Bio Laundry Liquid for Spag Bol vomit smell?

[ThisOldThang]

I'm posting here for visibility and hopefully some quick replies.

DS2 has D&V.

A few nights ago he vomited spaghetti bolognaise all over his bedroom carpet. It was late at night, so we cleaned it up as best we could and put him back to bed. The carpet has quite a deep pile and it is really starting to smell - you can smell it in the porch when you enter the house.

I've tried cleaning it by hand with Fairy Liquid and a scrubbing brush.

With Vax platinum twice.
https://www.vax.co.uk/spares-and-solutions/solutions/vax-platinum-antibacterial-carpet-cleaning-solution-4l

Dr Beckmann.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dr-Beckmann-Upholstery-stubborn-applicator/dp/B09Q42NQ5D

But the smell persists.

I've read some other threads which suggest an enzyme based cleaner is required. That makes sense and I don't think the Vax liquid is enzyme based because it is 'certified wool safe'. Our carpets are polypropylene, so that isn't a problem.

Would I be making a mistake by adding a dose of Sainsbury's Bio Super Concentrated Laundry Liquid to the Vax's water tank?

https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/sainsburys-bio-super-concentrated-laundry-liquid-15l-x60

It says "Machine washing dose = 25ml", so I was thinking of adding that amount to the tank. The machine's water tank is only 4 litres, so that might be a bit strong, but the smell is really bad and the enzymes need to chug down that puke.

Is there any risk to this - e.g. if the enzymes come into contact with wooden floor joists are they going to munch on the wood in some way and weaken the floor?

YABU = Don't do it, you're about to wreck your house.
YANBU = Go for it.

I’d do it. I am a bit reckless though. I think a DIY vac solution is fairy+fabric conditioner. How about using the dettol clothing sanitiser?

@TestingTestingWonTooFree

I've bought some of the Sainsbury's version and that was next on the list. The Vax shampoo claims to kill 99.99% of bacteria and viruses and it hasn't got rid of the smell, so I'm not sure if it is a bacteria problem.

I would imagine the risk is in making things too wet. If the carpet is grim and might need to be replaced, you don’t have much to lose. The organised mum community on Facebook are cleaning obsessives, might be worth asking there.

Hire a rug doctor. That will clean deep and get rid of any smells and stains.

Try it. You could also try pet enzym cleaner because the enzymes will help break it down.

I will say though, I threw up spaghetti Bolognese on my bedroom carpet when I was a child and my mum ended up replacing the carpet because the smell wouldn't go away!

I also wrecked the dove grey carpet on the landing when I was a kid with neon purple ribena vomit stain, this was before they changed the recipe and it stopped but containing so many food colourings.

@ThisOldThang don't add any more "wet" you don't be able to see how wet below the carpet id and if that doesn't dry well that's a whole new icky smell.
Try to soak up any residual water / cleaning products and cover with bicarb it great for smells .
Dr Beckman do a pet version that is pretty effective at removing smells.

I’d cake the carpet in bicarbonate of soda and leave all day/overnight and then spray vinegar on it.

I had an issue recently with a dog wee. Shampooing the carpet actually made it smell even worse… something to do with reinvigorating the ammonia. The bos and vinegar shifted it. A week later I did have to shampoo it again as was a little too generous with the vinegar.

I wouldn't add fabric softener as that us highly flammable.

Have you tried covering in Bicarb- really working it into the pile, leaving for a few hours and hoovering up?

I've also made homemade solution using white vinegar and some other stuff for my bissell carpet machine. That got rid of the dog poo smell but did leave a strong vinegar one for a day or so.

Apparently these are good for pet smells. Maybe they’d work……

I would cover in bicarb whilst it dries out and then hoover it up (and immediately throw the contents away).
Then I would get a rug doctor.
I used this at my grandparents house when they had accidents and got the bad smells gone!

After reading other threads I found this enzyme based cleaner on Amazon and it says you need to fully soak the area and if the smell persists it's because you've not soaked it fully.

I'd get one of those pet sprays, that tackle urine and vom smell/stains. We've used this, it was really good.
https://www.petsathome.com/product/simple-solution-stain-and-odour-remover-for-cats-750ml/28875P

Edited to add: Jinx! 😁

Scrub with the bio powder and then leave it for a while it will take a lot of wiping after to get all the suds out but it will make a difference to the smell. Also (From recent experience with an ill child) check it hasn't splattered up anything you have missed cleaning and you are actually just smelling dried up sick...

A bicarb solution is the best to get rid of vomit smells.

I don't have any of that and it's £20 on Amazon. I've got the £3.60 bio washing liquid already, so I think I'll try that first.

But thanks for posting.

@ThisOldThang it's your carpet, your choice, but too wet carpets poorly dried create mould making a whole new issue.

Get the pet enzyme stuff but the powder version not spray. You are then not rewetting anything and it really works.

Make sure the carpet is fully dry before doing the enzyme powder.

It got the smell of a gazillion wees out of my carpet from free range potty training DC and elderly incontinent cat pee smell out of my mums carpet, sure it will do vomit.

It's £8 at pets at home. It really works and no soaking required.

Cheap solution I would try is white vinegar, let it dry, then bicarb of soda. Hoover it up. Maybe repeat with vinegar.

It's about £8 for a big tub in our local pet shop.

Oh I didn't know there's a powder version! 🤩

I'd stick some tea tree oil down and open a window tbh. Won't last forever.

Good point, but we've got a dehumidifier and a fan I can point at the carpet. The heating runs 24x7, so I doubt it would be damp for long enough to get mould.

@ThisOldThang having had many pets my approach has always been removed as much solids as possible , towel up moisture, bicarb ..... Check often
Use enzymes
A friends husband is a carpet fitter, mines science based so I took their suggestions
Dehumidifier should help, tea tree oil might "eat" your carpet, depends on what it's made of

Bicarb of soda is really good at absorbing smells. Dampen area of carpet - work bicarb all over area and into pile. Leave to dry and hoover up. You might need to repeat that two or three times, but it should work and won't ruin your carpet.

I'll check the thread in the morning, but the voting is leaning towards the bio washing detergent.

I think I'm going to copy the instructions on the Simple Solutions bottle with some home made cleaner:

1tsp (5ml) of detergent in 500ml of 40C warm water.

That should still be fairly potent given 25ml is for a whole machine wash.

I'll soak the whole area and give it a good scrub and then dry it as quickly as possible with the dehumidifier and fan.

Once that's done, I'll follow up with the Vax method.