My bathroom stinks all. of. the. time.
We are 6 people, 4 of which are boys, 3 of which are boys with bad aim, all sharing one bathroom.
My Nemesis.
Every. single. day a very small person pees directly in front of the toilet and onto the tile/grout. And every single day I clean it up. But the smell remains. It permanently smells like a public restroom. Sad face.
Sometimes I just sprinkle baking soda all around the base of the toilet and walk away.
And I fantasize about a company finally filling this highly specific need in my life.
Potty Litter!
With Crystals!
Fresh scent!
Super odor absorbing!
Multiple boy formula!
Something I could just sprinkle and be done with. With tight clumping for easier scooping.
Sigh. A girl can dream.
I’m glad that God parents me with more grace than I sometimes parent my floor peeing boys, that He never looks down and sigh’s, “Ugh! I just scrubbed that sin! Come ON guys. Get it togeeether.”
What sin of your son’s is the thorn in your heel that you struggle being graceful about?
Um, and also…how do you keep your bathroom from being stinky? For Serious.
-Jessica from Bohemian Bowmans
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I am with you! I was just telling my husband that I can’t get ride of the urine smell from 2 boys… I have tried everything! If you figure out how to get rid of the awful smell, let us in on the trick.
A few tips from a fellow boy-bathroom sufferer (I have 4 currently potty trained boys and one more will be using the potty very soon!)…
1. Clean the nobs and screws where the seat attaches to the bowl – take the whole seat off and clean it really well. I was amazed at how much smell was hiding there! (Oh and then go spend $30 on a new seat that has the “easy hinge” so that it’s easier to get that part clean on a regular basis. And maybe a seat that has the “slow lower” feature to avoid that annoying seat slam!)
2. The ONLY thing I found that works on the floors was Nature’s Mircale – the pet stuff. Any pet store carries it. It has enzymes that break down the urine. It works on cat, dog, AND boy pee!
3. Make them clean it!!
4. Get some urinal stickers and put them in the bowl (they come in little animals, trees, or even targets) to help make aiming fun!
I’m sure a lot of these have been repeated but I didn’t have time to go through all of the prior comments to find out! For what it’s worth, my DH was never taught proper bathroom hygene as a child, but he is very, very clean as an adult. Never leaves the seat up, or drips anywhere. So there is hope!!
Erin @ A Full Heart´s last [type] ..Wordless Wednesday – What Goes Up…
I’m with Erin, one of my boys’ (5 and 3) chores in the morning is cleaning the toilet.
LaToya´s last [type] ..Hiatus
Nature’s Miracle is fantastic. A life saver. I can’t say enough good things about it. I have used it for just about everything.
Jennifer@A Blog of My Very Own!´s last [type] ..Seeing the Lord in everything…
Great tip on the cat litter. I do make mine clean it when I know who did it. My husband also put a seal (looks like plastic when it’s dried) around the base of the toilet. That has helped.
oops, I meant to say, “great tip on the stuff that breaks down the enzymes in all kinds of pee.” not “great tip on the cat litter.”
Too funny…!!!
Unfortunately at my house, it’s not just my “little” boy who does this…UGH!!!
I too am grumbling every day about the “mess” and I have spent a few nights fishing my own butt out of the toilet that was left with the seat up!!!
I have another trouble at my house. They start to pee and flush the toilet, racing to see if they can finish before the water comes back in…NOT GOOD, especially when you come in there in the morning! Don’t know how to stop this one…the “big” boy is the one who started it…
Loved, loved, loved this honest article.
I started rolling the minute I read the title of this post. Just last night I was in both of our bathrooms, with a spray bottle of bleach, a roll of paper towels, and a trashcan going crazy trying to kill the smell. I do think bleach works pretty well, but I have also heard that peroxide will do the trick. I’m too picky about the kids touching cleaning stuff just yet, so that chore has not been given, but ONE DAY IT WILL>>>> HAHAHA! (EVIL LAUGH)hehe. Good luck on killing the stink, and great job on the post! I totally relate!
Audra Caldwell´s last [type] ..Sweet and Southern Chicken Tenders
Oh, how I hate my boys’ bathroom… I dream of a day where we will own a house with a guest bathroom that they will never touch – it’s embarrassing when people come over!
We have had good success with this homemade cleaner:
http://frugalfun4boys.com/2010/09/02/homemade-cleaner-that-neutralizes-boy-bathroom-stink/
It really neutralizes the smell, but our problem is that they generate new smell every day!
Oh my WORD I am so glad you posted this. The smell of my boys’ bathroom (kind of like a barn?) makes me so frustrated. I’m REALLY glad it’s not just me!
Erin´s last [type] ..Unleashing My Inner ArTEEST
I’m really glad it’s not just ME.
I’ve never been so glad that my son is still in diapers. Lol!!!
Jennifer´s last [type] ..Compassion Taking Over Twitter??
Okay, I just commented a minute ago, but I had to add another and say that it’s so funny that your toilet seat has two little marks on it from slamming the lid down over and over. We are thinking of putting our house on the market, and I was just thinking about how we’re totally going to have to replace our toilet seat because of the smell and the damage from slamming down the lid!
Sarah @ Frugal Fun for Boys´s last [type] ..It’s a BOY!
Jessica
Only moments before reading this my son ran into my bathroom jerked his pants to the floor and hosed the back of my toilet down. I could hear it hit the floor. I said son did you just pee on my floor….silence….ummm…no. Son I heard the pee hitting the floor. Oh mom it only got on the floor a little bit. Needless to say he just cleaned up his mess, and now my bathroom floor is pee free!
Thanks for sharing you life….having boys is oh so much fun!
Tifaine´s last [type] ..Not so SUPER
I’ve used white vinegar in the past and it works for a few days – - and it’s not yucky smelling afterwards. I’m so glad someone posted they have their 5 and 3 year olds cleaning the toilet. . . wanna guess how old my two are?! (((evil laugh))) OOOOOOH BOYS!!!!! Mommy has something fun for you to do lol
I don’t understand why this is a problem . . .
A urinal is meant to stand at to pee. A toilet is designed for sitting. There may be accidents, but sitting to pee will not result in the splash or mess that standing does.
This poem is above my guest bath:
You are not outdoors,
This isn’t a tree,
so have some respect,
Sit down to pee.
Love the poem!!
All 3 of my boys were taught to sitting down!!! Sometimes there will be some mess because my little one got in a hurry but for the most part the floor stays clean!And when he does mess my floor, I quickly wipe it up with a clorox wipe. We taught the older 2 to stand only when they were getting ready to start school!
I use windex and it works until next offender.
Michelle in Mx´s last [type] ..I’m a Christian and I have tattoos
Oh thank you! Glad to know I’m not the only one obsessively cleaning my bathroom floors. Unfortunately, my kids’ bathroom is also our guest bathroom and to avoid it smelling like a port-a-potty 24/7, I have to clean the floors almost daily. I have some of the nature’s miracle already, I’m going to try that! Awesome tips!
one of my boys in particular had really bad aim, so it was his job to clean it every day! He realised that it was up to him to stop peeing on the floor so that he could have a change of chore!
And I have also used white vinegar – its really good for the smell.
Boys are Fun!
Andrea´s last [type] ..Mildred
I haven’t read all the comments, so I don’t know if anyone has recommended Nok-Out to you. It is available at Amazon. Hope that helps!
Hi, I don’t have kids of my own but I know ALL ABOUT pee stink from having a whole lot of moody cats and a stream of foster animals.
Clean the area with vinegar, I prefer unpasteurized cider vinegar as it has more active stuff in it, and then set a shallow pretty bowl of the same on top of the toilet to scrub the air. I once used pans of vinegar set in closed rooms to clear the pee smell from our rental after it had four cats who ignored the box and three semi-continent dogs living in it.
And why not give the wee ones a “camper’s potty” that’s closer to their height? IE a bucket of kitty litter?
Hope you solve your problem!
I loved this post! For one it was nice to know I’m not alone in my bathroom woes! We have three boys, two of whom are potty trained. Also, it was a good reminder to clean up my attitude even while cleaning up messes. I have used hydrogen peroxide with a lot of success. I usually spray it on at night and let it sit, then wipe it up in the morning. White vinegar does well, too, but the peroxide is my favorite. But, I still feel like the bathroom STINKS, a lingering odor. Gonna check out Nature’s Miracle.
Oh praise God. I seriously had a melt down recently demanding my husband “fix” the problem – that surely there was something wrong with our children that they always pee on the floor. THE SMELL IS HORRIBLE ! At one point I saw the toilet had not been flushed ALL DAY so I made the oldest sit in there with the door shut (lid open) for 5 minutes.
“What is wrong with you people, I don’t pee on your floor stop peeing on the bathroom floor” has been said in my home on MORE than once occasion!
So happy you shared this “silly” topic cause I thought I was losing my mind !!
Stef – Educating Layton´s last [type] ..When you question your homeschool decision
I would HATE to see/smell a bathroom that only my boys used. Since we all share one, at do make sure it gets flushed, at least. But they rarely do it!
Jessica Bowman´s last [type] ..Everyone Has a Worldview
Oh, how I struggled with this when my boys were little. Until I started leaving Lysol wipes on the shelf above the toilet and the rule was they had to wipe around the bottom of the toilet after every pee. and, aim does get better with age
Melissa´s last [type] ..Is it just me?
Ummm . . . this makes me a little nervous to start toilet training my older boy! LOL!!
Allie´s last [type] ..Today
We had to tear out our floors recently due to a major leakage/flood and even the subfloor stunk (stank. stinked. whatever.) It is disgusting. But I refuse to let it win. I shall fight unto death.
Lara´s last [type] ..sometimes we just need to eat a popsicle
There really is a super easy colution to this (as already mentioned above, but I’m astounded that so few moms expect it) – they should sit down to use the toilet! I have two boys, and they have never been given the option of standing and peeing into a toilet. Why don’t moms just expect them to do it the way that does not lead to a mess?
Yep. I’ve totally cheated on this one. My boys sit down to go potty. I’ve never even hinted that standing is an option. (OK, my oldest boy did once stand ON THE TOILET SEAT and peed in the toilet. But his Dad caught him in the act and nipped that idea in the bud!)
I just found your story, and while i only have one boy in the house (6) he misses sometimes. Its never to stinky, he drinks alot of water. He has been cleaning the toilet since he was 2, with 50/50 simple green (all natural and safe for kids to use) and water. If it ever was realy stinky i would just mix more simple green and less water. Never have been embaresed when people pop in.
I was just lamenting the smell of my 4 yr. old’s misses tonight. I usually have him clean it up (or whoever I catch doing it since I have 3 boys). And he had put toilet paper down on it to absorbe the urine and I told him next time tell me and I’ll give him the spray. Because now we have dried, yellow, urine filled toilet paper on top of the pee smell. So glad you wrote about this b/c it’s definitely something that bothers me. I have asked the ones who miss a lot to sit as it seems there are fewer misses then. I’m going to get that Nature’s Miracle another “Erin” mentioned.
OK, I know this won’t help the smell, but it might help us to accept it with a softened heart… Obviously this is just something that moms of boys are faced with, and hopefully with time we will face it less. But until then….find a friend, a fellow mom of boys, and choose to pray for one another every time you enter that boy bathroom smell zone. Since I have 5 boys, 6 including their daddy, my friend and her boys are prayed for often, and I know the blessing is reciprocated.
And it makes the cleaning time much more pleasant.
Stacy´s last [type] ..A Heart Such As That
Oh my goodness. You are hysterical! I love the way your brain works. That just seriously made my day…
Wow, fantastic blog layout! How lengthy have you been running a blog for? you make blogging look easy. The total glance of your website is great, let alone the content!
Subway Tile Bathroom´s last [type] ..1
I have 4 boys and OMG I am right there with you! They are 15, 9, 4 & 4 (twins). I stuck a “Mens” sticker on the door to the bathroom the older two use and refuse to go in there or clean that bathroom. About once a week I tell the older one to clean it. He finally does a half-way decent job, but I let them live with whatever job he does and warn guests not to enter that bathroom. The younger two use all three of our bathrooms. The most frequently used (only one downstairs/guest bathroom) stinks terribly. I find pee in there around the base of the toilet EVERY DAY! I feel like I’m going to lose my mind! It’s so gross. I resent having to clean up someone else’s pee. I used to make the 9 year old clean it but now he has plausible deniability (even though I know he still does it!) because of the little ones. I have Nature’s Miracle for skunk/dog encounters and have been considering using it in the bathrooms. I will give it a try. I was actually googling looking for some sort of wetness-sensitive alarm thingy that could be placed around the bottom of the toilet that would make a screeching loud noise when it got wet. Someone should invent that if they haven’t already!