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-   2015 - 2020 Ford F150 (https://www.f150forum.com/f118/)
-   -   Musty mold smell in cab...tried a few things.. help! (https://www.f150forum.com/f118/musty-mold-smell-cab-tried-few-things-help-449273/)

flynavy812 06-15-2020 06:00 PM


Originally Posted by Bry@n (Post 6618350)
Ozone machine is needed to remove the smell. You can get decent ones on Amazon for $75+. 30 min application and you’ll be fine. You can also look into bringing it to a Detailer as they should have everything to remove the smell.

OK I might try this, the smell is back. Like the other poster said once it’s running full cold or hot there is no smell. It’s the initial puff that smells.

I read a lot of bad stuff on the ozone machines, is there much to worry about or mainly people being cautious? I didn’t realize it actually kills mold.

flynavy812 06-15-2020 06:03 PM


Originally Posted by Pokes (Post 6618199)
Still having this issue in my 2017 Screw.

Its smelly when it first comes on.
With AC on cold or heater on hot the smell goes away pretty quickly.

If the fan is on cool but no AC, it smells constantly.

I changed the cabin filter, somewhat better but still smelly.

I may buy some kind of foaming cleaner like the above and give that a shot.

Ive never tried leaving it on cold and turning AC off to check, I’ll see what happens. Same thing though, goes away pretty quick. The foam cleaner helped for a day or two I would say and then smell came back. Maybe I applied it wrong? I applied to cabin filter area while air was on full cold recirc AC on and it sucked it all into the system.

Pokes 06-15-2020 07:07 PM

Mine is an STX, so no sunroof to worry about.

I haven’t heard any water sounds coming from anywhere.

No wet carpet I’ve found.

I know the condensation is draining, as I’ve seen it on the driveway and in the garage.
Not sure how much there should be, and this is relative anyway, but it does drain.

If it’s not too difficult to get to maybe tonight I’ll look at the drain tube to see what’s happening there.

How should I go about making sure it’s clear all the way?
Just shove a piece of wire up there or something?

Pokes 06-15-2020 07:08 PM

I’ll add, my “fix” for right now is to just remote start the truck every single time so I’m not there when the initial smelly blast comes out.

I still worry about there being mold somewhere that I’m breathing.

Mike_D 06-15-2020 09:41 PM


Originally Posted by flynavy812 (Post 6618593)
OK I might try this, the smell is back. Like the other poster said once it’s running full cold or hot there is no smell. It’s the initial puff that smells.

I read a lot of bad stuff on the ozone machines, is there much to worry about or mainly people being cautious? I didn’t realize it actually kills mold.

Ozone in its purest form is bad for you. It essentially breaks down to oxygen. It attacks living organisms which is why you should not breathe it in and why it kills mold. Just be sure to properly ventilate your vehicle after use and before you enter it. If used properly, the mold is worse for your health than using the ozone generator. Just be sure to heed the warnings and use common sense. I’ve seen some videos where the person is not practicing common sense. So just be smart and you will be fine and should resolve your smells. FYI, you should run your fan in recirc mode when using the generator.

flynavy812 06-15-2020 10:16 PM


Originally Posted by Mike_D (Post 6618797)
Ozone in its purest form is bad for you. It essentially breaks down to oxygen. It attacks living organisms which is why you should not breathe it in and why it kills mold. Just be sure to properly ventilate your vehicle after use and before you enter it. If used properly, the mold is worse for your health than using the ozone generator. Just be sure to heed the warnings and use common sense. I’ve seen some videos where the person is not practicing common sense. So just be smart and you will be fine and should resolve your smells. FYI, you should run your fan in recirc mode when using the generator.

Just wish I could see the guts of the system to really see what’s going on. I hate not knowing if there’s stuff there and what to do about it.

digitaltrucker 06-15-2020 10:22 PM


Originally Posted by flynavy812 (Post 6618596)
Ive never tried leaving it on cold and turning AC off to check, I’ll see what happens. Same thing though, goes away pretty quick. The foam cleaner helped for a day or two I would say and then smell came back. Maybe I applied it wrong? I applied to cabin filter area while air was on full cold recirc AC on and it sucked it all into the system.

Have you tried Lysol spray?

flynavy812 06-15-2020 10:24 PM


Originally Posted by digitaltrucker (Post 6618834)
Have you tried Lysol spray?


Yeah I have, kind of helped for a day or two but straight back to square one.

Bry@n 06-16-2020 01:34 AM

Put the ozone machine on with the ac running on recirculated. Let it run for 30 minutes. Hold breath when removing and leave all doors open for next 30 minutes.

ive worked on tons of flooded cars and use an ozone machine frequently.

flynavy812 06-16-2020 10:15 AM


Originally Posted by Bry@n (Post 6618926)
Put the ozone machine on with the ac running on recirculated. Let it run for 30 minutes. Hold breath when removing and leave all doors open for next 30 minutes.

ive worked on tons of flooded cars and use an ozone machine frequently.


Any experience with the cheaper amazon ones? I’d be willing to spend around 100 if I need to.


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