How do you get the vomit smell out of manufactured wooden floor

When I was away over Christmas one of my idiot flatmate’s friend vomited on the floor. It’s a manufactured hard wood floor. It looks clean but it smells.

He said he’d tried everything and all kinds of bleaches. I’ve done the Baking Soda and vinegar routine 3 times. I think there is still a hint of it left though. The alignment of the boards isn’t amazing and I think they spread it further when they tried to mop it up because they are idiots.

Any advice on what to do next. Could a wax seal the smell off or is there a timeline when it’ll just go away?

Baking soda/vinegar is what I would have suggested.
It will calm down within a few days unless there is a larger deposit between the cracks.

I would avoid wax- it will just wear off and be spread to people’s shoes- you will get shiny patches all over the place.

Buy some incense- it is a strong smell and will mask the smell of vomit until it dissipates.

are you sure it’s not seeped under the floorboards?

It’s a concrete floor I think.

Try

One part distilled white vinegarTwo parts warm waterA few drops of citrus-scented liquid soap or liquid dish washing detergent.Good luck!

Could also try one of those steam mop things after you’ve done the vinegar clean.

Failing that you could always get Kim and Aggie in!

Try using vanilla essence (it’s sold in little bottles in the cake-baking aisle) half and half in warm water. It stops old fridges smelling mouldy too. Avoid incense Joby it’s not you at all :slight_smile:

LOL- I wasn’t suggesting he start wearing hemp underwear as well. :wink:

I would be concerned about water damage to the floor with all the cleaning. The spew will dry out eventually.

That probably won’t be significant.

Without going too deep into the science of it, the equilibrium moisture content of the wood is the point at which the % moisture content of the wood is roughly equivalent to that of the air.
You need to soak a piece of wood in water for a significant period of time for it to be seriously affected- otherwise the water simply evaporates into the air, first the free water, then the bound water until the equilibrium moisture content is reached.

When I build an acoustic guitar I soak the wood extensively in water to make the sides easier to bend on a bending iron.
It dries out just fine- within a day or so.
The main issue could be removing the finish from all the scrubbing, which leaves the wood unfinished and then potentially more prone to warping, but that will take years (or perhaps not happen at all).

Thanks guys. I’ll have a crack with some of those ideas.

It’s engineered hard wood whic means the final layer is real wood. Everything below that is cheap crap like mdf and that will swell if the moisture gets to it. :slight_smile:
Still better than laminate though :slight_smile:

Yes, you’re right- it depends what the lower layers are made out of.
Sometimes they are actually fine- strand bamboo, for example makes a good base that isn’t so prone to swelling also very strong, virtually indestructible.
If it is really cheap stuff then it will be lignin based and actually more likely to be straw or sugar cane residue (so vegetable fibre, not real wood)- they will be a real problem if it gets too wet.

I think the secret is to keep the idiot flatmate & chums off the laminate floor, do you have outdoor space for a kennel? :wink:

Back in my uni days, one of my idiot housemates threw up dramatically all opver himself and down the hall the led to both of our rooms - despite endless mopping it stank (it was carpet, so harder to clean than laminate) for a while but the smell just went away on its own after that i think.

I did have to sleep with the bedroom window open for a week though - in sheffield, in january

I have some special floor cleaning stuff for mopping wooden floors at home - no acid or bleach and it smells nice and orangey. I too have a housemate who’s sick on the floor but she’s only 5 months old so I don’t take it personally.

NO STEP AWAY FROM WOOD MOISTURE CONTENT DISCUSSIONS … ffs it will bring the firewood thread back to life if your not careful !
that **** we can do without

LOL.

Mate of mine had this problem. A few years later, he moved out, and the new residents moved in. They then accidentally burned the house down, and do you know what? I swear i could still smell it…

The smell seems to be gone now after 3 applications of Baking Soda followed by vinegar. It’s worth keeping that stashed in your house if vomiting is an issue. I think it’s most effective if you get on it straight away.