AC Smell
 

hey I have a 99 Protege and my AC smells really bad sometimes. I was just wondering what needs to be done to get rid of the bad smell? I have tried running my heat for a while and that did not get ride of the smell. Thanks for your help.

Barry

That happended to my ex-girlfriend's Civic. She tried everything to get the smell out (if it is the same smell). I think in the end it was something that got into the vents on the hood..... ah crap I don't remember!

what does it smell LIKE? give us a hint so we can better understand what might be going on.

It smells like Stagnated water and Mildew..but it comes and goes..Mostly after the car has set and you get back in it and turn the AC on and its REAL bad for a few seconds..then it goes away..


Barry

it could very well be that some leaves and stuff has gotten down in the vents from outside and mixed with the moisture they are rotting, and mildewing...seen it happen before.

I think my ex's was birdcrap in the external vent, and her ac reaked b/c of it. Maybe try cleaning those out, or spray febreeze it them;)

You say "it comes and goes". Does is normally smell on the days that you skip a shower? Maybe its not the car...

Just kidding :D, I would have to go with Sir Nukes reponse about old leaves causing mildew. Try to clean the vents, it may be clogged with something. :bt:

well I checked the vents on the outside and there is nothing in them. Another thing that makes me think its something inside the car, is that it also does it when it is set to Recycle Air and it only smells when the AC on.. I may try spraying something in the vents but I doubt that will help for long..I know my dad had a Honda that had the same problem and they had to take some kind of pan out and clean it..but I have no idea what it was..

thanks
Barry

have you ever seen any water leak INTO the car? like into the passenger compartment? I am sure you have noticed before how after you have been running your AC and you stop you get a puddle of water under your car? well that is from the condencing unit.....and IF the drain hole is plugged up....the PAN will retain water...if it retains enough it can run over and create a wet spot on your carpet....it can ALSO give a place for SLIME TO GROW!! and it wil....and its a form of mold/mildew....and that too could be the culprit of your stink.

I have never seen any water in the car, or seen traces of where water has been. (Trust me I am very picky about my carpet) However I really have not noticed the water dripping from under the either this year. I know it did last summer. But I do feel that water is standing somewhere in the vents or in something that the AC unit goes to. I may just have to lower myself and take it to the Mazda dealership..

Thanks for you Help
Barry

Last year I came across and article in the local paper in regards to A/C smell.

They said it was casued by condensation left in the air vents and mildew and mold forming inside. There was a spray you could get and blow it into the vents where the windshiled meets the hood. I can't remember what the spray was called. It killed all that bacteria and you could get it anywhere

They also recomended that after to use your airconditioner, Turn it off and let warm air blow through the vents for a bit in order to dry out the vents. You could also get whats called an "Air Ionizer" basically its a fan unit that puts out ozone. You know that smell after a heavy thunderstorm, thats ozone, it cleans and purifies the air.

:cool:

its mildew in the vent. i have the same problem with my p5 and the dealer is dickin me around. i take it there he sprays disinfectant and drys it out but a week later its back even worse.
mine is under warrenty so maybe after the 50th time they'll just change the unit. but they said a temp fix is just to spray disinfectant in the vents, but i aint doin that.
-Jason

I got the smell too. Went back to the dealer and they sprayed perfume that helped it for 3 weeks but it's baaaaaaaaaak.....

Definitely turn the a/c off for about 30 seconds before you park your car and turn the ignition off. If you turn the ignition off while the a/c is going, you'll leave condensation in the vents which causes the mildew smell....

PJStyles

keep us posted if the smell comes back

Well usually that is not such a bad thing, cold air is much drier than warm air. The trick is to turn the system off and leave it on the recycled air setting, that way you trap the dry air in the vents and reduce the chance of mildew. If you leave the vent open, warm moist air enters and condensation forms on the cold vents.

Stocker

My old escort had smelly as ASS air conditioning. I wrote to an online mechanics type board and they suggested that it was just mold growing where condensation didn't evaporate out.

They recommended running the AC with the temp to hot and spraying some lysol into all the areas where the fans suck the air in. leave it running for a while after sparying and it should help take care of it.

Worked like a charm for my escort!!! Haven't had that prob with my P5 yet, but then we haven't had enough warm weather to take advantage of AC anyway!! :mad: