Musty smell from A/C

Hey Y’all
My 2021 has this musty smell coming from vents after A/C is turned off. I’ve checked the cabin air filter, it’s clean as a nuns sheets. I’m thinking moisture stuck in there and mold growing. Any ideas for best way to check ?

 

Get them air vent cleaner

 

Residual moisture from the ac causing odor problems is fairly common. Usually it’s kind of a dirty sock/wet locker kind of smell.
You can treat the duct work by spraying a disinfectant like Lysol into the intake with the fan set to recirculate.
Also you can reduce the moisture by running the fan on high with the ac turned off for 5 or 10 minutes before turning off the engine. Easy to do if you remember to do that before you get to your destination

 

I replaced the stock cabin air filter with charcoal infused one and never had that problem again. I just don't remember the brand as this was probably 5 years ago. The airflow was greatly improved over the one that I replaced, although it didn't look that dirty. I don't use the truck that much nowadays, I'll replace it before peak of summer hits.

 

I had a similar smell at times in my other car. I used one of these and seems to have helped eliminate it

$8 Meguiar's Whole Car Air Refresher, Odor Eliminator Spray Eliminates Strong Vehicle Odors, Black Chrome Scent – 2 Oz Spray Bottle

https://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-Who...gid=pla-605671671260&ref=&adgrpid=62469739176

 

Ozone machine may work too if the vent cleaner doesnt

 

If the smell is coming from the condenser, I doubt an ozone machine would help much. Worth a try though.

I've been battling this with my wife's 2016 Accord. Somewhere on this page someone posted a link to a product that will clear out the condenser I believe.

 

GENUINE TOYOTA APPROVED S.E.T. SERVICERITE AC EVAPORATOR REFRESH KIT 00053-00008

$37 GENUINE TOYOTA APPROVED S.E.T. SERVICERITE AC EVAPORATOR REFRESH KIT 00053-00008

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07D3B5JTZ

 

Thank you for all the suggestions. I’m gonna go down the list and see which does the trick. Appreciate y’all.

 

Alternatively, if you tie a dead skunk to your driveshaft, you will not notice any odors from the ac vents for a very long time

 

this a pretty straight forward process or do I need my PHD in A/C work ?

 

Pretty straight forward, here's a video on the process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRy23TFpM4I

 

I did mine with the Toyota Kit. It does a great job. However the instructions are different for our trucks since the drain hole is above the transmission and not easy to get to. Plus it’s not a hose. So you just have to drop the blower motor and run the hose down the vent. Here is a super straight forward video of a guy doing it on a Land Cruiser it’s exactly the same.

https://youtu.be/fPOfecY7MF0

 

Solid. Thank you!

 

No problem! One thing I did differently is tape the hose for the foam kit to the end of my bore scope so I could direct it on the condenser behind the dash. Totally unnecessary since the foam expands to fill the whole cavity but it was nice piece of mind and helped direct the flimsy hose.

 

This is the filter that I bought: Breath Easy Cabin Filter w/ Activated Carbon. BE-285
Available on Amazon for $10.97. I had purchased this twice before.

 

Ended up just taking truck back to Toyota dealership in San Diego for a few issues. They did the Ac refresh for free along with some other stuff requested. Pretty solid customer service

 

Sweet! Did it solve the issue.

 

Sure did. Solid suggestion

 

i tried all these methods and also had toyota run ther machine on the system a waste of money. the drain hose ahad no water to speak of in it also. i belive the customer relations person said it probably in the dash hoses. i know this guy for 30 yrs. so i don't think he is blowing smoke. help.