Biokleen Bac-Out review: the Green Seal enzyme spray for pet messes

Pee on the rug, vomit on the couch, an accident on the dog bed? Biokleen Bac-Out is a bio-enzymatic cleaner made for exactly those messes, and it is Green Seal certified. Spray, wait, blot. That is the routine.

Our verdict: the pick for fresh accidents and for homes that want every ingredient out in the open. Skip it for a months-old spot or if you want the room to smell like perfume the second you spray.

Who Bac-Out suits

• Fresh pee, poop, vomit, drool or blood on carpet, couches, mattresses and pillows. Biokleen also lists collars and kennels.
• Pee on the dog bed or in the laundry, not just the carpet.
• Homes that read the label. Every ingredient is listed, fragrance included.
• Dog and cat households. Biokleen calls its lavender-lime scent safe for dogs and cats.

What's in it

• Enzymatic: live, plant-derived bacteria cultures that break down pee, poop, vomit, drool and blood.
• Green Seal certified: listed by Green Seal under GS-52, specialty cleaning products for household use, certified since 2022.
• Free of: phosphates, chlorine, ammonia, brighteners and artificial colors, per Biokleen.
• Never tested on animals, Biokleen says.
• The full list: water, glycerin, viable bacteria culture, phenoxyethanol, C12-16 pareth-7, tetrasodium glutamate diacetate, disodium citrate, citrus species leaf oil, linalool, fragrance, lavandula hybrida oil.

How to use it (and how long to wait)

1. Blot up what you can first.
2. Spray the spot until it is wet through, not misted.
3. Leave it 5 minutes or more. This is the step people skip. The enzymes need the time.
4. Blot it up.
5. Check the spot once it is fully dry. Still see or smell it? Repeat.

Spray, wait 5 minutes or more, blot. Judge the spot only when it is dry.

The catch

• The enzymes keep working after you spray, so the spot looks different until it dries. Do not call it at minute five.
• The scent is subtle. It will not cover an odor the second you spray.
• Smell keeps coming back? See why pet odor comes back.

Bac-Out vs the alternatives

• Naturally It's Clean or Rocco & Roxie: our head-to-head covers fresh spots on carpet and long soaks on old, dried pee.
• Skout's Honor: not an enzyme cleaner. It is the different route when the smell outlasted an enzyme soak. Read the Skout's Honor review.
• Bac-Out wins when the same bottle has to do the carpet, the couch and the dog bed.

Want every pick ranked? See dog odor cleanup picks or cat odor cleanup picks, or open the Bac-Out pick page.