You can see the floors in my siggie pic, they are dusty and in need of a light mopping in that picture but they are pretty and high quality and aged to a nice color and texture

Hi Jen,

if you can replace i would definately do it. Because the wood is old and more than likely isn't properly sealed it has more than likely soaked up alot of urine/pee odour. If there are any little crevices or imperfections (little holes or cracks) in the wood the urine/poo had definately worked its way into them and would be almost impossible to get out.

If replacing that area isn't possible i would definately sand it as much as it can stand, wash the sanded area with one of the above products mentioned (although one not containing any oil) then try restaining and sealing. It won't match anymore, thats a given, but it should help with your problem.

ok I will look into the cost of replacing vs resanding and resealing.

But for now I will look for the Odo-Ban stuff to see if it is more effective than the nature's miracle.

I do clean up accidents as quickly as I see them, so I think the main problem is the old pee from the previous owners combined with the pee/poo from the rescue messes.

i am moving into a house with wooden floors. They will have a polyeurathaine(sp?) coating. What do i need to do to protect them from pet stains, other than obviously cleaning them up right away??
they too are pretty old floors, and i don't want any stains to soak down into the wood, i am trying to have a non smelly house for once.

if they have a polyurethane coating they should be ok, mine have just never had a true modern sealer on them. Just make sure the urethane is in good shape and it should keep the tinkle from soaking in

If it's an old wood floor my suggestion is sand and seal and only replace boards if you have to after you sand and get a good look at them. Unless they're warped I wouldn't really worry about it *unless* they did a bad job putting it in. If the boards are loose and creeky you'll likely have to bite the bullet and get a new floor. You simply will not find the quality wood or craftsmanship anymore to do a wood floor properly without spending an arm and a leg for it. It would make me weep to see old beautiful, old growth, knot free flooring go into the burn bin.

I'm as much as a do it yourselfer as you can get and have put in several hardwood floors into my parent's and my brother's homes and I draw the line at sanding and finishing hardwood floors. There is a definate art to doing it right and a definate consiquence to doing it wrong. Get someone skilled and licensed to do it if you can.

If you do decide to go the tile route you'll not only need to replace the boards but also put down cement board as a backing. Laminate is the only thing you can really "put over" an existing floor and I don't suggest it in this case. It'll be like a body in concrete where smells will just pour out and it's possible you may have a mildew/mold problem that can make you very ill.

The best stuff for doing hardwood floors is Fabulon. It's pretty expensive, over $35 a gallon. However, it lasts forever and shows little wear. Its really resistant to high-heel marks, scratches and other marks of daily wear and tear.

I finished my oak floors about ten years ago with it. It still looks pretty good.

You may have to look around a bit to find it. Most local hardward and home stores don't carry it.

http://www.essex-silver-line.com/pro/fabulon.html

i've used Urine Erase http://www.reidell.com/index.asp that i got from a vet's, and it worked really well. it took away some stains from a wood floor that is in desparate need of finishing, some it did not, but on a smell-removal basis, i was greatly impressed.

(one of the rabbits is litter trained, one is more of a 'free spirit')