Why Does My Artificial Grass Smell Worse After Cleaning?

This is the most common message we get after someone uses Turf Detox for the first time: I sprayed it yesterday and the yard smells worse. Did I do something wrong?

No. In most cases that is exactly what should happen, and it is the clearest sign the product is working.

What is going on under the surface

Dog urine does not sit on top of artificial grass. It drains through to the backing and base, dries, and leaves uric acid crystals behind. When you hose the yard, you only reach the surface. The buried layer stays put and keeps releasing ammonia whenever it gets warm or damp.

An enzyme cleaner is different. The enzymes and live bacteria in Urine + Odor Turf Detox go down to that buried layer and start breaking the crystals apart. Breaking them apart releases the trapped odor compounds all at once. That is the spike you smell. It is old urine being dug up and processed, not new odor being created.

The 24 to 48 hour detox cycle

• First few hours: the odor binders in the formula knock down surface smell, and the yard usually smells better right away.
• Hours 6 to 24: the enzymes reach the deep buildup and the smell can come back stronger. This is the flare-up.
• Hours 24 to 48: the probiotic microbes consume what the enzymes released. The smell fades and then disappears.

The heavier the buildup, the more noticeable the flare-up. A yard that has had dogs on it for three years without enzyme treatment will have a bigger spike than one that is treated monthly.

What not to do during the cycle

• Do not rinse it off. Rinsing washes out the bacteria before they finish. Let it dry on its own.
• Do not spray a deodorizer over it. You will just be masking the process, and some fragrance products interfere with the bacteria.
• Do not panic and apply bleach. Bleach kills the microbes that are doing the work.

When to apply again

If the smell is clearly improved after 48 hours but not gone, the buildup was deeper than one application could handle. Apply again. For set-in odors, switch to MAX 2X strength and do two applications 48 hours apart. Then stay ahead of it with a weekly or biweekly maintenance spray.

When it is something else

If the smell has not changed at all after two treatments, the problem is usually drainage. Turf installed over a base that does not drain holds a reservoir of urine under the surface that no spray can reach. That is a restoration job. Our crews handle it in Southern California at turfspa.com.