As we’ve said before, spring is here and ’tis the season to clean everything you own and clear our the dust that built up over this long, long winter. This week, we’re going to focus on cleaning your air vents and making sure that you can enjoy the spring air to the fullest! Take a look and get ready to get down and dirty and tackle those vents like the cleaning version of a linebacker!!
The first step is to get all of your supplies ready to rock and roll. You’ll need Q-tips, a vacuum, cleaning solution (some all-purpose cleaning solution is great), and some white vinegar if you’ve got a smelly situation on your hands.
The next step is to vacuum everything out of your vents as an initial beginning to the cleaning process. Vacuum every vent, including the one that runs along the base of your windshield. Then, get into the cracks and crevices of the vents with Q-tips dipped in a cleaning solution. When the Q-tips start coming away clean, then you know you’re done. After that, go over your vents the same way but with white vinegar on the Q-tips to get rid of any lingering smells. The vinegar odor is strong but fades fast, and it takes bad smells with it.
Vacuum the vents again to make sure you’ve gotten everything out of them and then you’re done!
Your next overall step is to take a look at your cabin air filter. This is something that a lot of people don’t really register as something that exists, but it does and it can start to smell to high heaven if it hasn’t been changed in a while. In order to do this, you can take a look at your owner’s manual for instructions on how to access that filter and take a look at it to make sure it’s in good shape, and then you can schedule an appointment with us to have it replaced! Easy as that!
The last thing is that if you have a lingering odor in your car after all of this… maybe it smells a little like dirty socks, perhaps? You should assume that you have a little bit of mildew in your A/C evaporator. The remedy for this is to drive about a mile (enough to warm up your engine), roll down all the windows, and then blast your air at full speed from all the vents. Don’t turn on the A/C, just regular old air will do. Keep it on for a couple minutes and then your evaporator should be fully dried out and you can be on your way.
Our last suggestion is to just add the cherry on top of the nice-smelling cake: consider an air freshener!
Connect with us
