Why can't I clean the A/C evaporator with water?

[MikePL]

I am about to get rid of the funky fungus smell in my A/C so I bought a can of a special foam spray and I am going to drill a hole and point it towards the evaporator. But as an additional measure I wanted to hose the evaporator with water and a non-harmful antifungal agent.

In the FSM it's written 'do not clean the evaporator with water'. What the hell? Why can't I do it? Will I damage something? After all the difference in temperatures causes condensation on the evaporator, which is simply water that later drains through the hose underneath the vehicle.

So what's the problem with water then?

And another question related to A/C. Is it normal that whenever the A/C kick in I hear a hissing sound from the evaporator area. The hissing stops after 3 seconds and the A/C works fine? Should I worry about it?

 

[GXO]

Not sure on the hissing, but the water thing has to do with forcing water in and trapping it...you will clean your fungus, then fuel the next round.

 

[MikePL]

Well obviously such a thing would happen unless I turn the blower on for 15 minutes to make sure any moisture is out. So if there are no 'technical' problems with using water, then it's time to get down to work.

 

[Truckasaurus]

Mike,

From a different thread on cleaning the evaporator (look at thread attached), he used some foamy stuff (BG something or other) and it was shown that injecting a foaming cleanser into the evaporator area was safe. There were a couple types of devices...one with a nozzle that could be shoved into the drain tube, or like Jim's, where he drilled a hole, inserted a fitting, and foamed his evaporator clean.

Consensus at that time was washing the INSIDE of the evaporator was the item to be avoided. The exterior condenses/removes moisture from ambient, giving the nice, conditioned FRESH SMELLING air you seek...

Good luck, amigo!

https://forum.ih8mud.com/showthread.php?t=92253&highlight=evaporator+cleaning

 

[-Spike-]

What does the can of 'special foam spray' recommend? If they say rinse, then rinse away. If they don't, think about it. There may be a reason- like they want the special foam to leave a residue or something like that.

-Spike

 

[elysium]

delete

 

[Tools R Us]

I don't understand that caution ether, they operate wet? I have cleaned many Toyota evaporators and rinsed with water, with no issues.

 

[Truckasaurus]

The easy, semi-smarta** answer:

Look for the puddle of water under the cruiser. It'll be on the right side...front passenger floorboard.

Good luck!

 

[psfpilot]

A slight hijack, but where is the drain tube for the A/C evaporator? I've spray some stuff (BG) in mine, but want to make sure the evaporator drain isn't clogged.

The drain tube is in the vehicle's right front; it is a black rubber tube extending through the lower firewall.

 

[sdbrassfield]

Some do not want you to rinse it because the "fresh smelling" fragrance/residue left behind is how they help sell the product ... and you...

RINSE THE EVAPORATOR AFTER CLEANING !!!

 

[psfpilot]

The caution against water rinsing is in the FSM, not in the cleaning foam's literature.

 

[MikePL]

The spray can says nothing about rinsing. I want to rinse with water and an antifungal substance. The reason being that smell is just a secondary product. You don't want to inhale fungus and bacteria as you could be debilitated and get sick easier. Ever heard about legionella pneumonia? Google it.

I just want to rinse off as much funky stuff as possible now that I have my newborn son. So my purpose is not to have a pleasant-smelling system but a healthy one.

 

[goschbrandon]

I used the BG product in the thread listed above- It claims to be a fungus-killer as well as scent enhancer/odor eliminator. A nice stream of grimey foam-water came out of my drain tube after using it. I picked up the BG in a 2 pack, one can of cleaner and one of deodorizer/anti-bacterial spray to use afterwards. Supposedly that combination eliminates and prevents fungus buildup, but fungus isn't an issue where I'm from, so I can't tell you yes or no from experience.

 

[elysium]

If you want to rinse with water + antifungal, I'd probably do that first and THEN follow up with the BG frigi-clean.

At least that might push out some of the water and the last thing sprayed in will be a non-water based cleaner.

 

[sdbrassfield]

The reason they tell you not to rinse is they do not want water hitting the evaporator at much pressure since they are somewhat fragile and do not want you to get any electrical stuff to wet in the air box.. Just do not spray hard under high pressure.

I do refrigeration/hvac work for a living, always rinse the coils after cleaning, especially in a vehicle....It will flush out the fuzzys and crud.

Best way to do it is with the air box open and flush with something that willl catch the water. Use a shop vac in the container catching the water. That is how you get good air flow and a clean evaporator and air box. Oh yea, and clean, cold AC...

 

[sdbrassfield]

The spray can says nothing about rinsing. I want to rinse with water and an antifungal substance. The reason being that smell is just a secondary product. You don't want to inhale fungus and bacteria as you could be debilitated and get sick easier. Ever heard about legionella pneumonia? Google it.

I just want to rinse off as much funky stuff as possible now that I have my newborn son. So my purpose is not to have a pleasant-smelling system but a healthy one.

Thats why you rinse and clean the air box...

 

[elmariachi]

The curiosity of the FSM telling us "no water" is like the waiter telling us "don't touch the hot plate," but we touch it anyway. Not sure why no water, but its not nice to mess with Mr. T. I am on my third season using the BG product and my AC smels great here is steamy, mold-infested, fungus leaching Houston TX.

 

[GXO]

Ok, so now I read this and imagine all the crap in mine from Cambodia....uuugh

I will get to it eventually!