A question about my cars AC?

Question

Every time my cars AC turns on it smells REALLY bad. like something died in there. what should i do? if its not anything dead, my dad told me to pour bleach down my ac. is that a good idea? if it is it wont make the paint (black AC) turn to a different color will it. what should i do? pleese help. and dont tell me to buy an air refreshner because ive already tried that and you still sometimes get a hint of death. i dont want to mask the smell i want it to go away. HELP!!!

Answer 1

ok in all ac systems on cars water collects on your evaporator and drips down to a pan and is drained to the outside. (all of this is in the dash and vents)  this moisture causes mold and mildew to build up in the duct work of the car.  you can get some aerosol mildew and mold killers to spray down your vents at the auto parts store.  the bleach will work but not a good idea to have a bleach smell in your car(its real strong).  you can also get some spray that will kill and freshen but the mildew killer alone is all you need.  some of the house hold cleaners are pretty good too like tile-x.

Answer 2

It could be something that died in the ducting, in which case the smell should eventually go away. Run it as often as you can with the fan on full and the windows open.

It might be a build-up of mould and bacteria which could also cause a smell. This will require servicing which you probably cannot do yourself. Get some advice and a quote from an auto AC shop.

Answer 3

Depending on the year and make of your vehicle you may have a cabin air filter that needs changing.

Answer 4

have you even tried to look for signs of a dead animal in your engine? Sometimes, muggy conditions can cause your ac to smell yucky. could also be that you need to flush your ac system and or get a new air filter.

good luck!

Answer 5

You actually might have something dead down in the ductwork, like a dead mouse. To really figure out why it's stinky, you'll have to pull apart the ductwork. Not an easy job. Depending on what vehicle it is, you'll have to get down to the evaporator itself, deep within the HVAC system of the vehicle. Some are easy to get to, others are nightmarish. Check with your mechanic about how easy it is to do the job. Had to help a friend get a dead mouse out of a Mitsubishi pickup truck AC system. It was not an easy job.