How do I remove caked-in cat poop from wood floors?

June 23, 2008 11:24 PM

A bout of constipation and butt-dragging resulted in my cats rubbing their poop into the poorly-surfaced hardwood floors of my apartment, and no amount of scrubbing or Lysol will remove the poop caked into the grain of the wood. This is not a stain, the poop is literally caked into the wood. What do I do to remove it with a minimum of damage to the floors? Is there some way to dissolve the poop?
posted by Braeog to pets & animals (11 comments total)

How about scouring it with Murphy's Oil Soap (or the equivalent) and a toothbrush?
posted by amyms at 11:35 PM on June 23, 2008

Soap, water and a stiff brush.
posted by fshgrl at 11:47 PM on June 23, 2008

If it's really localized, you could probably use some fine-grain sandpaper to et down to the grain enough to get that shit out. It shouldn't make a big dent. Then use furniture oil to bring the shine back. Rub with the grain, not against.

Please note that this is what I'd do if I had hardwood floors. But I *don't* have hardwood floors. It could possibly be horrible advice.
posted by mudpuppie at 12:01 AM on June 24, 2008

No actual advice, sorry. However, some googling found this
posted by minus zero at 1:32 AM on June 24, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

You might try vinegar. Any variety should work, but I tend to use apple cider. Let it soak for five minutes then try wiping it away.
posted by Nattie at 2:24 AM on June 24, 2008

Burn it out

Wait till it dries, the play a blowtorch over the area. The poo will burn off before the wood is affected.
posted by mattoxic at 3:32 AM on June 24, 2008

Nature's Miracle will dissolve the odor-causing particles at least. But I don't know if it will damage your floors or not.
posted by about_time at 4:30 AM on June 24, 2008

I've used the Nature's Miracle Just for Cats formula with great success on carpets. I've never tried it on wood floors, but I wouldn't hesitate.

You're sure your floors are hardwood, and not laminate (like Pergo)? If they are definitely hardwood, then I believe they wouldn't be damaged by letting the Nature's Miracle soak in for a while to really loosen the poo, and then scrubbing with a brush like suggested above. You might follow up by using a hair dryer or fan to dry the wood out.
posted by SuperSquirrel at 2:29 PM on June 24, 2008

Hydrogen peroxide is good for this, it will foam up and attack organic matter like blood or feces.
posted by Melsky at 8:30 PM on June 25, 2008

SuperSquirrel's advice is my method. Anything caked on gets loosened with just water or nature's miracle and then the scrubbing begins. I also have a machine that will saturate and suck the floor dry. Then, over a couple weeks the wood dries more and the marks usually disappear.
posted by ick at 9:57 AM on July 1, 2008

Toothpick? Toothbrush?
posted by pseudostrabismus at 5:46 PM on January 14