Cat pee smell from pop top.

[Nosnittap]

I have a pop top and last October I had a roof rack fitted and recently I noticed a cat piss smell. I realised that water was leaking in through a badly sealed hole. I have silicone filled it. It was on the outside of the canvas and I haven’t opened the pop top since last summer. I have searched for the smell and it’s definitely somewhere in the pop top. I’ve sprayed, wiped down and done all kinds of stuff but the smell persists. I’ve left the pop top open too.
Has anyone had this problem.

 

[oldiebut goodie]

Yuk. Silicone, nasty stuff, save it for bathrooms. Most probably the acetic acid reacting with something else.

 

[Malfly]

Various wood products like ply are treated with a fire retardant. This smells of cat pee!
Your pop top or roof bed may be constructed of this material.

 

[Nosnittap]

Various wood products like ply are treated with a fire retardant. This smells of cat pee!
Your pop top or roof bed may be constructed of this material.

Hi. Yes it does have plywood incorporated into it. The cat pee smell gets worse in the sun. I didn’t realise the silicone I plugged the hole with came out and so water has been leaking into the wood all winter.
Do you think I would need to completely replace the roof to get rid of the smell. Once open the smell goes. I’ve been thinking of removing the rubber seal around the edges and leaving the top up on hot days to see if any water will evaporate out. What would you do.

 

[Nosnittap]

Hi. Yes it does have plywood incorporated into it. The cat pee smell gets worse in the sun. I didn’t realise the silicone I plugged the hole with came out and so water has been leaking into the wood all winter.
Do you think I would need to completely replace the roof to get rid of the smell. Once open the smell goes. I’ve been thinking of removing the rubber seal around the edges and leaving the top up on hot days to see if any water will evaporate out. What would you do.

The hole was on the outside of the canvas.

 

[Malfly]

That sounds like a plan!
Just keep it in the fresh air and dry it out.

 

[Lubrown]

The hole was on the outside of the canvas.

If you have wind deflectors (such as ClimAir) then you could also leave the door windows cracked open a bit to aid ventilation.