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If stains and odors are taking over the mattress in your child’s room, use this simple 3-step method to clean pee out of a mattress!

This is the very best way to clean pee out of a mattress. This easy process will remove those nasty odors and stains from wetting the bed will quickly become your best friend.

How to Clean Odors and Stains from a Mattress (or carpet!)
My son, showing you how easy the 3-step all-natural cleaning process is. No children were harmed in the making of this article.
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How to Clean Pee Odors and Stains From A Mattress

This may be an odd topic to discuss on a food blog, but it’s a real life issue that we deal with on a weekly basis when my son was younger. Years ago I talked about my son’s bedwetting issues and I had a lot of feedback from moms dealing with the same thing. I figured maybe you could use some cleaning tips like this as well.

His poor mattress was riddled with stains because he wouldn’t always tell me that the sheets were wet, and by the evening, they were dry. Despite using mattress protectors, the urine would soak through even that.

I would clean it as best I could but nothing worked. Febreze and other cleaners simply masked the urine odors, and some cleaning solutions that I’d found online would remove the odor but didn’t work well on the stains.

So I created my own method with a mattress cleaner based on items in my pantry, and it’s been working great! This method of removing odors from your mattress is really simple and doesn’t require any fancy scented oils or kitchen utensils. I also like that the products I use aren’t harmful and my son can help with the clean-up.

Follow these easy tips for how to clean your mattress with my easy, all-natural mattress cleaner.

Getting urine stains and smells out of a mattress

Here’s What You Need:

There are only a few ingredients and tools that you need to clean pee out of a mattress.

  • A roll of paper towels (or lots of rags that you don’t mind washing)
  • Baking Soda
  • Distilled White Vinegar
  • An empty spray bottle
  • Vacuum Cleaner
How to Clean Urine Stains from a Mattress

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Step-by-Step Instructions

Step One: Blot the pee as dry as possible with paper towels or rags. If it’s already dry, move on to step 2.

Cleaning Urine from a Mattress Step 1

Step Two: Saturate the stain with distilled white vinegar. I highly recommend using a spray bottle as pouring the vinegar directly on the stain could over-saturate the mattress. If you’re concerned about a heavy vinegar smell, you can dilute the vinegar with water, which a lot of methods call for, but that just didn’t seem to work as well. The straight vinegar is very strong and really helps to pull out that nasty urine odor.

Step Three: Let the vinegar sit for 5-10 minutes. If you have a ceiling fan, turn it on, or run a stand alone fan if you can. At the very least open the windows. The increased air flow helps to speed up the process.

Cleaning Urine from a Mattress Step 2

Step Four: Blot with paper towels or rags to soak up the vinegar. Press several layers of paper towels into the mattress for this step. You want to soak up as much of the vinegar as possible.

How to Clean Urine Stains from a Mattress Step 3

Step Five: Sprinkle baking soda all over and around the stain. You can get real fancy and use a sieve or a sifter for this step, but I don’t think it’s necessary. If there are a lot of clumps just break them up with your fingers. Let the baking soda sit for several hours. The longer the better. After a couple of hours, you’ll begin to see the baking soda caking as it soadks up the vinegar (and takes that nasty odor with it!).

Cleaning Urine from a Mattress Step 4

Step Six: Vacuum up the baking soda from the mattress. Make sure to go over the crevices several times. It makes me kinda happy making those lines in the powder with the vacuum cleaner.

Getting urine stains and smells out of a mattress Final

That’s it! If the stains and odors are really bad, you may have to repeat this process, but it really does work! And it doesn’t just get pee out of a mattress. Readers have used this method to remove blood stains, wine and more from their mattress. Be sure to read all of the tips readers have shared below.

Pro Tips

  • If you have some really difficult stains, use an old toothbrush to rub the vinegar into them vigorously.
  • I highly recommend using a spray bottle for the vinegar. However if you just don’t have one, saturate a rag with vinegar and lay it over the stain to pull the odor out.
  • Some methods online tell you to dilute the vinegar. You can do that, and it will help with the vinegar smell. But it also dilutes the effectiveness in my experience.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use other types of vinegar?

I recommend Distilled White Vinegar. I keep it on hand in the gallon bottles because it is amazing with so many different household cleaning tasks like this mattress cleaner, and it’s super cheap.

Other vinegars are for cooking and are more expensive, and really just won’t work as well. However I did have a reader mention that she used apple cider vinegar and it worked great. The vinegar is just a strong acid that breaks down the odor causing proteins.

Why don’t you just use a waterproof mattress cover?

We do – I actually have 3 of THIS ONE. It works really well, except for that time you are so tired that you forget to put it on, or it rips and you didn’t know, or your son makes his own bed and forgets to put it on, or it slips off the corner because he thrashes around too much at night, or he just doesn’t like the sound/feel of it so he takes it off without telling you, or he wets more than once in a night and you don’t have a back-up, or sometimes, they just fail.

It’s not for lack of trying, believe me. Sometimes these accidents just happen and are totally random and it’s always good to have a great mattress cleaner method ready to go.

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Reader Tips

Here are some tips from readers who have tried this method.

Set your mattress in the sun.

Jim says, “Vinegar and baking soda do an excellent job for cleaning a mattress. It has always worked for me. If there is too much odor, you may have to put the mattress out in the sun.” (editor’s note – this is great for freshening pillows, too!).

Works on pet stains and odors, too.

Hadley says, “This method works wonderfully on urine odor and stains from pets, too! Last weekend, my sister’s dog had an accident on the end of my bed, and there was a large, yellow urine stain. I was going to purchase some fancy expensive pet stain remover, but I found your website, and read about your method, instead. Ingenious!

I saturated the stain with distilled white vinegar, let it set for about ten minutes, blotted the vinegar with some paper towels, sprinkled a generous amount of baking soda on the stain. I let the baking soda sit for about three hours, and I literally just finished vacuuming the baking soda up, and the stain and smell is completely gone! Thank you so much for telling folks about this method! Your mattress cleaner saved me time and money!”

Bridget says, “I just had to tell you I wish I could give you the biggest hug! I have a tempurpedic mattress and my cat decided to pee on it! I almost had it out my door to throw away and I was so angry that I knew I would NEVER get that smell out! Yes it had ALL the appropriate waterproof covers too! Still soaked through! Well something told me google it before you throw it. I did and I saw this. Well I did it and oh my god! It worked!!! No smell at all!!!! Thank you!”

Add vinegar to really smelly laundry.

Cassie says, “Thank you! I am going to try this! Why didn’t I think of vinegar before? It’s the best to use on any odors, and I’ve even used to get odors out of clothes and bedding. I tried the baking soda [but] didn’t try vinegar! Genius – I will be doing this today. FYI, they do make vinegar for laundry [too].”

Worried about the strong smell of vinegar? Add scented oils.

Katie says, “I have found that adding a few drops of essential oil (lemon works well) to the vinegar in the spray bottle works wonders to mask the strong smell of the vinegar.”

Don’t have vinegar? Try…vodka?

Sheridan says, “I also have another remedy that is great for getting rid of smells… Vodka! I tried it once to get mildew smell out of a hat and have used it for smelly fabric issues ever since. Same principle, put it in a spray bottle, spray the fabric object down with it until it’s pretty moist to the touch, but for best results put it in a warm sunny spot to evaporate. You can’t really do that with a mattress but alcohol evaporates fairly quickly anyway, and using a fan helps. It doesn’t do much for stains, but works wonders on smells, including mildew!”

*Editor’s note: Basic rubbing alcohol would work the same way, similar to how hand sanitizer works.

Works on vomit, too.

Laura says, “I tried it today on vomit as my son got sick on my bed this morning. It worked great, and luckily there weren’t any stains. I also used a hot iron and damp cloth to get the stains up (to soak up the vinegar & stain), before the baking soda. It’s not great on the iron, but the stains come up so much easier. It’s the same trick used to get (pet) urine stains out of carpet.”

Recipe

All-Natural Mattress Cleaner

5
Use this simple DIY Mattress Cleaner to remove urine stains and odors from your mattress.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours 10 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 20 minutes

Equipment

  • Spray bottle
  • Paper towels and/or rags
  • Vaccuum cleaner
  • Fan optional

Ingredients
  

  • 1/2 cup Distilled white vinegar

Instructions
 

  • Blot the pee as dry as possible with paper towels or rags. If it’s already dry, move on to step 2.
  • Pour vinegar into the spray bottle and spray all over the stain to saturate. Let sit for 10 minutes. Run your ceiling fan or open window so air can circulate.
  • Blot with paper towels or rags to soak up the vinegar.
  • Sprinkle baking soda liberally all over and around the stain. Let sit for 3-4 hours.
  • Vacuum up the baking soda from the mattress. 

Notes

  • If you have some really difficult stains, use an old toothbrush to rub the vinegar into them vigorously.
  • I highly recommend using a spray bottle for the vinegar. However if you just don’t have one, saturate a rag with vinegar and lay it over the stain to pull the odor out.
  • Some methods online tell you to dilute the vinegar. You can do that, and it will help with the vinegar smell. But it also dilutes the effectiveness in my experience.
  • For really stubborn stains and odors, you may need to repeat the process. 

Kristin Maxwell

Kristin Maxwell is the creator and main recipe developer, writer, and photographer of Yellow Bliss Road. A self-taught cook and self-appointed foodie, she specializes in easy, flavorful and approachable recipes for any home cook.

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Comments

  1. Hi, I just googled “how to get rid of urine smells and stain from mattress ” and your blog came up. But before I got to your recommendation, I read one that just told me to put baking soda on the mattress to soak up the urine. Can I start all over with your method? Or will the baking soda bubble up if I apply white vinager on it?
    What can I do?

  2. Thanks Kristin your method helped a lot! I was washing laundry today and just noticed one of our old mattresses which our kids use now was all stained and smelly. I looked up online how to get rid of these and your method came up. It works beautifully. Went from a stained and smelly mattress to an almost good as new mattress with hardly any stain and zero smells!

  3. Thanks Kristin, I’ve used this method on old stains; my son’s mattress used to stink!! All fixed now thanks to you. I just did this on my queen mattress (couldn’t drag it outside into the sun by myself!!) after my son wet my bed last night, and its working!! I didn’t think I’d ever be able fix it. I can’t thank you enough, best regards M

  4. Do u think it would be ok to add a little smell to it somehow, have u tried this? Do u have any ideas of what I could use to give it a pleasant smell?

      1. I’m in a pinch at 3am!!
        I’ve been sick in bed since Friday 7/27, today I asked my husband to let my 3 1/2 year old daughter come take a nap with me.
        >>He may or may not have told me that she was still in her training undies however I really was on another planet with medicine!? These Panties have little to no absorbing power since the point is to make her know she pee pee’d herself so she has to get to the potty BUT at naps & bedtime on goes the pull-up just in case! <<
        ??? Why No Pull-Up put on before napping with me in our bed especially since we don’t let her sleep in here, I’m seriously mind blown ????
        Anyways…
        The only baking soda I found in the house at 3am was the ones you put in the freezer and fridge for 30 days… they are about a week new, so I grabbed the freezer one since there isn’t anything in there with odor. It’s still powder not clumpy. So I’m trying that now.
        As I’m sitting here in my room with windows open and ceiling fan on blast, gagging, waiting for the 15m mark… I’m wondering if this would work on old stains? While I’m doing this shouldn’t I just do the whole bed?

  5. Thanks for the great tip! My Daughter slept in our room last night and her pull up failed her! And having a king sized bed, the two mattress protectors failed because it was the center crack! I am only on the vinegar step, but already the stains are gone!!! This is so great!

    1. I haven’t tried on a colored mattress, only white. It would work on the smell for sure, but I can’t say if it would remove the stain completely.

  6. I have a cleaning solution that I make using cleaning vinegar (has a bit more acidity) and lemon peels just makes it a little stronger you let it sit for 5 days.

    You think that would work?
    My 5 year old just can’t always make it and he ever reaks if urine ?

    1. Since I haven’t tried it myself I can’t say for sure, but I do think that would work. I’d be worried that it might be a little *too* acidic so maybe test it first.

    2. We have been using regular white distilled vinegar in our laundry for quite some time. On low load setting I put vinegar, soap, Oxyclean for whites or stained clothes let it agitate to mix Turn lull load on then add clothes. My whites are whiter my colors are brighter and I’ve not hurt my drain field. And I use less soap!!!
      1 cup vinegar for whites and light colors
      1/2 cup for darker clothes but ALWAWYS mix vinegar in water FIRST so it’s diluted.
      It works great to kill naturally Athletes foot in socks and the tub.

      1. Salt sprinkled on a still-wet milk spill (after sopping up as much as you can with rags) absorbs the remaining milk and neutralizes the odor so you don’t end up with a sour milk smell.

        1. Not sure if this would help with an older, already dry milk spill. I think I would wet the spill with plain water, and if it had a sour milk scent, I would treat it as a new spill, as above.

    1. I would try lestoil for the milk stain. This product has worked on so many stains that are old and I never thought would come out. Sometimes I have needed to use more then one time. If you are trying this on a colored shirt that is fine but don’t scrub it or it will take some of the color out. Not like bleach but it may look faded.

    1. Apple cider vinegar also works, I normally use it for haircare and cleaning but white vinegar might be cheaper so depending on your costs maybe it’s better to use white vinegar. If you only have apple cider it’s still okay to clean and remove stains ^^

  7. My Husband just had his prostrate out poor guy is wearing adult diapers but they don’t always protect our mattress, this morning was the third time he had an accident, and this time the mattress Cover that has a rubber back did not work I am thinking that it was not meant for the dryer and somehow I ruined it. anyway I was upset about the pee actually reaching the mattress and I jump on the computer to find you treatment. I didn’t have a spray bottle so I soaked some white rags in the finger. pressed down on the mattress but I wasn’t satisfied with that so I tried sprinkling the vinegar on the mattress, I think I ended up with too much vinegar then threw a bunch of baking soda on top it’s very wet. do I need to wait for it to completely dry ? or should I get as much of the baking soda off and then add more baking soda?

    1. If the baking soda is really wet it may have soaked up all it can. I’d maybe try tome more baking soda, but before doing that soak as much vinegar up as you can with some rags.

      1. So you spray the bed with the distilled white vinegar, then dap it up with the rags or paper towels then sprinkle the baking soda on top of the spot & then wipe that up ?

    2. I used baking soda and vinegar and I used rubbing alcohol on my memory rest mattress and where I cleaned it to get some of the stain off it hard is there anything I can use not have my bed hard when it dries