BY KEVIN SAWYER – In the heat of the summer months, it’s always great to have a functioning air conditioning system in your vehicle. The air, however, should come out cool, crisp and clean without any noticeable smell to it. There may be times, however, when you flip the controls and your cool air has a rather bad smell to it.
Your vehicle definitely has a problem if you are finding a bad smell coming through your AC vents. The type of smell can also indicate the particular problem. A musty, old laundry, type of a smell generally indicates that there is some serious mildew build up in your system.
This is a relatively common problem and is mostly caused because you are just running your AC system on a recirculating setting. When you are stopped, shut off the AC but keep the fan blowing for several minutes. Do this every time you stop until the mildew is cleared away. The mildew tends to build up on your condenser and evaporator core and blowing the fan will help to disperse the accumulated moisture.
You can prevent the mildew problem from developing if you regularly switch between recirculated air in your vehicle and fresh air. It will keep the moisture out. Also, again, run that fan for a couple of minutes before turning off the engine. You can also get some serious cleaner of disinfectant and spray it liberally into the vents of your vehicle from the engine side of the vents.
One final thing you will need to investigate is what is known as the cabin filter. It is an air filter, basically, for the inside for the vehicle and works just like the traditional air filter in your vehicle. It, too, over time, will get clogged and dirty and needs to be swapped out.
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