Need Help - Carpet Odor

[Coyote_Bandit]

Night before last the dog head butted his food dish causing his dinner to spill (partially) on the carpet - including about a quarter cup of milk. I blotted it with paper towels and then used a towel to absorb what liquid I could. Then I shampooed that area of the carpet as best I could. Today when I returned home it was apparent the carpet was beginning to develop a sour milk smell. So tonight I put some pet odor/urine remover on the spill location and let it set a short while - and then again shampooed the carpet as best I could.

I am afraid I have not yet been successful in getting rid of this odor. Any suggestions on how to remove it?

Thanks!

[LiberalUprising]

1. Carpet cleaning tips

Milk spills are bound to happen because we use milk so much everyday. If you have a milk spill, from the small glass to the gallon all over the carpeting, you can work it out using these tips.

The first thing you need to do when a spill happens is to grab a towel and soak up as much milk as you can. Blotting the area repeatedly will bring up much of the spilled milk. Continue changing towels until you are barely bringing up any moisture as you are blotting the area.

To neutralize the milk stain so you don’t end up with a terrible odor as it dries, use rubbing alcohol on the clean rag and dab the area good. Do not pour the rubbing alcohol on the carpet as that much of the cleaner could ruin the padding on your carpeting. Continue this until you have covered the entire carpet area.

If you don’t have any rubbing alcohol in your home, you can use vinegar instead of rubbing alcohol to neutralize the milk stain and to keep odors from starting. Follow the above spray and dab method.

After you have completed the above neutralizing process, use a mixture of one cup of water and a tablespoon of clear dish liquid, not one that contains bleach. Spray this over the milk stain and blot up with a clean paper towel. Continue doing this over the entire spilled area to bring up any milk that is deep down in the carpeting.

Rinse the entire area using a plain water spray and additional clean towels. Let the area dry for about an hour, and if you find that your carpet still has some type of milk stain (like chocolate, strawberry etc.) then go on to the next step.

Using a spray bottle and peroxide, spray the milked stained area. Work it in with your fingers a bit so it will get deep into the fibers of the carpeting. Blot up with a clean towel, then spray the carpet again, and let it dry. Repeat this process as needed to bring out the rest of the stain.

http://www.tipking.co.uk/tip/4121.html

More tips here
http://www.google.com/search?q=sour+milk+smell+carpet&sourceid=mozilla-search&start=0&start=0&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

[Coyote_Bandit]

2. Thanks!

But those instructions appear to be for fresh spills. Mine isn't exactly fresh - in more ways than one.

The carpet dried after the first night and the several shampooings it got then. Was smelling nasty yesterday afternoon. Was shampooed several times again last night - after applying enzyme cleaner used to remove pet urine and odor. Is still a bit damp this morning. And starting to smell again already.

First chance I get later today I will spray it with white vinegar and let it sit for awhile and then shampooo again.

I will post and let everybody know how it works.

[Coyote_Bandit]

4. Wow

The vinegar seems to have gotten rid of the sour milk odor. I sprayed the carpet with vinegar and let it sit for about an hour then blotted it up and reshampooed the carpet. There is a wee bit of a lingering vinegar smell which I suspect is probably due to the carpet and pad still being a wee bit damp.

Thanks for the tip!

:yourock:

[LiberalEsto]

3. Try baking soda

Sprinkle on a lot and let it sit a day or so, then vacuum it up.

Another great odor absorber is the kind of white powdered lime people treat their lawns with. A big bag costs a dollar or two at a home and garden store.

Many years ago we bought a house that was previously owned by folks from India. We love curry, but this place reeked of it. The realtor told us to get several bags of lime and lay them around the areas where the odor was worst, then cut an X on the upper side to open it up a bit. We left the bags lying around in the basement, where they had a second kitchen. After a week or two the odors were gone.