I’m sure you were waiting with bated breath on my test results of my odor control experiment. Well, wait no more, because, here it is!
The Odor Control Part 1 Re-Cap
As I said in part 1, I sprayed the OdorMute, the Fresh Scent 256 and the Wysiwash on separate surfaces and let them dry, as well as my two control cleaners, the bleach mixture and Fabuloso. So far, so good. I decided to use my bathroom wall and adjacent floor, along with my dog’s artificial turf potty, and an area on my garage’s concrete surface. This was as close as I could get to a dog run. Before I did any of this, I looked at all areas with an UV light to expose the stains. Think your bathroom is clean? Try looking at it with an UV light and see what you’re missing! Be really adventurous and take a UV light to your next hotel room.
The Experiment
The first test was in the bathroom. After we applied the different products, we let it dry and (my wife and I) carefully examined the areas. After about 20 minutes, (remember in Part 1 I mentioned that it would not be a 15-year study) we noticed that all areas were now bluish instead of the greenish/yellow. This could be the result of the reactions to the cleaners. That, or it’s morphing into some sort of alien mold. I have no idea – I’m not a scientist. The bleach and the Fabuloso were showing the same results. Four of the products still showed signs of urine stains. Only the Wysiwash did not. Why? Because this is for outside use, and we’re still inside.
A short time later, we repeated the process however, this time we wiped the area down with a cloth. The results? Quite a bit different. The Odormute…clean, Fresh Scent 256… clean, the Wysiwash… as I mentioned in the last paragraph, we didn’t use that in this first test. But what about the control cleaners? Well, the Fabuloso was clean and the bleach solution was clean. Almost all of the greenish/yellow stains were gone, and I assume, (yeah, I know, assume) the smell. So much for the use of a control.
Now the fun part really begins… having my wife take a whiff of the areas. This was actually more difficult than I thought, due to the fact that the entire room smelled like bleach. So, what we decided to do next was to periodically check it again, in one hour, two hours, later that day, and the next day. More about that in part 3.
The Surfaces
We first tested on tile and porcelain. Now it’s time for the concrete and artificial turf, or what I like to refer to as, real life dog run odor collection place. I just made that up. This was more in my wheelhouse since I can really smell the ammonia in the artificial turf. It’s actually set in a small box frame, lined with plastic, so there’s really no drainage or air getting to the bottom side of the turf. I first tested without lifting up the grass to simulate a backyard that has artificial turf that can’t be pulled up just to clean.
I must admit, all three products did a great job in removing the smell from the grass! Before I applied the solutions, I lifted up the grass and the ammonia wafted up in my face and nearly made my eyes burn out of their sockets. A little exaggeration, but you get the point. All I did was apply the products to three different patches and left it there. I forgot to check it for the rest of the day, but the next day I lifted up the grass and NOTHING! And I put my nose right up against the backing of the grass! I opted not to “force” my wife to do it this time, after all, I do have to live with her. I didn’t use the Fabuloso or the bleach on the grass since my dog still has to use it. Didn’t want any chemicals left on it.
As for the concrete surface, everything worked on that. Including the Wysiwash. It smelled good and there were not stains as indicated by the UV light.
Wait! There’s More
One more last-minute experiment… cat litter boxes! Yes, Scoop Masters has been known to clean cat litter boxes and I decided to try the deodorizers on them. Since I change them once a week, they have a good chance to build up that great ammonia smell, and boy did they smell awful! I rinsed one with water, one with Fresh Scent 256 and one with Odormute. I used plain water for my control as I didn’t want to leave any chemicals behind. Plus, I didn’t have a fourth cat box to use.
The water (control) still had a strong ammonia smell to it, so now we know that water alone does not get rid of the smell. The other two… fantastic! I sprayed both boxes and in just a few minutes, no more ammonia! I sure hope the cats appreciate all my “hard” work. Yeah, right.
Come back for part 3, the conclusion and my recommendations.