was surprised by the amount of anti-allergic products my sister was taking and later realized she probably couldn't stand her cats either. An ionizer was found there, at first i thought it was something to heat the place. Still don't know how it's supposed to work.

Thanks for the ideas, guys. Had never heard the word or concept of dander.

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August 30, 2019, 04:54 PM

Skins2881

I'd start with removing or having any furniture professionally cleaned. Scrub every hard surface. Run ozone generator. Paint.

August 30, 2019, 05:02 PM

ensigmatic

quote:
Originally posted by 0-0:
Now, how do i get rid of it, short of burning the place down?
Suddenly, vacuum cleaning seems counter productive.

Probably is, unless it's got a HEPA filter.

Search on "how to get rid of cat dander." There are many, many approaches.

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August 30, 2019, 06:03 PM

0-0

Absolutely! Dander is the key word here and a new one to add to my vocabulary.

0-0

August 30, 2019, 06:18 PM

Jeff Yarchin

quote:
Originally posted by erj_pilot:
You can try this:

If it has carpeting, have you had it steam cleaned or shampooed? If the carpet is 10+ years old, you might consider replacing it.

We sell a ton of this at the pet store. It works.

August 30, 2019, 06:23 PM

bigmule

quote:
Originally posted by erj_pilot:
You can try this:

If it has carpeting, have you had it steam cleaned or shampooed? If the carpet is 10+ years old, you might consider replacing it.

August 30, 2019, 06:55 PM

sjtill

The house we bought last year had cats big time and I am highly allergic, our grown daughter even more.
We ripped up all the old carpet and pad; cleaned with Clorox bleach (cat feces carries risk of toxoplasmosis) and soap.
Walls were painted.
There were no drapes; living room floor is laminate.
We have a Miele canister vacuum with HEPA filter, it will clean dander.
Walls need to be scrubbed, but priming (KILZ MAX is the best we’ve found) and painting will take care of any odor and dander in the walls.

Good luck, Nicky!

August 30, 2019, 08:02 PM

enidpd804

quote:
Originally posted by DJ_Boston:
I bought an ozone generator on amazon. it worked wonders on the cigarette smell in the used car we bought for our son.

This right here. I just tested three different models for an article. It works.