I have a 2 seater velvet sofa. Covers don’t come off. Sponge clean only.
A couple of weeks ago, a very inebriated person (not me!) fell asleep on this sofa and wet themselves. Whys and wherefores and sorting this out on a personal level in hand - but I'm left with the practical cleaning situation which I'm hoping for some advice on. The seats were very wet. When I lifted the seats up, they were wet on the bottom too and underneath – I don’t know how much the urine soaked through the foam pad itself and how much it going underneath was due to it running in between the 2 seats and soaking into the bottom layer that way.
I have gone about trying to clean them the best I could, but I’m worried that I haven’t done enough to sanitise them (time on Dr Google tells me that urine is NOT sterile!!)
These are the steps I’ve taken so far
As the seats were so wet, I thought I should put next to a dehumidifier on laundry mode to get the moisture out so I wouldn’t be dealing with mould as well as urine
After this, I put the seats outdoors a couple of days in a row.
When the urine was wet, it did not have a smell. Faint smell after drying with dehumidifier which went after airing.
A few days later, I hoovered the seats and steamed them with a garment steamer for a substantial amount of time hoping to kill any germs. When they were steaming there was a slight smell of urine. I then wiped them down on each side with a microfibre cloth that had been soaked in half water, half vinegar and a squirt of washing up liquid, wiping with clean water 15 mins later. I put them outdoors to dry and air.
Once dry, I could not smell the urine
A few days later, I wiped them down again with clean water with a squirt of washing up liquid and left them outside to air. Still didn’t smell.
Today I thought I’d hoover them again and give another steam to ensure properly sanitised.– HOWEVER, as I steamed them, I could again smell the urine which is making me wonder whether I have killed all the harmful bacteria.
They are now airing outdoors airing. I’m hoping the air will stop the smell like it did before, but I’m worried I’ve not done enough. If the smell goes again in the fresh air, I’m pretty sure that another steaming would again reveal a smell that's hidden the rest of the time.
I’ve tried to find out whether I can buy new seat pads for the sofa separately, but I can’t (despite it being from a flat pack company!)
Have I done enough?I do suffer from OCD with contamination themes (diagnosed), which is not helping!
Thanks