| hey1 | 11-21-2004 06:02 AM |
Odd Smell from AC
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I'd consider this problem part of the interior care category. When I turn on AC, it smells like dirty water. How can I maintain my AC from smelling like that? I have nearly 40,000 on my 02 wagon and I haven't change any sort of maintenance parts and such yet besides motor oil, oil filter ~ 3000 miles. Perhaps, I have to change some sort of ac filter? If so, how do I get to it? Any remarks? Thanks for all for reading, helping, and even thinking about the problem.
Kevin :confused:
Kevin :confused:
| skyhawk | 11-21-2004 06:10 AM |
Do you have the cabin filtration system installed on your car as an option. If so it is behind the glovebox. The glovebox needs to be removed to access the filter. Others here buy regular house AC unit filters and cut them to size. They work just as good for alot less money. If the filter isn't your problem then I don't know what is. This should be covered in the owners manual so you may want to look there for the filter removal procedures.
| hey1 | 11-21-2004 06:16 AM |
So a simple AC filter will get rid of the smell? Thanks
| file_id | 11-21-2004 06:18 AM |
The smell you are finding is caused by mold or mildew in the evaporator/heater housing which is the typical cause for the dirty water smell you are talking about. There are products that you can buy to deorderize and spray into your airvents that eliminate this problem.
| hey1 | 11-21-2004 06:27 AM |
But wouldn't deodorizing only eliminate the smell which ultimately means that I will still be taking in dirty air that aren't as smelly.
| skyhawk | 11-21-2004 06:29 AM |
I'm not saying that it will get rid of the smell. I don't even know if you have the filter, and I don't think you know if you have it either. It is one place though that could be holding mold and mildew and worth checking. If you don't have the filter then you would have to check other places.
| hey1 | 11-21-2004 06:34 AM |
Cool. Thanks for your help and bearing with my semi-stupidity.
| Mulder | 11-21-2004 07:21 AM |
The evaporator core will develop mold/mildew over time from standing water that remains after using the A/C. This is more likely to happen if you use the recirculate mode often rather than the fresh air mode, and if you leave the A/C running right up to when the engine is shut down.
Once this has happened, it can be treated by spraying Lysol or another disinfectant product directly into the HVAC intake vents (at the base of the windshield under the wipers) with the vent fan running, this will draw the disinfectant through the core and should kill most or all of the mildew. The treatment may need to be repeated later on if it comes back.
To prevent this from recurring, or from happening in the first place, use the recirculate mode as little as possible. Also when using the A/C, turn the compressor off at least a few blocks before reaching your final destination but leave the vent fan running. This will allow the standing water in the evaporator to drain out.
Checking the cabin filter is a good idea as well if you have one.
Once this has happened, it can be treated by spraying Lysol or another disinfectant product directly into the HVAC intake vents (at the base of the windshield under the wipers) with the vent fan running, this will draw the disinfectant through the core and should kill most or all of the mildew. The treatment may need to be repeated later on if it comes back.
To prevent this from recurring, or from happening in the first place, use the recirculate mode as little as possible. Also when using the A/C, turn the compressor off at least a few blocks before reaching your final destination but leave the vent fan running. This will allow the standing water in the evaporator to drain out.
Checking the cabin filter is a good idea as well if you have one.
| hey1 | 11-21-2004 01:14 PM |
Thanks Mulder... "Trust no one" hehe
| hey1 | 11-21-2004 01:28 PM |
Since I don't know whether I have the cabin filtration or not, can anyone tell me what it looks like and what to for or even to help me identify the object? :| Thanks.
| file_id | 11-24-2004 05:59 AM |
Unless you opted to get the in cabin filter when you bought the car then you don't have it. The filter is about $35.
| Mulder | 11-24-2004 07:05 AM |
The above is probably true, but you can check just to be sure. Remove the glovebox, behind it you will see a white door. Flip that open and see if there is a filter in the compartment. If it's empty you don't have one.
| tux | 11-24-2004 10:13 AM |
lysol in the air vents works
| hey1 | 11-24-2004 10:41 AM |
it is the filter that smells. haven't changed it for two years.. btw.. you don't need to check behind the glove box.. usually if you got that from dealer.. they put stickers on the side of the passenger door.. thanks everyone for help..
| Cre8ive | 11-24-2004 11:41 AM |
Like Mulder said it most likely is your evaporator coil. Check the drain hose to make sure it is not kinked or obstruted so that the water that condenses can drain.
On Two Guys Garage or My Classic Car, they showed a product that foams-up and cleans and disinfects the evaporator box. I don't know if this is the same product but I did a search and found this - [url]http://www.dwd2.com/docs/DWD2_Products.htm[/url]
On Two Guys Garage or My Classic Car, they showed a product that foams-up and cleans and disinfects the evaporator box. I don't know if this is the same product but I did a search and found this - [url]http://www.dwd2.com/docs/DWD2_Products.htm[/url]
| Mulder | 11-24-2004 07:20 PM |
Don't be shocked if you change the filter and the smell is still there. Although a dirty filter can certainly harbor some smelly stuff, the culprit is almost always mildew growth in the evaporator.
Also before purchasing a replacement filter from a dealer for $40+, look for the threads about alternatives. You can get 3M furnace filters from Home Depot and make several replacement filters for less than the price of one from the dealer, details in the threads.
Also before purchasing a replacement filter from a dealer for $40+, look for the threads about alternatives. You can get 3M furnace filters from Home Depot and make several replacement filters for less than the price of one from the dealer, details in the threads.
| Jejunum | 11-24-2004 09:28 PM |
[QUOTE=Mulder]The evaporator core will develop mold/mildew over time from standing water that remains after using the A/C. This is more likely to happen if you use the recirculate mode often rather than the fresh air mode, and if you leave the A/C running right up to when the engine is shut down.
Once this has happened, it can be treated by spraying Lysol or another disinfectant product directly into the HVAC intake vents (at the base of the windshield under the wipers) with the vent fan running,[/QUOTE]
question about the location of the vents, there are a bunch of vent like things across the lower section of the windshield outside of the car. are they all vents for the HVAC?
any concerns with lysol making the plastic underneath the windshield fade?
also one unrelatedish. how does the water drain from the hvac inlets?
thanks!
Once this has happened, it can be treated by spraying Lysol or another disinfectant product directly into the HVAC intake vents (at the base of the windshield under the wipers) with the vent fan running,[/QUOTE]
question about the location of the vents, there are a bunch of vent like things across the lower section of the windshield outside of the car. are they all vents for the HVAC?
any concerns with lysol making the plastic underneath the windshield fade?
also one unrelatedish. how does the water drain from the hvac inlets?
thanks!
| Mulder | 11-24-2004 09:51 PM |
Yes those are all for the HVAC intake.
I don't think Lysol will damage the plastic, try it on a small area first.
There are drains to carry away water from the inlet area.
I don't think Lysol will damage the plastic, try it on a small area first.
There are drains to carry away water from the inlet area.
| 03twrx | 11-25-2004 02:21 PM |
You can go somewhere like pep boys or tire kingdom and have the system de mildewed. Man I destroyed that word.
| hey1 | 11-25-2004 02:33 PM |
er... the HVAC sounds like a complicated piece of equipment.. hmmm.. i've already tried changing the filter.. and most of the smell is gone... and i'm not so sure if there is a hint of it. since there are so many suggestions.. i'm not so sure which step to take first for cleansing the hvac. should i take out my stereo and clean the damn thing? ARGH!
| Mulder | 11-25-2004 04:51 PM |
You can't clean it from the inside without removing the HVAC box, which houses the evaporator core. This is a highly labor intensive job that takes many hours and isn't a DIY. Hence the alternative method of treating the mildew problem, spraying disinfectant through the vents from the outside.
If you do decide to spray Lysol or whatever in there, take the filter out first. You want the spray to be able to reach the core so it can work, the filter will stop it.
If you do decide to spray Lysol or whatever in there, take the filter out first. You want the spray to be able to reach the core so it can work, the filter will stop it.
| redwagon | 11-25-2004 10:01 PM |
Instead of trying to spray disinfectant into the vents, against the airflow, try letting the system pull it in from the intake side. Turn the lever to recirculate, run the blower, spray burts of disinfectant or deodorant up under the back of the glovebox. The blower fan pulls it in and you'll smell it come out the vents.
Much more effective ;)
I use some Japanese spray stuff that's made for the purpose of killing the mold on the evaporator. Works well and keeps the stink at bay for about 6 months.
Much more effective ;)
I use some Japanese spray stuff that's made for the purpose of killing the mold on the evaporator. Works well and keeps the stink at bay for about 6 months.
| hey1 | 06-15-2005 01:59 AM |
[QUOTE=03twrx]You can go somewhere like pep boys or tire kingdom and have the system de mildewed. Man I destroyed that word.[/QUOTE]
do they really have that service?
the smell is coming back.. -_-
do they really have that service?
the smell is coming back.. -_-
| tux | 06-15-2005 03:53 PM |
nono you spray by the wiper arms!
| hey1 | 06-15-2005 04:58 PM |
hmm.. i'll give that a try.
| FiKtIOn | 06-16-2005 01:44 PM |
I pooped in your AC Vent!
| Phy6 | 04-13-2006 07:04 PM |
I saw something when I cut out my old impreza's firewall: the trough that the wiper motors/arm sits in was actually growing green algae in it. The trough surface had some of that cream colored rubbery spray texture on it (sound-deadening or rust preventor I guess), so it just grew right in. So spraying lysol in those vents underneath the windshield should get that. This may be another reason why people have odd smells even after replacing their filters.
Aside:
In my parents' old GL we once had a family of mice nest somewhere in the AC/blower portion. I guess they died on some winter day when the heat got turned on. It was hot and nasty come summertime!! Dousing everything with Lysol helped.
Aside:
In my parents' old GL we once had a family of mice nest somewhere in the AC/blower portion. I guess they died on some winter day when the heat got turned on. It was hot and nasty come summertime!! Dousing everything with Lysol helped.
| 1tightrex | 04-13-2006 08:46 PM |
do not put any kind of chemical on the evaporator coil. It will corrode if any chemical residue stays on for a period of time. Wash with only water.
| SentinelSison | 04-16-2006 11:04 PM |
It seems that the problem you are having is directly related to the evap. coil. They are all right, this is not something you would want to service yourself because it involves ripping out the entire dash just to access the heater coil/evaporator coil. However there are a few options and routes you may want to try. I know for me a mouse got up into the car from a hole in the firewall(which of course I ran my amp wire through and forgot to seal it up with a grommet) and somehow found itself within the blower compartment. When I went to turn on the A/C during a hot summer day here in Southern Maryland where it is real humid, I instead got a sound of a blender skewing away at the mouse. Now after my service department got ahold of the blower and claimed "they cleaned everything up," I could still smell the mess forever. At first lysol worked, but it didn't take long for the smell to come back. Like in the bathroom after taking care of business, all the lysol did was mask the smell. I work in the hvac trade and managed to get my hands on what we call a fogger. It is used for Residential and commercial duct fogging to remove mold and mildew from ducts and evaportor coils. I just simply made up my own concocktion of chemicals that I thought would get ride of the smell and used this tool to create a sort of fog to fog the duct system of the car. While in the fresh air mode of the climate control, this fog was circulated through the car for about ten minutes. And it works. I can't tell you how bad the car smelled before and the only example I can give is the smell of rotting flesh. Imagine it being blown all over you when you turn on the heating or cooling of the car. It's enough to make you want to sell it. But mold and mildew can be just as bad. And everyone will suffer the same smell whether they change their filtration filter or not. So to me it seemed like the tool I was looking for. Ideally the evaporator needs to be cleaned with some sort of acidic or akaline solutions on an annual basis, but many do not know this. The same is true for the big black coil in the front of the car, the condenser. If not then most likely you will smell the moldy evaporator or be over taxing your a/c compressor due to a blocked condenser, which will lead to pre-mature failure. These coils will be used alot, especially the evaporator, which is used all year long. Basic service will help keep that smell from ever developing. Sorry about the book!
| redwagon | 04-16-2006 11:28 PM |
So, are you going to tell us what your magical chemical cocktail is?
| CyberVlad | 04-16-2006 11:45 PM |
[QUOTE=hey1]do they really have that service?
the smell is coming back.. -_-[/QUOTE]
Unfortunately, whatever they do at PepBoys doesn't solve the problem either.
I paid $180 to get it done to my other car and instead of having midew smell I had some chemical smell for 2 weeks, after that mildew came back.
That was a total waste of money.
the smell is coming back.. -_-[/QUOTE]
Unfortunately, whatever they do at PepBoys doesn't solve the problem either.
I paid $180 to get it done to my other car and instead of having midew smell I had some chemical smell for 2 weeks, after that mildew came back.
That was a total waste of money.
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