Car air conditioner smells bad: Causes and solutions
Over time, due to many factors, car air conditioners have unpleasant odors, so how to fix it?
Why does car air conditioner smell bad?
Car air conditioners have bad odors mainly due to the following reasons:
The condenser and pipes are moldy.
Mold is one of the common causes of car air conditioners having bad odors. If the evaporator and piping system of the car air conditioner emit an unpleasant or sour odor, it is likely that this part is moldy. The cause of moldy evaporators and air conditioner pipes is mostly due to turning off the engine and closing the door when the air conditioner has not had time to dry. Over time, mold agents will develop and cause unpleasant odors.
Dirty air filter
Car air conditioners operate on the principle of sucking air from the outside. Therefore, before the air enters the system, the air filter will filter out dirt and mold. Acting as a direct protective layer, the air conditioner filter often gets dirty after a period of operation.
If the air filter is dirty, the filtering efficiency will not be high, the air quality will not be guaranteed, leading to the car air conditioner having a smell.
Dirty air conditioner fan
A dirty fan can also cause your car’s AC to smell bad. If you notice that the fan is malfunctioning, especially if it is weaker than usual, it is likely that the fan is dirty.
Fan box with animal carcasses
Another reason why car air conditioners smell bad is because the fan box and engine compartment have dead animals such as lizards, rats, etc. When the air conditioner is running, it will be contaminated with the unpleasant smell from the dead animals stuck in it. In addition, the pipe system is contaminated with wastewater from trapped animals, which also makes the car air conditioner smell bad.
The interior smells
Sometimes the unpleasant odor also comes from the car interior. If not cleaned regularly, the car interior will have an unpleasant odor due to the strong growth of mold.
Odors can also come from leftover food stuck in the car's glove compartment, boxes, and cup holders.
How to fix bad smell on car air conditioner
After determining the initial cause of the bad smell in the car's air conditioner, the car owner needs to eliminate the odor-causing agents.
Use antibacterial spray
If the odor is new, you can use antibacterial sprays to deodorize the car's air conditioner. Note that the ingredients of antibacterial sprays are often chemicals. Therefore, after spraying inside the car, close the doors and stand outside for about 20 minutes. Then, open all the doors and expose the car to the sun for 30 minutes to let the odor escape.
Air conditioner cleaning
Car owners can remove the air conditioner filter for cleaning. You can use a vacuum cleaner or spray compressed air directly into the filter folds to remove all dirt.
In addition to cleaning, car owners should also change the air conditioner filter after 15,000 - 20,000km of travel as recommended by the manufacturer.
Interior cleaning
Open the car doors and use a clean, wet towel to clean the interior of the car to remove odors. Then, leave the car outside for 30-60 minutes to kill mold.
In addition, car owners can deodorize by hanging tea bags or coffee bags near the car's air conditioner to eliminate unpleasant odors. Some fruits that have the ability to deodorize unpleasant odors such as grapefruit, lemon, pineapple... are also effective ways.
