Ac odor when first turns on...Phil help....

[the5Gmartian]

I would try Irish Spring

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[P. A. Schilke]

I had my dashboard taken apart about 2 or 3 months ago because I had a cracked blender door so they replaced that and then put it all back together I noticed now when I start my car and I turn the air on I smell like a vinegar smell I saw your post about some sort of RTV sealant my question is should I take it back to the dealer or will this dissipate over time? It does go away after like a minute when a first comes on thank you for your help...

Hi DJ,

Yep...smell of too much RTV...Some dealer techs just apply a lot of RTV to insure sealing and over do it.... It should disipate in a few days to a week... I certainly do not recommend a second dash removal...potential for dash rattles that will drive you batty...

best,
Phil

 

[DukeCanBuildit]

Well yes, that was easy to figure out, anyone who works with tools would get it. I thought you did it just to differentiate your cases from someone else's in case they had the same kind.

That too and everything (every case, tool, battery) is also labeled with my company initials - sometimes hidden - a sub trade found out the hard way.

 

[Ranger3]

If you just noticed it right after having the work done it's most likely the RTV curing as Duke said. I've worked with silicones & caulks for 40 years and when they're contained in a small area (cab of your truck) there's a lot of off gassing going on and no where for it to go. You won't notice this as much inside your home as it will dissipate through the house and through the HVAC when on.

Robert @NotBudule has a good suggestion about opening the windows and blazing the heat to set it up. If you're parked in the garage keep the windows open to let the gasses out.

It was done about 1.5 2 months ago....

Hi DJ,

Yep...smell of too much RTV...Some dealer techs just apply a lot of RTV to insure sealing and over do it.... It should disipate in a few days to a week... I certainly do not recommend a second dash removal...potential for dash rattles that will drive you batty...

best,
Phil

So Phil , even if it was done a month or 2 ago? It will go away? Thks

 

[P. A. Schilke]

It was done about 1.5 2 months ago....
So Phil , even if it was done a month or 2 ago? It will go away? Thks

Hi DJ,

Something is wrong then as it is unlikely RTV.....Is the evaporator drain tube maybe pinched? That is not usually a vinegar smell though...more like a musty smell...

Best,
Phil

 

[NotBudule]

If this was winter time and you were blasting heat instead of cold , it would probably be gone by now ...

 

[Ranger3]

Hi DJ,

Something is wrong then as it is unlikely RTV.....Is the evaporator drain tube maybe pinched? That is not usually a vinegar smell though...more like a musty smell...

Best,
Phil

Someone said it could be mold....I doubt that..could be cabin or air filter? I'm gonna change today..I only noticed it last 2 days..what shd I do? I will take it to dealer this week

 

[Ranger3]

that someone is me, and i know you're hell bent on Phil finding your solution
you can accept others suggestions too or not.

heres a few snippits to help you consider something other than 3 month old silicone.

Lol I am not hell bent on Phil alone I just am hell bent on solving the problem.. thks for ur assistance

 

[JesseS]

That too and everything (every case, tool, battery) is also labeled with my company initials - sometimes hidden - a sub trade found out the hard way.

Seeing how expensive tools (and good cases) are I would put a tracker in the big one.... just saying, but I am sure you take serious precautions.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

Lol I am not hell bent on Phil alone I just am hell bent on solving the problem.. thks for ur assistance

Hi Folks,

I am here to help and I think I have contributed to many folks here, but I cannot solve every problem and I think he was reaching out to get a solution to his problem... I had a materials group under me for a while and there were sealers used where the supplier had to control the smell. Ford production line would not tolerate such a smell... and the materials used including sealants had a odder spec if required.

Reading text on the forum and experiencing this first hand makes it hard to diagnose..

Back Story,

The early 1973 steering wheels were a monster plastic molding... The plastic smelled like vomit and was so bad that there was a revision to have the supplier control the smell. In the newly assembled truck it was faint and dissipated quickly, but on line in boxes of 25 or so the smell on the assembly line was awful... I felt sorry for the line workers in the area...Smell was awful. Fortunately the plastic formulation was changed to reduce the smell. And finally the steering wheel design was changed to a new design using different plastic wrap...

Best,
Phil

 

[Ranger3]

Well I would like to thank everyone for their input this is and has been a great site for everything....I believe my problem is solved. I changed the cabin filter and it seems it is gone. Hasnt happened again. It was as simple as that. I never changed it since I got the truck in early 21.....so I guess it was due. Thanks!

 

[Wytchdctr]

Well I would like to thank everyone for their input this is and has been a great site for everything....I believe my problem is solved. I changed the cabin filter and it seems it is gone. Hasnt happened again. It was as simple as that. I never changed it since I got the truck in early 21.....so I guess it was due. Thanks!

I moved into a new place about 3 years ago. Two of my cars started that weird smell on start up. Changed the filters and it went away on both. The next year around the same time.. same issue same solution. Ended up being some weird tree at the house next door and whatever it dropped caused some terrible smells once it sat on the filter for a bit.

Anyway, glad it was an easy fix.

 

[NotBudule]

Doesn't seem old enough to have a cabin filter in that bad of shape ...

 

[Ranger3]

Doesn't seem old enough to have a cabin filter in that bad of shape ...

Well it's gone. Everytime at startup when ac came on I smelled it for 5 seconds.....then we nt always ...now I changed it and whala it's gone.

 

[NotBudule]

Well it's gone. Everytime at startup when ac came on I smelled it for 5 seconds.....then we nt always ...now I changed it and whala it's gone.

My thoughts are why is it that bad that fast ? Is moisture getting in there somehow ? The one in my Subaru , which I didn't even know existed, just got changed about 3 months ago and it's a 2015 , I can see it being dirty , but not moldy to the point of smelling bad ...

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