How do I stop my mattress from reeking?

October 24, 2011 2:57 PM

Removing Beer on Mattress?

Roomie spilled beer on my mattress and it reeks of the smell (posting anonymously because he browses meta too). I tried Febreeze and let it dry but when I went to sleep, the smell started coming again and my clothes reek of it too. Any suggestions on how to get rid of this?

Also, how can I deal with this situation (roommate relations) to respect my stuff?

posted by anonymous to Human Relations (5 answers total)

Depending on how big of a spill it is, you may be able to try this (used to clean up after a cat decided my bed was a great place to pee):

Get Lestoil or Mr. Clean, and *lots* of old towels. Spritz beer area with cleaner, dab up with towel. Repeat. Repeat again. When towel gets damp, replace. Repeat until your arm hurts. Prop the mattress up on its side and aim a box fan at it. Do a sniff test the next day and see if it's better. If not, repeat all steps. Curse roommate frequently, it helps.

About the respecting stuff - would you be able to get them to replace your damaged mattress, or any future possessions they might trash? If not, let them know that your stuff is completely off limits, and put a lock on your bedroom door.
posted by HopperFan at 3:26 PM on October 24, 2011

I think it kind of depends on how much beer was wasted. A lot of beer and you might be SOL; it will have gone too deep into the mattress. I left my bed at a friend's and her sister used it during the months I was gone and I came back to find a plethora of stains of mysterious origin. I used bleachy water to scrub mine to get rid of stains and odors and it worked like a charm - a sink full of hot water and about a 1/2 cup of bleach. I took a clean white towel and just scrubbed like crazy and then let it dry for a couple three days. After it felt dry and there was no longer a bleach smell, I covered the mattress in a bedbug/mite-proof wrapper. Most mattresses have cotton ticking/stuffing which you can't totally penetrate deeply from the surface.

If you can't completely get rid of the smell, you can cover with a wrapper and that should keep the smell from penetrating. I also use a mattress pad.

It also sounds like you need a lock on your door. And why are you afraid of him seeing this post, you haven't done anything wrong?
posted by shoesietart at 3:35 PM on October 24, 2011

Beer is full of a lot of organic materials, so something like Nature's Miracle might work really well at getting out the odour. But you can't easily use your mattress in the mean time because you have to really get the stuff to soak through the stain, so it is pretty wet.

Tell your roommate you're sleeping in his bed until yours is clean, and put a lock on your door.
posted by jeather at 3:59 PM on October 24, 2011

I've had luck with Nature's Miracle on various organic things in the past, and once had to use it on the mattress. You've got to absolutely soak the stain. I didn't sleep on the mattress for a night or two, then after that, I put a few layers of towel under the sheet over the wet part at night, removing it all for air circulation during the day.
posted by mostlymartha at 5:32 PM on October 24, 2011

Wrong time of year (in the Northern hemisphere), but leave the mattress out in the full sun, naked. A day ought to do the job. Depending on how strong the sun is, hosing the mattress down with a hose - completely saturating it with water and more - and then having it bake it hot sun leaves it "spring fresh."

Depending on how expensive your mattress was...
posted by porpoise at 8:57 PM on October 24, 2011