I would like to thank Art of Doing Stuff reader, Rose.
Rose, you see, emailed me the other day asking if I'd ever heard of DIY Enzyme Cleaner.
Why no! No, I had not, Rose.
But since you bring it up, now I *have* heard of DIY Enzyme cleaner. And being the kind of OCD, kindda crazy, must try all things at all costs, no matter how busy, tired, overworked I am, ... I'm going to have to make DIY Enzyme Cleaner. Even though, in the back of my mind I think it's kind of pointless, stupid, probably won't work and kindda weird.
So thanks Rose. You're a peach.
I've actually bought Enzyme cleaner before. It's about the only thing that will (help) get rid of the odour of cat or dog pee. The enzyme cleaner spray for cat pee is called "Nature's Miracle" . It does work better than any other product for cleaning animal urine, but I highly doubt this is the kind of miracle that would ever make it up for review in Vatican City.
Especially at around $12 a bottle.
So, weary from work, almost delusional really, I gathered up my ingredients, slapped on some sunscreen and grabbed a bag of chips and a pop and went out the door to work outside, taking pictures of the Enzyme Cleaner in the comfort of my backyard. I also put the radio on.
It's almost saintly what I go through for you people.
The list of ingredients is pretty small for this cleaner. That's not where the "Ack!" comes in. The Ack comes in when you realize that the DIY enzyme cleaner has to ferment for ... 3 months.
Now normally I wouldn't show you a post like this until I'd finished the product and tested it out for myself. But, I thought I couldn't do that to you. If I waited until my DIY enzyme cleaner was finished before telling you about it, that would be 3 months from now. Then if you were to make it, it would be another 3 months before you could try it. That's 6 months. That's the lifetime of most hamsters owned by your average meaty fisted 6-8 year old. I couldn't do that to you.
So, we're gonna do this together. Like a team. A fermenting, rotten, enzyme, stinking, housekeeping team. We'll call ourselves F.R.E.S.H. for short and I think we should start to think about gang colours. Probably not red or blue. Maybe yellow for urine.
Are you ready to make DIY enzyme cleaner? You could very well have everything you need in your kitchen right now. Provided you keep an ample supply of patience in one of the cupboards.
citrus peels
brown sugar
2 litre plastic bottle (big pop bottle or something like that)
stuff your bottle with citrus peels
add brown sugar
add water
shake and date
DIY Enzyme Cleaner
Ingredients
2 ½ cups lemon, orange, and/or lime peels (about 3 oranges and 3 lemons)
⅞ths a cup of brown sugar
4 cups of water
Method
Add all ingredients to a 2 litre plastic bottle. Replace the lid and shake everything up. Loosen lid a bit so gas can escape and put it in a cupboard for the next 3 months. Some sites say you're supposed to shake it every day. I happen to know I'll never do that, but I do plan to shake it whenever I think of it.
This recipe makes a concentrate, so once the mixture has fermented you can add ½ cup of it to a litre of water and that is your cleaning solution.
I'm going to say it once more. Loosen the lid so the gas can escape! This stuff is fermenting and becoming quite tooty. Much like yourself, if the gas can't escape it will eventually explode. Happened to an Uncle of mine once. Had to scrape him off the church walls. True story.
I'm touting this cleaner as something for pet urine, but apparently it's great for a lot of things. Most things. In fact, according to the Internet, that uncle who got splattered all over the church walls from not tooting? You could have cleaned the church with it.
So I'll meet you back here in 3 months. Spray bottle in hand, urine on the floor. Go team.
Update: Wanna hear about the results? Read the follow up post, DIY Enzyme Cleaner, The Results Show.
Amy Schmucker
After you clean with this, then you have to clean the sticky residue it leaves behind from the brown sugar. Yuck. And why wouldn't concentrated orange extract work? The peels are going to rot and get so slimy. Blah!!
Vinegar water works so good. It disinfects too. My daughters pediatrician told us to wash the floor with vinegar water when she was crawling and we had chickens. Said, it was safer to use than chemical soaps and it would kill any saminella from chicken poop we tracked in from outside on our shoes.
Karen
Amy - Vinegar is great for cleaning, but you need enzymes for pet urine. A raw, unprocessed apple cider vinegar might work ... to eliminate the pet urine, but that's the closest you could get with vinegar for enzymes. ~ karen!
Gayla T
I'm so glad you added the part about tracking it in on your shoes. I had a picture of a baby crawling around on the cabin floor with the chickens and pigs. My entire body had already gone into a tight clinch and then I read the rest. LOL
Lemurific
All the sugars are to feed the microbes (in the air and on the peels). If all goes to plan, after 3 months there will be little sugar left behind. Rather, there will be the microbes and their fermentive by products: acid (essentially vinegar), gas (loosen the top), and enzymes.
Deb
Karen....it MUST be true...it's on the internet!
Deb
Soooooo...if I have no cat pee stains to worry about, can I use this like 409?? Is this just a super cleaner? Greasy stove, tile floors??? I am thinking this should be attempted, but would like to know what I am going to clean with sticky brown sugar and lemons!! HA! I realize I could google it, but since you seem to have done that already, I thought I would ask.
Karen
Hi Deb - From what I've read it's a super cleaner. Will do just about anything. BUT ... I've only read it, not experienced it yet. And as we all know, the Internet is a big fat liar so .... I can't guarantee anything. Yet! ~ karen
Sandy
I think I might try this too! I need something for cat urine. I will have to wait until I can beg a soda bottle off someone though.
Cyn
Grab one out of a recycle bin. It's still being recycled.
Mary Werner
Speaking of toots, I have always wondered why no one has ever come up with gum that scents digestive juices to cause great smelling toots! Name it Pootpuree, or This Poots for You, or Toot Sweet. Make wonderful odors like Tootronella, Strawberry Tootcake, and Cinnamon Bun Tootastic. Where are the truely creative scientists when the whole civilized world awaits with money in hand.
Shannon
Toot Sweet, LOL! I think you're on to something here. What about dog treats, too? Gotta be a market for *that* :D
Lemurific
Fermenting microbes in our guts create the majority of gas we toot. Different types of microbes 'eat' different chemicals from our food. The by products of their 'feasting' create distinctive chemicals and aromas. Chewing yum just makes it worse as you swallow more air. Injested gas must go somewhere.
Cyn
Food combos to avoid - fruit and beans, sugar and broccoli, meat and fruit - abbreviated list. You'll avoid the "TOOTS" aftereffects.
Amanda
How about Tooti Frutti?
SmartyPants
Regarding chewing gum and air being swallowed. One of the main reasons gas and chewing gum seems to coincide is that our saliva in our mouths contain the first wave of enzyme in our digestive system. Gum chewers according to medical studies tend to deplete their saliva of digestive enzyme and basically waste it. Thereafter while chewing your food the enzymes in your mouth may not be in abundance therfore hindering the proper breakdown of food throughout your entire digestive system. Like what has been said for many years to chew your food longer to breakdown the food. What was missing from that is during the act of chewing you are enhancing it (food) with enzymes and of course making it easier for the body to process.
Randa
I think someone watched chitty chitty bang bang 😏
Rose
Hey Karen!
You're welcome!
AND also what the internet doesn't tell you is that the fruit flies are gonna love that stuff too, at least until they all die a horrible death in your under-the-sink area by several spiders building hundreds of icky webs around said container that you have to shake for two weeks.
Sigh,
Great to have started this adventure with you Karen!
Cheers
Rose
Erica
Karen,
I use vinegar for a multitude of things including killing the smell of animal urine and training my rottie not to eat wood furniture.
For urine just spray or pour it on (depending on bed the urine is), your house will smell horrible for an hour or two but eventually both the vinegar and urine smell go away.
Now if you have a derp dog like I do who thinks anything wood is fair game, and loves the taste of bitter apple, just gently wipe down the wood with vinegar (I do it about twice a week).
Vinegar is also good for your hair, just use it in the shower a few hours before you go out or go to bed haha
April
Just wondering if anyone else has heard of mixing 2 parts water and 1 part mouthwash to a spray bottle( saw it on pintrest).
Remove as much urine as you can then spray Spot with it generously, cover with a towel. The towel will absorb remaining urine and odor. I haven't tried it on carpet yet, but I have tried it on a couch that numerous dogs have marked......no one has marked it since. Only smelled minty fresh for a couple days;)
Sam Walker
Just a quick question to you April, you'd mentioned no one marked on it since which hopefully also means any bad order was gone. Just wanted to clarify. I know boy cat markings can have an even worse smell, so I don't know just how horrible the smell walking into the room where that sofa was from all those markings, but just for clarification... did you experience a severe odor from the markings that completely disappeared after using the mouthwash method? This method would surely be the best smelling! I'm thinking specifically Winter Green...
Pati Gulat
I like the yeast idea too but I think I'll go the way of our Fearless Leader and make the 3 month one now and the yeasty one 2 wks from the finish date...
Lynn
Enzyme, schmenzyme - I LOVE your brown sugar jar! We share an affinity for old jars - that one is
unique - is it a Mason jar?
Karen
Hi Lynne - Yup. It's Crown Mason jar with glass cap and zinc ring. I keep everything in old mason jars. Cereal, dried fruit, pasta ... LOVE them. ~ karen
Susan
3 months? I could be dead by then....something else for my kids to find rotting in the cupboard...right beside the onions! Hmmm.... I just might make this!:-)
Lisa
Somehow I know if I try this I will forget to release the gas and it will toot all over my pantry. I think I'll wait and see how you manage first. Will we get daily updates? Weekly? I NEED to see this stuff ferment. It's like a train wreck. I have to watch!
Krikit
".... if the gas can’t escape it will eventually explode. Happened to an Uncle of mine once. Had to scrape him off the church walls. True story." ROFLMAO so much I peed! Now I HAVE to make this pee-eating stuff! ~:S
~;0)
Allison
Can't wait to hear how it turns out because there is NO way I would leave this stuff under a cabinet to ferment as it would likely freak me out just by looking at it. I saw that episode of Hoarders, no thanks!
xoxo
Tricia Rose
It's going to ferment - so why don't I just drink it? It looks pretty good!
Cheryl in Wisconsin
I'm in. Invite me over.
Velvet
That gave me a good giggle for the day. Awesome!
MicheContreras
That’s funny
Molly
I've never heard of enzyme cleaners, but having a cat and a least weasel that's something I really could use.
It's a brilliant idea to make a cleaner that not only doesn't contain any nasty stuff but also (hopefully) can deal with such odours. Vomited fish is equally bad as pet's urine :-(
I'm in your team and will cover the German part of this trial!! :-)
Karen
Excellent! Thanks Molly. ~ karen
JT
I have not read the post yet but I wanted to be the sixth to comment. Did I make it?
P.S. I will read it if I am the sixth!
JT
Corinne
I really want to try this, but don't want to have to wait 3 months. I have been doing a little research and found out if you add 1 tsp. of yeast to the above recipe, it will be ready in 2 weeks. You just have to remember to shake everyday for the first week.
Karen
Corinne - Yes, I read that too. However, I don't know about you, but I find whenever I try to do things the *fast* way in the end it actually ends up taking longer. My guess is the 3 month version is the better version. Perhaps I'll start another batch w/ yeast 2 weeks from my finish date to compare them. ~ karen!
Rory
Ha, I read the last part of the instructions as "shake and dance". Sounds like a plan!
Karen
Rory - Either, or. :) ~ karen
Laura
Whenever I see 7/8th's cup of something I just know I'm going to just go ahead and use a whole cup.
Kailee
I was thinking the same thing. What happens if I add a whole cup?!? Will it explode? Does the world end?