How to Easily Remove Old Pee Stain and Smell from a Mattress

There are many joys of parenting. One of those joys is not having to remove pee stains from a mattress, a mattress that had a waterproof mattress protector on it.

One of my daughters, unfortunately, has an issue with wetting the bed at night. While she’s been potty trained for over a year, and doesn’t wet her bed every night, it’s still regularly happening. Unfortunately this has led to urine stains on her mattress. Multiple urine stains that smell.

The waterproof mattress protectors we placed under our daughter’s sheets, failed. I think the heat from the dryer or their less than top-of-the-line materials, left them anything but waterproof.

Since our twins don’t have assigned beds, not only did I have to clean a mattress that has urine on it once, but twice.

This stank (literally) because they were new mattresses.

I really wanted to remove the stain and the smell, as quickly and easily as possible, because I couldn’t afford to replace them. And because I love efficiency.

Thanks to an internet search I found this awesome post from the Inspired Housewife, which had a cheap, easy, and effective way to get urine stains out of a mattress.

I decided to try it out for myself on my daughters’ very urinated on mattresses, with old pee stains, and their nice musty pee smell. I wanted to see if it really would work and how well or not it did.

I did the following urine stain removing method and then promptly bought this new waterproof mattress cover so I would never have to do it again.

You can watch the video below for the instructions. But be sure to check out the FAQ section at the end for more tips and advice on how to do it, like recommended spray bottles, and more:

Table of contents

1. Supplies Needed
2. Cleaning Instructions
3. Results
4. Frequently Asked Questions

The Pee Stained Mattresses Before Cleaning:

First, I want to show you just how bad my kids’ pee stained mattresses were:

Yuck! Definitely not what I want my kids’ mattresses to look like and to be sleeping on! Plus, the smell was not so hot.

*If you want a print-friendly version of the following tutorial, CLICK HERE or enter your name and email in the boxes below:*

How to Get a Pee Stain out of a Mattress

I used the following tutorial on a regular spring mattress and it worked great. Hundreds of others have also used it with the same great results.

Pee Stain Removal Cleaning Solution

To remove a pee stain from a mattress you need:

• Empty spray bottle
• Hydrogen peroxide
• Baking Soda
• Liquid dishwashing soap.
• Drop of Lavender Essential Oil (optional)
• Handheld vacuum or canister vacuum

How to Get Urine Out of a Mattress When Dry

DISCLAIMER: Please spot test a small area before doing your entire mattress. I am not responsible for any lasting damage that may occur from you doing this or any voiding or warranties.

Some mattresses, like memory foam or pillow-top mattresses, may not do well with this treatment. It will depend on what your mattress is made out of and how you are supposed to clean it. Use at your own risk.

Time needed: 1 hour and 30 minutes.

How to Remove Urine from a Mattress

1. Mix Your Urine Removing SolutionTake the empty spray bottle (these ones are supposed to not clog – if it does, see my FAQ at the bottom) and pour in 8 ounces of hydrogen peroxide, 3 tablespoons of baking soda (add with a funnel) and a drop of liquid hand dishwashing soap.

   You can also add in a drop of lavender or other essential oil to help neutralize the smell. Plus, lavender oil is said to help induce sleep.

   Spin everything around a little bit, but don’t shake it up too much or it may bubble up way too much. Now your urine removing formula is ready to go!

2. Spray solution onto pee-stained mattressSpray (or pour) urine remover solution onto your mattress, getting it nice and saturated, especially on yellow pee stains.

   Make sure to use the mixture right away for best results as the peroxide starts to break down in light.

   Make more solution and saturate as needed for large mattresses. Don’t forget to get sides of the mattress too.

3. Let dry.Turn on a fan, stick in the sun, if possible (making sure it is protected with a sheet or tarp), or otherwise let it dry. Within a few minutes of application, you should start to see the stains magically begin to disappear. It should take about an hour to totally dry.
4. Vacuum off baking soda residue.Once completely dry, and to get rid of the gritty baking soda residue on top of the mattress, and then vacuum the mattress with a high-quality vacuum (I love my Kirby vacuum for cleaning mattresses – I use it as part of my regular mattress care).

*If you want a print-friendly version of this cleaning tutorial, sign up below and I’ll send it and some more awesome cleaning tutorials right to your inbox*:

The end results are amazing! There is a slight yellow residue, but vastly improved.

I have heard from so many people that this tutorial really worked for them and has been such a blessing to them! If you don’t believe me, read all the comments on this post! I get even more comments about how well it works via email and on Pinterest.

The Mattress After Removing the Stains:

Here are the results!:

FAQ When Trying to Get Pee Out of a Mattress

What types of mattresses will this work on?

Traditional spring, pillow top, and hybrid beds should all respond well to this method of removing urine from mattresses, but ALWAYS TEST A SMALL SPOT FIRST.

I have had a handful of people who said it didn’t work on their mattress, mostly those with foam or memory foam mattresses. ?‍♀️

Will this tutorial work on a dark-colored mattress or a printed mattress?

While I used this on a white mattress, many have used this same method on colored mattresses and mattresses with prints. You will want to spot test it for color-fastness, but thankfully, you cover up mattresses with sheets and never see it.

My spray bottle is clogging, what do I do?

If you have problems with clogging, try the following:

• Using less baking soda, mixing it in the peroxide really well first, then pouring it into the spray bottle
• Pour the solution directly onto the bed and scrub it gently in with a cloth or carpet brush.
• Mix the solution in a bowl, then saturated with a rag and blot it onto the mattress, making sure every time you blot, you use a clean area of the rag so you’re not putting urine back on the mattress.
• Get a better spray bottle.

What strength peroxide should I use to remove pee stain from the mattress?

A 3% concentration of hydrogen peroxide is high enough. You can use higher if you want.

How long does a mattress take to dry?

It will usually take 2 hours or more to completely dry.

If you want to speed up the drying time, blot your mattress with some clean rags, turn on a fan or two.

The smell is still there. What can I do?

I would consider doing another round of the treatment above, spraying with vinegar and letting air dry, or someone recommended spraying with rubbing alcohol or straight cheap vodka.

The stain is still there! What went wrong?

If the stain is not lifting after multiple treatments, I would buy a new bottle of hydrogen peroxide. Peroxide loses its potency over time, especially if exposed to sunlight or the lid is left open too long, etc. Make sure your baking soda isn’t too old, too.

You could also be trying to treat a stain that isn’t urine. I cannot guarantee this solution works on all mattress stains (like oil and dirt and sweat) though some have said it worked on other stains on the mattress as well.

Will this urine removing solution work on my couch?

Many have asked if it will work on other fabric furniture, and I have never personally tried it. But, like always, you can experiment yourself in a small area. I don’t know how it works on leather or other couch materials however, and peroxide can change the color of your fabrics.

Will this pee stain remover work on my carpet?

Chances are good that this will work on your carpet! Carpets and rugs are also easy to vacuum so win there! Just test a spot if you are worried about color-fastness.

Can I use Baking Powder instead of Baking Soda?

One commenter asked this, tried it herself, and said YES! Worked like a charm.

What if I don’t have a vacuum?

Definitely not the end of the world if you don’t. You can use a dry towel and brush the baking soda residue to the floor and then sweep it up. Or pick up a simple stick vacuum or handheld vacuum for pretty inexpensive.

What mattress protector do you recommend?

I recommend waterproof mattress protectors. I also highly recommend ones that are also dust mite barriers for better health.

For a really good terry cloth topped, waterproof mattress protector, for not much money, SafeRest makes one of the highest ratest ones on Amazon!

For a 100% waterproof mattress protector that also protects against dust mites and allergens, with a soft top, Ultra Plus makes one of the highest rated ones on Amazon and it’s still very affordable!

Will this work if the pee stain on my mattress is really old and dry?

People have commented that they had pee stains on their mattresses that had been there for YEARS and they were magically removed with this formula. Give it a shot and it may surprise you that this can remove old pee stains with ease.

Be sure to Follow my Cleaning Board on Pinterest for even more cleaning tips and ideas!

And check out my more of my amazing How to Clean tutorials!:

• How to Remove Baby Poop Stains from Clothes
• How to Remove Poop Stains from Carpets (and the Smell)
• How to Remove Drink Stains from a Carpet (with just 1 ingredient!)
• How to Remove Dried Blood Stains
• How to Clean a Mattress
• How to Clean a Curling Iron
• 50+ Deep Cleaning Tips and Tricks for Every Room in Your House
• Spring Cleaning Checklists and Printables
• How to Remove Crayon Marks from Walls (11+ Ways)
• How to Clean Stove Drip Pans (4 Ways)
• How to Use Bar Keepers Friend on Stainless Steel Pans
• How to Clean Copper Bottom Pots

What have you done to remove a pee stain from a mattress?