A Breath Of Fresh Air: Cleaning Your Air Vents

So you’ve cleaned, vacuumed, and even Febreze’d your car, but there is still a lingering icky smell that you can’t seem to locate. It might be time to clean out your air vents. Yes, your air vents need to be cleaned out, especially if you find that you are prone to allergies this will be important. To get your car smelling fresh again, follow these helpful steps.

Step 1 – Cleaning the Vent

Step one clean as best you can the outside of the vent using a scent-free interior car cleaner. It’s important that you use a solution that is INTENDED for interior car cleaning as there is no guarantee how other products will affect your vehicle. Using a cotton swab soaked in the cleaner wipe down the outside of the vent making sure to get along all of those tight edges and crevices that a paper towel may not be able to reach. Don’t forget about those lower air vents. They get just as dirty as the upper ones and need a little TLC too. Cleaning the outside of the vents will only help with a small portion of the smell. Unless you go a little deeper into the vents and really clean them out that musty, dusty, stale smell will continue to linger.

Step 2 – Change the Cabin Air Filter

So the vents are cleaned out but the smell is still there. Now it’s time to change the cabin air filter in the engine. First of all, changing the cabin air filter is a relatively easy process. They’re pretty cheap to replace so it’s something that can totally be done on your own. If, however, you are looking for a more thorough job, you can definitely have this done here at Younger Mitsubishi. This filter keeps out the dirt, debris, and harmful contaminants from the air going into your engine and into your cabin. That debris is a large cause of the gross smells so you should change the filter regularly to keep your car smelling fresh. The location of the filter and the type of filter you will need depends on the make and model of your vehicle. You can find this information in your car’s owner’s manual.

Step 3 – Clean the Drain

Finally, you should clean your air conditioner’s drain. In most cars, the drain can be found in the corners next to the fenders and will consist of rubber tubing that’s usually black. Squeeze the tubing to ease out anything that’s accumulated inside. After doing this, straighten a wire hanger,  and run it up the tube to remove the last of the debris.
When these steps are completed, you should notice a definite improvement in the smell of your car and the air coming from the air vents. If your vehicle still smells, you can always stop by Younger Mitsubishi and we’ll be more than happy to take care of your air vents for you.