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UGH - The smell of it. [AC Smell]
- Thread starter KenR
- Start date
Update: The wife came in and said the smell is back so its time for the standard fix.
Turned on the air conditioner and then raised the temp setting to the highest setting and same with the fan while the air conditioner was on. But note my wife reported yesterday the smell had returned.
I still havent experienced this, I guess it may be living in the desert, the dry air means the AC dries out fast enough to not cause a problem.
Dogs_In_A_Pile
Member
Probably dry enough most of the time that very little moisture collects on the evaporator. I've always made it a point to turn off the A/C a mile or 2 before my destination and run the fan on high to dry off the evaporator, especially in more humid climates. I can't stand having that odor in the HVAC system and once the microorganisms set up shop in there it is very difficult to completely get rid of them.
I purchased my 3 used a little over a month ago. The HVAC odor was pretty bad. I ordered the same cleaner that tesla uses (link below) and replaced with OEM filters. Completely cured the odor.
Air Duct Cleaner AC Evaporator & Heater Foam Cleaner Lubeg | eBay
An Automotive air duct cleaner is a chemical solution used to clean the air ducts in a vehicle's HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) system. This chemical solution is specially formulated to remove dirt, grime, and other contaminants that can accumulate over time in the ducts...
www.ebay.com
Filter and Kool it are good but also check the actual intake from the hood area. Sometimes leaves get down through the grill and rest against the intake screen. I added an intake cover screen using gutter mesh and weather stripping. I find it breaths better than the aftermarket plastic covers that drop in.
So....I had two different BMWs that had terrible odors from the HVAC. I'd change filters and the smell would go away, but it would return randomly from time to time. This was probably due to my short commute which would not run HVAC long enough to dry everything out. What ended up FINALLY eliminating the odor completely was an ozone generator. You can rent them at most rental places. Just put it in the car, windows up, turn the fan on and leave the generator and the fan on for a few hours. Turn it off, air out the car. Voila....smell gone. I guess it kills anything organic. I don't know the chemistry, but it DOES work. If the smell returns, just do it all over again. Super easy in a Tesla since you can leave the fan running without running the engine.
The concern I have with an ozone generator (besides the fact it is hazardous to your lungs) is that it will, by it's nature, breakdown plastics and accelerate destruction of rubbers...
I sprayed a generous amount of AC coil cleaner and after about 15-20 mins of letting it soak in and evaporate in the sun, I then sprayed some Mold Control so that hopefully there is no more build up of mold/mildew, also replaced the filters. It's been a week so far and so far no smell, of course I cracked the windows open and let it vent a bit to make sure there are no dangerous fumes (if any from the mold control spray?) and has been good so far. No odor, and it smells pretty neutral, maybe a hint of lemon from the coil cleaner foam, which disappeared after the first few days.
android04
Active Member
I plan on ordering fine stainless steel mesh from Amazon to do something similar. I think I want mesh with 1mm apertures, but they sell mesh with apertures 10 times smaller than that. And many sizes in between and beyond both of those.
Rothgarr
Active Member
Is it the sort of thing where people say "It will destroy your plastics and rubbers!" but in reality, that's only if you leave it running for 365 days straight?
Can leaving it in your car for just a few hours really do damage?
I suspect that some of these repeat odor issues are caused by organic debris being left behind in the filter housing compartment.
When I got “the smell”, after removing the filters I took the extra step of using an inspection camera to inspect this compartment for any organic debris, and I found small bits of leaves, stems, and needles still in there. So to prevent this debris from causing recurring odor issues, I MacGyver’d a solution to suck out the debris using a small (1/2”-3/4”) flexible plastic hose attached to a shop vac suction hose w/ duct tape to provide suction, and then taped that hose to the aforementioned inspection camera’s arm, which allowed me to see where I was guiding this hose inside the filter compartment and maneuver it to where the debris was so I could suck it all out. It was a huge PITA, but it got the job done. Only THEN did I use the Kool-It to clean/disinfect.
And then, so I wouldn’t have to break my back doing the same crap again 1-2 years later, I bought a cut-to-size, high-flow furnace filter and cut it to fit the intake opening in the frunk to prevent any more debris from getting in (and without restricting airflow, which some of the other intake filters will do). Here are a couple good options for this type of filter available at Walmart or Home Depot:
When I got “the smell”, after removing the filters I took the extra step of using an inspection camera to inspect this compartment for any organic debris, and I found small bits of leaves, stems, and needles still in there. So to prevent this debris from causing recurring odor issues, I MacGyver’d a solution to suck out the debris using a small (1/2”-3/4”) flexible plastic hose attached to a shop vac suction hose w/ duct tape to provide suction, and then taped that hose to the aforementioned inspection camera’s arm, which allowed me to see where I was guiding this hose inside the filter compartment and maneuver it to where the debris was so I could suck it all out. It was a huge PITA, but it got the job done. Only THEN did I use the Kool-It to clean/disinfect.
And then, so I wouldn’t have to break my back doing the same crap again 1-2 years later, I bought a cut-to-size, high-flow furnace filter and cut it to fit the intake opening in the frunk to prevent any more debris from getting in (and without restricting airflow, which some of the other intake filters will do). Here are a couple good options for this type of filter available at Walmart or Home Depot:
True Blue 24 x 36 x 1 Budget FRP 2 Washable Filter HD0124361 - The Home Depot
Budget Washable Air Filter FPR 2 Air Filter is designed to help reduce dirt buildup in air ducts, air conditioners and furnace systems. This product can be washed and reused. Filter can be modified and
www.homedepot.com
No he said he broke it and apologized. I was watching when it happened.
Unknown, which is why it may be a concern and may not. It seems reasonable to me that if the ozone concentration is high enough that it's killing the organic material in the A/C system that it might be high enough to harm all the organic material in the rest of the car (adhesives, synthetic leather, etc.). I have no idea what concentration/duration would cause damage to those (and I work for a company that supplies the materials for a lot of those components) because it's not a thing we test for.
Exactly as @Aellinsar said. These devices (ozone generators) are non calibrated devices and one has no idea how much they are pumping out. Huge number of different materials in the car, some might be fine some might not be. I live in Arizona and see plastics crumbling from uv rays so I'd prefer to decrease risk.
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