I know my dog had an accident in a bedroom, but I couldn't find where the stain was since it blended in to the carpet so well. A black lightbulb in a lamp allowed me to see where the stain was so I could make sure I was cleaning the right spot.
You can buy a black lightbulb at just about any store like Lowe's or Fred Meyer for $4 or $5. Put it in a small lamp and hold it down close to the floor. Lighting the whole room might not make it bright enough to find the stain.
The first photo shows what the stain looks like under black light. The second photo shows how difficult it is to see in regular light. The shadows caused by vacuuming one way or the other are darker than the actual stain.
By Fletcher from Manchester, WA
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I read that you can use a fluorescent black light to find old urine stains. Is it just a normal fluorescent light that you can buy anywhere?
By Steve
They are a special bulb (but they look like regular light bulbs except for their color) and you can usually find them in hardware stores and I've even seen them at my local Rite-Aid pharmacy from time to time. The glass looks like a deep, deep purplish black. They're the kind of bulbs that we hippie's used in the 60's and early 70's to fluoresce psychedelic posters and giggle at lint on peoples clothing that doesn't normally show and giggle at assorted other not normally noticeable items. ;-)
EntirelyPets.com is where I got mine. I paid $10 plus shipping and it's really a handly little thing. Comes with batteries too. They also sell a product called Anti-icky Poo that works well for odors.
