There are alternatives for the Hex Screw. A thumb screw is available on places like Amazon and AbstractOcean.com sells a magnetic cover so no tools needed to remove the cover. Still need to be flexible though.
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UGH - The smell of it. [AC Smell]
- Thread starter KenR
- Start date
jrmt23
he/him/his
Just to add another data point - not sure if anything changed for 2021, but so far almost 7,000mi in (Sept 01 delivery) and no funky A/C smells...yet.
I do have cabin overheat protection on to the "no a/c" setting, I usually have the re-circulation off, and every once in a while as I'm nearing home I shut off the a/c and just run the blower only on max.
I do have cabin overheat protection on to the "no a/c" setting, I usually have the re-circulation off, and every once in a while as I'm nearing home I shut off the a/c and just run the blower only on max.
TexasTezla
Member
Sure, I use rangers for everything and I have a SC within 20 minutes drive! Of course, so far, touch wood, I haven't needed them for anything big!
I've had the gym sock smell problem a few times (lasts for a few minutes at the state of a trip) and have always been able to get rid of it by changing the filters and treating the evaporator as mentioned here. Now I have a new smell. Smells more like cloths that you left in the washer for a few days (mold) and it doesn't go away after a few minutes, it remains for the duration of my trips and then I can smell it on my clothes later in the day. Tried last weekend spraying down the condenser and filters but it didn't fix it. Any other place that might be harboring this smell? Guess I can also try replacing the filters as well but they didn't smell when I took them out. Also tried looking at the air intake under the Frunk but couldn't see anything (like old laundry!) that would have caused the smell.
I got the vinegar smell in mine within 4 months of ownership. Apparently it doesn't take long here in FL. I did the usual: filters and coil cleaner. No smell at all after that but I'm sure it won't last long. Probably will have to do it twice a year. My filters didn't have much of a smell either but if you spray a little mist of water on the old ones, they STINK! So it's hard to tell just by sniffing the dry filters but they do harbor most of the smell I believe.
I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not but I sprayed a fine mist of hydrogen peroxide into the intake under the frunk with the system on while the filters were in place: knowing the filters would catch most of the liquid. That alone improved the smell and disinfected the ducting, at least prior to the filters. Not sure where else it would get a smell but I bet it won't smell if you replace the filters and do the coil cleaner.
Mike
I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not but I sprayed a fine mist of hydrogen peroxide into the intake under the frunk with the system on while the filters were in place: knowing the filters would catch most of the liquid. That alone improved the smell and disinfected the ducting, at least prior to the filters. Not sure where else it would get a smell but I bet it won't smell if you replace the filters and do the coil cleaner.
Mike
I didn't have an odor issue until I moved to a humid climate area. Now I change the filters once or twice a year (once in spring and once just before winter if I notice odor returning) and I use 2 cans of Klima. Seems to work better than Kool-it and more per can. Also run with recirculate off most of the time seems to help as well.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...e_1?smid=A2FN0U7S7W3A6C&psc=1#customerReviews
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...e_1?smid=A2FN0U7S7W3A6C&psc=1#customerReviews
jrmt23
he/him/his
You could try blasting some Lysol through the air intake of the a/c. This usually fixed the moldy smell in my old Toyota Tacoma.
That was my idea too. I tried it. Twice. Would get rid of the smell for a day or two and then it'd come back just as strong. Lysol doesn't spray very fine and it wets down the intake. If you want to try spraying something, I'd say get one of those fine continuous misters sold at beauty stores and put some hydrogen peroxide in it and try that. At least H2O2 will evaporate completely and even though it is somewhat corrosive, I don't believe it is corrosive to plastic or aluminum. Yeah, tried that too. Worked for maybe 5 days.
Mike
rxlawdude
Active Member
Consistent with another post that dry filters don't stink but when wet, stink comes back with a vengeance.
goldengate
Member
Mobile tech just told me to run the heater at maximum for 10 mins with no A/C.... has solved the issue for now but I'm guessing (based on the above) this is not a long-term fix. Already replaced the filters once on a 2018.
I change them twice a year. Once in the spring and once in the fall. Each time I use 2 cans of Klima foam cleaner (1 would work and one to make sure). The cans are bigger than Kool-it and work well. Also during the year I try to avoid Recirculate and that seemed to help as well.
I only use recirculate on the hottest days.
I only use recirculate on the hottest days.
There's some kind of pattern to this smell that I can't figure out after reading this thread or from personal experience. Most of the time the smell is the worst after a short stop being outside of the car for 15-30 minutes. It doesn't seem to matter much if I have recirc on, off, or auto.
Climate is So Cal, with ac running.
I'm wondering if there's something else we could clean other than blasting the ac coils beside the filter location? It really didn't do much to reduce the smells for me after doing that plus installing new filters.
Climate is So Cal, with ac running.
I'm wondering if there's something else we could clean other than blasting the ac coils beside the filter location? It really didn't do much to reduce the smells for me after doing that plus installing new filters.
Same situation here: short drive and a short sit will "activate" the stink. If you pull the old filters out and smell them, they don't have much smell when they are dry. If they get just a little damp, they STINK. So I think what is happening is that condensation builds up when you take the short trip and just a few minutes sitting while you are out of the car allows condensation to drip onto the filters making them damp. Then when you start up, you get the activated stench. If you let it go for a while without replacing the filters and cleaning the coils, eventually the stink will make its way into the coils too. Not sure how to "fix" this. I wondered if blasting the fan at 10 for a minute before you stop might help push condensation out of the coils but I've not tried that yet.
Mike
Mike
I change filters twice a year, use 2 cans of Klima (they are bigger than Kool-it) and run with recirculate OFF.
I've tried it with recirc on and off and I seem to get the smell sooner if I run it off. Recirc off is counterintuitive because it increases the condensation demand by constantly pulling humid air from outside that is repeatedly dehumidified by the AC. With recirc on, once you reduce the humidity, it will remain lower and result in less condensation (and less demand on the AC). Contrary to what some say Tesla service techs tell you, I think recirc off is the wrong move.
Mike
Mike
Using a wet paper towel or rag I also clean the air intake in the frunk. I take the cover off and really get in there wiping off all the dust, pollen and dirt. That seems to make a difference in my case.
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