sinus problem cause by the AC?

[The Chinese Bronco]

I got my obx about 6 month ago and 3 months in there was some super humid and rainy season. After that there are some bad smell coming from the AC, therefore I took it to the repair shop to clean the evaporator。 The smell indeed went away however I am receiving some sinus discomfort every time I turn on the ac or just venting. It causing me some headaches as well. I have a model y and also a BMW i3 and I have no problem sitting inside them. Does anyone have similar issue or know a way to fix it? Thank you

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[Nc211]

This below. I swear by it for the last decade across many cars. Pull the cabin filter and feed the tube into the duct toward the evap coil. Shake the can, and then empty it through the hose into the coil, watch it drip out through the hvac drain tube underneath. Will go in as a liquid, foams up on/in the coil fins, then back to a liquid through the drain tube, taking with it all the mildew and odor with it. Leaves a fresh minty smell that will last months. I live in DC, we have the humidity and 4 season weather. We’ve had the stinky sock syndrome in every car we’ve ever owned. This fixes it every single time. I do it twice a year. Usually in the spring and in the fall. Never failed me, no headaches, no obnoxious chemical odor left behind. Just smells like a mint leaf for a short period of time. I’ve seen some pretty nasty results dripping out of the drain tube underneath over the years. Worst was my former 2014 Mercedes E350 that I bought as a CPO in 2017. The first time I did it, it looked like chocolate milk coming out below. Didn’t have to do it again for a year when I got a very faint smell of the summer humidity effect. Looked like light beige paint that time. I swear by this stuff!
Warning, if you ever decide to do it through the dash vents instead, just make sure you have those vents open on the hvac control setting (example: set to windshield defrost while feeding it through the center stack vent will obviously block it from getting into the eval coil housing, causing a mess).

 

[Area51BS]

I had a Chevy Colorado. Sold it because of this. Stunk bad. Cleaned with the foam injection many times only to have it return. I believe GM fix was some type of clear coating sealer.
Give the foam kit a try. Then give it time for condensation to rinse it away. If it returns then I have no answer. Try a mold test kit. Maybe you have a leak and hidden moisture in your Bronco.

 

[DriveAllNight]

I would start with the most obvious and see how that goes.

Cabin air filter: HEPA Cabin Air Filter

 

[ChrisB351]

Seen this many times with a cabin air filter gets wet and moldy or a dead varmint

 

[bbb2021]

I came across a good tip recently - Switch to heat before turning the vehicle off. This helps remove any leftover condensation from the vents, which in turn prevents mold growth.

 

[Desert_Brush]

When using a cleaner like the foam above to cycle through the system make sure to remove the cabin air filter prior or it will just absorb all the cleaner. If the air filter smells off also replace that, but after all the cleaner is dry. Make sure to cycle through max AC and heating as that's the only why I got the smell out of my Mini.

 

[Hemisfear]

I've always turned my AC off shortly before I stop to remove any condensation from the system, I've never had any smells from my vents on any vehicle.
Also, spraying Lysol into the heater intake while the vehicle is running and AC on does a good job of cleaning the system, but you will have some residual odor from the product for a bit.

 

[The Chinese Bronco]

This below. I swear by it for the last decade across many cars. Pull the cabin filter and feed the tube into the duct toward the evap coil. Shake the can, and then empty it through the hose into the coil, watch it drip out through the hvac drain tube underneath. Will go in as a liquid, foams up on/in the coil fins, then back to a liquid through the drain tube, taking with it all the mildew and odor with it. Leaves a fresh minty smell that will last months. I live in DC, we have the humidity and 4 season weather. We’ve had the stinky sock syndrome in every car we’ve ever owned. This fixes it every single time. I do it twice a year. Usually in the spring and in the fall. Never failed me, no headaches, no obnoxious chemical odor left behind. Just smells like a mint leaf for a short period of time. I’ve seen some pretty nasty results dripping out of the drain tube underneath over the years. Worst was my former 2014 Mercedes E350 that I bought as a CPO in 2017. The first time I did it, it looked like chocolate milk coming out below. Didn’t have to do it again for a year when I got a very faint smell of the summer humidity effect. Looked like light beige paint that time. I swear by this stuff!
Warning, if you ever decide to do it through the dash vents instead, just make sure you have those vents open on the hvac control setting (example: set to windshield defrost while feeding it through the center stack vent will obviously block it from getting into the eval coil housing, causing a mess).

Thank you for your detail feedback. I actually have the repair shop to do a through cleanout at the coilfins. it does help a bit but some allergies still affect me. Now Im more sceptical about the dash vent whether it has mold over there or not. I just wonder putting foam inside those vent would it damage the ac or other electronic component. Appricate your response

 

[The Chinese Bronco]

I would start with the most obvious and see how that goes.

Cabin air filter: HEPA Cabin Air Filter

Yes I have replace the cheap stock filter with something more advance. However not much difference

 

[Bronchial]

Ozone generator got rid of mold in my wife's car.

 

[The Chinese Bronco]

Ozone generator got rid of mold in my wife's car.

would it damage the interior? I heard some ppl's car got ruined by it

 

[Nc211]

Thank you for your detail feedback. I actually have the repair shop to do a through cleanout at the coilfins. it does help a bit but some allergies still affect me. Now Im more sceptical about the dash vent whether it has mold over there or not. I just wonder putting foam inside those vent would it damage the ac or other electronic component. Appricate your response

It won’t harm anything, I’ve done that in three cars prior and no issues. But the foam expands and can get messy, so have a rag handy to wipe up. BUT honestly, I’d just get a can of Lysol spray, turn on the recirculating button on the airflow and spray the can into the cabin intake down in the passenger-side floor board area and let the Lysol flow through the duct work instead to see if that doesn’t kill off the germs in there that are bothering you. That’s much easier and less messy.

when you use the foam on the evap coil, eventually the condensation that always happens with air conditioning in general will wash all of the foam residue away. There are no permanent fixes for this in any car. It’s a dark, damp area that sees no sunlight. Best you can do is maintain it, and I’ve found that this foam through the cabin filter housing has been the best way for us over the years. I remember my parents 1986 Acura Legend stunk like hell (Alabama), and my wife’s 2020 Mercedes GLS sitting in our garage can get the same way, with every car in-between in my life doing the same.

one day car makers will figure out that placing a UV light in the box is the only way to prevent it, and will make it easily serviceable!

 

[Bronchial]

would it damage the interior? I heard some ppl's car got ruined by it

It didn't damage my wife's car interior. It did get rid of the mold and the smell never came back.

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