Seen too many properties with this problem and itâÂÂs nasty. Every cat owner will swear their home doesnâÂÂt smell but I have never been in a home that I couldnâÂÂt tell had a cat. IâÂÂve been in hundreds where it was noticeable but the owners still believe itâÂÂs not a problem. Cat urine is far more concentrated then dog and human urine. A cats kidneys are so efficient at extracting absorbable water that the high concentration makes the urine extremely foul. With that high concentration, the real problematic component of cat urine is uric acid. This concentrated acid causes that nasty odor and makes stains hard to remove. Uric acid contains non-soluble salt crystals which bond like crazy glue to any surface. These crystals bond to wood, drywall, grout, ceramics, marble and even concrete. Even when the crystals are dry, the problem remains. Any moisture will reactivate the crystals releasing the smell all over again. Usually the smell gets worse since the crystals concentrate after drying. Humid summer days will reactivate the problem years after the cats are gone. The only way to resolve the problem totally is to get rid of the carpet and pad. If wood subflooring needs replacing due to the urine damaging the integrity of the plywood, replace those areas. The rest of the subflooring needs to be thoroughly cleaned, dried and sealed with Binz. YouâÂÂre not cleaning the subfloor to get rid of the cat urine but to make sure you have a clean, dry surface for the Binz to adhere to. The Binz shellac primer will seal down to a .005 microns which is critical. Kilz only seals down to .015 microns so I recommend Binz to fix it the first time. Any walls or trim that are suspect to the urine also needs to be sealed with Binz and repainted. Even concrete needs to be cleaned and sealed but I recommend using and epoxy on the concrete if itâÂÂs going to be left exposed. The biggest lesson I learned is if a cat is urinating frequently in a few areas of the home, itâÂÂs likely a problem throughout. I purchase properties for investments and if IâÂÂm looking at a property with cat issues, I figure replacing the carpet and pad in all rooms, cleaning and sealing all the floors, sealing half way up the walls, repainting entirely, sealing (sometimes replacing grout and/or ceramics) and even having the duct systems cleaned as this odor permeates all areas and cats will even urinate into the floor vents. The last property I purchased like this had the price reduced $35,000.00. I cost me $40,000.00 when I was done so I should have reduced the price $55,000.00 as my intent is to be profitable and this is a horrible problem.

Unfortunately, that urine is probably in the concrete itself. Anything that you do to counteract it needs to penetrate the concrete as well. If you look at the ingredients of commercial pet odor control products you will find that alcohol is the main ingredient. The 91 percent rubbing alcohol that is available in stores seems to do a good job at negating the smell. Obviously in a basement you would have to be concerned about the fumes and pinpointing where you needed the alcohol or I imagine it could get prohibitive in cost. We did use this on carpet and had success. You are quite correct about sealing everything if you put more concrete over the top - it is porous and it's amazing what will ooze through feet of concrete much less inches. If those baseboards are wood then you will definitely want to Kilz them or replace. Kilz isn't as much a sealer as a stain killer. It might not do the job if the boards were saturated. Toxcrusdr is correct - you have to have a smooth, flat surface for a good result with linoleum. Fair warning - linoleum over concrete is HARD on the feet and legs. Best of luck, Ging

We had a male cat 10 years ago that sprayed in our house. When he went to heaven we tore up the carpet and used Kilz on the subfloor. It worked fine and no odor remained. My sister bought a house where the previous owner's cat had peed. Then her one cat started doing it. Three houses later and 5 years later, her one cat never stopped. I love my kitty dearly and he has never had a problem. But, I will hesitate to move into a house that had cats (especially multiple cats) for this reason.

I've had luck with Natures-Miracle for Cats but you can also use some of the enzyme products made for removing odor from kennels. You're going to need to saturate the area so don't just lightly spray it around the porch. I would buy the large containers then use a garden sprayer to apply it. You may have to do this several times......letting it dry in between each treatment. Also, don't forget to treat the walls at least 12 inches up from the floor. Here's info on why you NEED to use an enzyme cleaner.