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musty aircon - cure?

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Old 14 March 2008, 10:54 PM
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Aquanaut
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Default musty aircon - cure?

From time to time my air con smells a little musty - it works well so doesn't need a re-gas. My Girlys golf has just had a dealer use a disinfectant bomb to sort similar.

I have found Wurth do a spray Issuu - additives - page 11

So has anyone used this ???
Old 15 March 2008, 12:27 AM
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dunx
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Does your car have a pollen filter ? If you use air-con and recirc alot the filter gets damp, manky and smelly...

I cured mine by changing the filter.

HTH

DunxC
Old 15 March 2008, 12:39 AM
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bushiwarrior
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re-gas
Old 15 March 2008, 12:42 AM
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charly chips
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Halfords do a disinfectant bomb,used it when I first got my classic import,smelt good for ages and musty smell hasn't returned.
Old 15 March 2008, 12:51 AM
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renny
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Originally Posted by bushiwarrior
re-gas

I've found in the past it's not down to needing re-gassing.I've had it on newish cars before and it's simply down to not being used enough.

If you only use it on the hotter days,as i do,bacteria develops causing the musty smell.The only answer is to use it once a week,as recommended,if possible.

I'd be interested to see if these sprays work.I know Comma do something where you basically deodorise the system and it also kills the bacteria.

Not sure how effective it is though.
Old 15 March 2008, 11:42 AM
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scooby2!
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that spray is ideal

and as like said earlier change your pollen filter as well

spray should cost you £5 and a pollen filter £10-15

if you need any more assistance let me know as i use to be vehicle a/c engineer, i now just sell the stuff ;-)

just another thing, as mentioned above as well, make sure it is a anti bacterial one
Old 15 March 2008, 11:48 AM
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Aquanaut
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The Comma system looks better as I was worried about what damage might happen poking about inside the vent with the Wurth version

£11.99 from Halfords
Comma News

I normally run my aircon all the time but did turn off the compressor during the recent coldest weather as I don't think they like working at these temperatures and it may cause harm. Then musty smell occurs after the system has been off for a while.

I don't see the point of having a stinky air fresherner in the car to mask the smell as its better to cure it a source.

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Old 15 March 2008, 12:00 PM
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scooby2!
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just be warned the comma one makes a mess everywhere and will need wiping down after

the cans are better as you squirt it straight up the ducts which then take it through the heater/evaporator and kills off all the nasty bacteria which causes the odour

also wise to do as avoiding it can cause legionaires disease
Old 15 March 2008, 12:02 PM
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johnnyroper
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the tube version like the wurth is best to get in my opinion,as the foam gets right in to the bottom of heater box and evaporator.

seems to last longer than the other types that do not use the tube.

it is highly unlikely you can cause any damage by pushing a soft rubber tube down the vents.
Old 15 March 2008, 12:02 PM
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scooby2!
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this is the best stuff out there

AIRCO BREEZE SANITISER :: Cleaning / Deodorising Products :: Autokool
Old 15 March 2008, 12:04 PM
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scooby2!
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just a hint
its better to go up the recirc vent as then it goes all the way through the evaporator

when you spray down the vents it doesnt always kill all the bacteria off
Old 15 March 2008, 12:19 PM
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suretrack
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Just replace the filter dont use any sprays, it is located on the left hand under the pocket lid
Old 15 March 2008, 12:21 PM
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i agree that u need to change filter, like you should once every year

but you do need to kill the bacteria off the ducts and evaporator to get rid of it all
Old 15 March 2008, 03:34 PM
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Originally Posted by scooby2!
just a hint
its better to go up the recirc vent as then it goes all the way through the evaporator

when you spray down the vents it doesnt always kill all the bacteria off


S2, where's this vent located..?
Old 15 March 2008, 04:06 PM
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2 things you can do, remove filter and then fire it into the duct
or else turn car onto recirc then fire it up the recirc duct which will be on the bottom of the centre console in the foot well
Old 15 March 2008, 05:05 PM
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deano555
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We use the fourtron can at work on bmw's and it works fine but in my opinion the wurth one is far better, it kills all the bugs associated with aircon, re-gas will not make any difference, its usually the evaperator that causes the problem. My 06 Impreza has 2 treatments a year, my older wrx never suffered at all.
Old 16 March 2008, 12:01 PM
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Originally Posted by Aquanaut
The Comma system looks better as I was worried about what damage might happen poking about inside the vent with the Wurth version

£11.99 from Halfords
Comma News

I normally run my aircon all the time but did turn off the compressor during the recent coldest weather as I don't think they like working at these temperatures and it may cause harm. Then musty smell occurs after the system has been off for a while.

I don't see the point of having a stinky air fresherner in the car to mask the smell as its better to cure it a source.
you air con compressor won't work under a certain temperature anyway,think it's around 3-4 degrees.So you won't be doing any damage.
Old 16 March 2008, 08:55 PM
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Scooby2!..

Originally Posted by deano555
We use the fourtron can at work on bmw's and it works fine but in my opinion the wurth one is far better, it kills all the bugs associated with aircon, re-gas will not make any difference, its usually the evaperator that causes the problem. My 06 Impreza has 2 treatments a year, my older wrx never suffered at all.
Deano, where can this fourtron be purchased from..?
Old 16 March 2008, 11:37 PM
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welsh scoob
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right peps, being an refrigeration engineer, i get asked this all the time.

you can disguise the smell by using a smelly jelly, or using various sprays,

the reason you get this smell is because condensation droplets dry on the evaporator.

the real best way to get rid of smell is one of a few ways.
once you have finished using your air con is to
1) run the air con in fan only to dry the condensation droplets on the evapoator
or
2) you can run in heating to dry the condensation droplets on the evapoator thus stopping a musty smell in furure, this should stop the musty smell.

cheers mark
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