Water In Your Dash? Try Cleaning The AC Drain

[v1mitch]

THANKS!



[ptrhip]

lmao AHHH IT PEED ON ME

[alexgilchrist1]

My anti-theft system is malfunctioning and stalls my '96 Pontiac Grandam when I try to start it. I have had the ignition cyclinder replaced and the instrument cluster replaced and after $771 and 4 mechanics my Pontiac Grandam is till not working and no one knows why! My A/C drains on my foot sometimes and I am thinking maybe this could have corroded something or it causing a short in something related to the antitheft device, what do you think?

[EricTheCarGuy]

@alexgilchrist1 It's possible that is the case but you won't know till you clear the drain and even then if the effected component is damaged just getting rid of the cause may not fix the problem.

[cesarin76]

Eric, I have a chevy truck 89 and I just spend $1,200 to replace the entire A/C system. I noticed when I have the A/C on I can see some condensation under the dashboard leaking water. Small drops though...can this be a sign of A/C clogged drain? any help will be appreciated.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@cesarin76 Possibly but it could also be a leak if the case is not sealed correctly you'll have to get up under the dash and have a look to know for sure.

[InferiorThanYou]

Does the e vap drain emit water in a pretty good size like the a/c drain? I have what appears to be the a/c drain or e vap drain that is open and emitting water to the ground in the amount of around a few liters I would estimate.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@InferiorThanYou Evap drains don't emit water just the AC drains.

[InferiorThanYou]

@EricTheCarGuy Thanks for clearing that up. Where can I learn all what you know? What books do you recommend? College would be a no for now. I could however buy a cheap car to learn on. But what do you recommend I read first? Anything particular?

[EricTheCarGuy]

@InferiorThanYou I don't remember half the crap I think I know. To really learn this stuff you need to do it a lot, books just get you started. Thats not going to stop me from writing one however, see Episode 1.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@MG03x I recommend finding the drain tube and performing the procedure in this video. Good luck.

[cargam1]

Eric, do you know where the drain plug is on a '06 4 cyl Galant?

[EricTheCarGuy]

@cargam1 Not exactly but check the bulkhead on the passenger side.

[tdogg4575]

probably a stupid question but wat the hey

i have recently gotten water leaks on my passenger side inside the car from the center console. it only leaks water when the ac has been on for a while (10 + min). i am assuming this video is the solution to this problem. my question is if/when i find the drain tube what do i do since i dont have an air gun or anything similar? get a straw and blow? use my vacuums hose to suck out the clog?

[EricTheCarGuy]

@tdogg4575 I've had people in the comments to this video say they used a can of spray air and it worked.

[simtech30]

I can"t believe that draining the a/c is that easy! Thanks for the tech tip!

[EricTheCarGuy]

@simtech30 Your welcome, thanks for the comment.

[madsam64]

sooo, interesting video. i wound up in a tornado last week (posted a vid of it... fun... anyways, driving around that afternoon, my car started making a whining noise, mainly on left turns and only when the air is on (a/c or heat, it doesnt matter). I wanted to look into it this weekend but with cleanup we've been doing, that didnt happen. anyways, this morning, the whining sound graduated to a full on "water circulating" sound. again, this is only when the air is on (a/c or heat). thought?

[EricTheCarGuy]

@madsam64 Have you tried cleaning the AC drain? it's quite possible that's what the issue is. Sorry to hear about the tornado, thought there was going to be one here the other night, glad there wasn't.

[tmz90]

Hey Eric i have watched all your videos, thanks for posting all of your informative videos. I have a question, my friends 2007 lexus is 250 has a big problem. The carpet keeps on getting wet, there are two black plastic vents under the driver and passenger seats and im almost positive thats where the water is coming from because i dried carpet and later in the day the towel was wet, also the draining ac tubing does not leak any water at all underneath the car, i only see a few drops of water.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@tmz90 Given the evidence perhaps you should try the method shown in this video to see if that will cure it.

[ElChobi77]

Hello Eric, me again about that fix on the ac drain, guess what It's back again my passenger side floor was totally soaked in water this morning, I'll need to take it in cause they will need to have the AC dismounted, to find where is it coming from cause I have looked up and down and there is no place where I can find the AC diagram, you know, to dismount it myself . Just hope It doesn't cost much :(

[EricTheCarGuy]

@ElChobi77 I'm certain it's there it's just a matter of finding it, sometimes they mount them under the car or high up on the firewall you just have to find it. Good luck.

[ElChobi77]

Hi Eric I'm new to this but I have learned a lot from your videos, so far I have done the Throttle body clean and it works like a charm now, but I run into this problem with the AC drain, Do you know where the drain is on a Mazda Protege 1997 LX, I have looked but don't seem to find it, maybe it is one of those DUH! moments, jeje thanks in advance for your help !

[EricTheCarGuy]

@ElChobi77 I don't know the exact location but they are normally on the passenger side near the firewall or in the floor in some but mostly look at the firewall for it's location.

[ElChobi77]

@EricTheCarGuy Thanks for the Idea, I found it; it's a very tiny thing , that's why I missed it. It is working perfect now.. 2 Thumbs up !!! ... I'm directing all my friends to your website.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@ElChobi77 Glad you found it and that it's working now, thanks for the update and the referrals.

[abnpgreen]

Thanks for the video, it was exactly what I needed! The hard part was finding the drain on my Mazda CX 9. It worked perfectly with a little can of compresse air I had for the computer!

[EricTheCarGuy]

@abnpgreen Sweet, I love it when viewers benefit from my videos, thanks for the comment.

[wackywitczak]

Will this trick work for any vehicle?

[EricTheCarGuy]

@wackywitczak So far, yes.

[mozillagenesis]

This just happened to me today. I turned a corner and SPLOOSH. I remembered this video as soon as it happened. I didn't have an air compressor powerful enough so I used a can of compressed air! After I blasted it water gushed out. Thanks for the tip!!

[EricTheCarGuy]

@mozillagenesis I love to hear when I actually help someone, thanks for the comment.

[Znitso]

I wasn't expecting it to work. Nice solution anyway, thumbs up!

[EricTheCarGuy]

@Znitso It seems to work every time for me. Thanks for your comment.

[Znitso]

@EricTheCarGuy No thank you for your great video.

[zztopgearhead1]

Eric, 96 chevy cavalier, this morning i drove it, when i got home a small leak happend of antifreeze, i found where its coming from, the passager side of the firewall. where the AC lines connect to it, im losing alot of coolant, what do u think it is, heater core? but why would it leak coolant where the AC lines connect to it?

[EricTheCarGuy]

@zztopgearhead1 That does sound like a heater core or perhaps one of the hoses going to it. You can bypass a heater core by routing the 2 hoses together however you won't have any heat as a result but it will get you by in a pinch.

[lehinostroza]

Hey Eric, I drive a Mitsubishi endeavor 2006. Every day I get a pond inside my car and I believe the drainage is clogged. Now. you know japanese cars are different than american cars. I tried to find the drainage hole on the outside firewall but I couldn't find it. Any tips for this car?

[EricTheCarGuy]

@lehinostroza I admit they may be hard to find on some cars. If you can't find it from under the car you might want to look from the top, sometimes they are in the center of the firewall sticking out near the transmission. Know that it IS there and keep looking, good luck.

[JODY254]

VERY HELPFUL THANKS ALOT 

[EricTheCarGuy]

@JODY254 Your welcome, thanks for the comment.

[brian777aller]

eric is bad ass

[EricTheCarGuy]

@brian777aller or is it ass bad? :)

[M1dyGamer]

Eric, you don't need to thank us "the subscribers" we are here because we like to learn and love the way you present information in an entertaining manner. We thank you for keeping the videos coming.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@M1dyGamer Well I see your point and thank you for the comment but I "subscribe" to the philosophy that ETCG would not exist if no one took the time to watch and in some cases hit the little yellow button. Is it OK if I thank you for the comment?

[mrdavid607]

great video!

[NissanAltima2005]

Nice video for simple fix but difficult to figure out thinks

Like it when you talked under the car; all the places have gone except there

Excellent video.

Good luck,

[EricTheCarGuy]

@NissanAltima2005 I'm trying to figure out if this is a question or a comment on the video.

[NissanAltima2005]

@EricTheCarGuy

Just joking and making good comment.

Regards,

[DefensorAequitatis]

Hey Eric the Car Guy, love your videos, and keep up the good work!!

I do have some additional information about drains--on certain cars with sunroofs, drains allow water that enters the sunroof track to exit through drains in the front and rear of the car. I drive a 95 Honda Prelude, and my rear drains clogged, which filled my trunk and back seats with water. It was an easy remedy, but some have said clogged front drains may cause water in the dash as well. Something to keep an eye on!

[EricTheCarGuy]

@DefensorAequitatis Good point but that is another video entirely. The only way those drains can fill up the car and the dash is if they become disconnected at the outlets which doesn't happen naturally (usually forgotten or moved after body work). Also the tail light housings are famous for causing the leaks in the trunk and the back seat much more so than the sunroof drains.

[IIGrayfoxII]

how does it get blocked with dirt? isn't the AC drain a sealed unit

[EricTheCarGuy]

@IIGrayfoxII Mostly it's debris from trees and such that get caught on your windshield just under your wipers. This is the fresh air inlet for the HVAC and where the contaminants will come into the system. I usually clean this area when doing a service to help prevent this and make sure that the HVAC can get a good airflow.

[tonyali02]

E.T.C.G.

once again you got skills, thanks bro, Im having a problem with my 97 vtec accord it will stutter after the car warms up, usually after i stop at a light, it will also do it if on a drive down the interstate, it will only do it once per start up, then I don't have to worry about it until next start up, The stutter is I can only describe it as a hesitation like it's not getting enough gas or air. Any thoughts Eric?

[EricTheCarGuy]

@tonyali02 I think you should watch the video I did on cleaning EGR passages.  Let me know if that helps.

[ncrdisabled]

Thanks now I need to crawl under my 1991 toyota camry and find those pesky hoses

I think a mouse clogged up the line .

Thanks

kenny

[EricTheCarGuy]

@ncrdisabled Happens all the time, they can make quite a mess up in there but this method may not help if it's too bad, you may have to pull the evap out to fix it.

[djtiesto69]

You should do a vid on how to fill the freeon for the ac in the car

[EricTheCarGuy]

@djtiesto69 I'm working on making AC videos for future shows.

[djtiesto69]

@EricTheCarGuy thanks man my car needs ac badly and i dont know how to fill it

[malecco1]

very interesting, good tip. thanks !!!

[EricTheCarGuy]

@malecco1 Glad you liked it, thanks for the comment.

[Michiganborn1969]

Great informitive video Eric. Don't know too many vehicals today that have that problem. But anyways hope you had a great 4th weekend with lots of friend & BBQ's lol. As for me have to work the weekends as usual.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@Michiganborn1969 Thanks for watching. I worked too BTW, no worries it was short and t-shirt day. No rest for the wicked I suppose.

[nobleheight]

I am thinking about buying a 21 gallon 3 hp compresor from Harbor Freight. I remember you saying that your 26 gallon is barely enough for your purposes. In your opinion, is a 21 gallon compressor sufficient for a weekend amateur mechanic like myself. I only fix my own cars.

[Bushougoma]

@nobleheight It all depends on how many CFM it can supply and what the CFM is are on the air tools you use. The smaller the tank the more often the motor will kick on to increase the tank pressure.

I personally wouldn't recommend anything under 30 gallons if you're going to be using impact tools.

If you can go for an oiled compressor the oil free ones are very noisy.

Also beware of Harbor Freight if that compressor ever breaks be prepared to junk it since you won't be getting parts for it.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@nobleheight Enough for weekend air tool use but not for paint, grinders or sanders.

[nobleheight]

I have a 1989 Honda Accord LXI. Engine oil comes out of the dipstick gets onto the hot exhaust manifold. Oil smoke comes out from under the hood when this happens. Also, fresh oil is seeping out from the seal between the intake manifold and all 4 fuel injectors.

I suspect that it is a clogged PCV passage. You should do a video on how to unclog this. Am I right? Is this a clogged PCV passage or something else like leaking valve seals or worn rings and excessive blow by.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@nobleheight I've never seen that one so it would be kind of hard to make a video of it. I have seen plenty of valve cover gaskets leak and cause what you describe however. Perhaps you should make a video of it.

[tH3FtoN3]

i have a 2000 lincoln ls V8 every time i turn on the A/C a hissing sound comes on like for about 4 to 10 seconds is this bad?

[Bushougoma]

@tH3FtoN3 That's the expansion valve on your evaporator they tend to hiss loudly when the refrigerant charge is low. If you're system is performing normally don't worry about it if the A/C air temperature has dropped check for refrigerant leaks.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@tH3FtoN3 It's hard to say, I'm not sure if that HVAC system is vacuum controlled, if that is the case you might have a bad actuator inside the dash or a small vacuum leak. Or it could just be the expansion valve that you are hearing as a result of a low charge.

[HONDAxACURA]

I just might do that on my 96 Accord. Probably slight clog or something.

Got any tips to remove the smell?

[Bushougoma]

@HONDAxACURA That's mold growing from the water accumulation the only lasting fix is evaporator housing removal. Then thoroughly spraying down both the evap and the housing with AC cleaner.

Just hitting the intake vents like the instructions say is just like putting perfume on a stinky smell you're not hitting the source.

If you don't want to remove the evap you could remove the blower by loosening the 3 screws and that will give you an ok shot with a can at the evap but it won't be thorough.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@HONDAxACURA There have been products created that are meant to eliminate the odor, the best one I used was made by GM however these are but a temporary fix, the only way to get rid of it for good is to remove the evaporator and clean it and the inside of the HVAC.

[adrianalanis20000]

Great as always

[EricTheCarGuy]

@adrianalanis20000 Glad you liked it, thanks.

[mixwell1983]

ewww your car peed on you !!! Never had that problem but nice to know the solution IF (which hopefully never happens) I have that scenario.. Great video as always and very well broken down into basic form for people to educate themselves on !!

[EricTheCarGuy]

@mixwell1983 Thanks for the comment.

[mixwell1983]

@EricTheCarGuy - Any time dude !! Love watching your videos, cant wait for the next one !!

[mrjost55]

How does it get clogged in the first place?

[97markviii]

@mrjost55 debris getting past or in from having no cabin filter, air gets sucked in from under the wipers and some cars do not even have a filter.

[mrjost55]

@97markviii I see...so would cars with a cabin filter have a far smaller chance of getting this problem?

[EricTheCarGuy]

@mrjost55 Absolutely, that's one of the reasons you started seeing them.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@97markviii Most cars of this vintage don't have a filter. During a service I've always removed the debris from the cowl as a preventive measure for just that reason.

[EricTheCarGuy]

@mrjost55 It comes from debris from trees or other stuff that collects on the cowl under your wipers, this is the fresh air inlet to the HVAC system in your car. That combined with the condensation makes a goopy mess inside the evap housing.

[Bushougoma]

I had this problem on both of my Accords I used this trick but the drain plugged up again.

I ended up having to discharge the system and remove the evap and clean the evap housing. By this time mold started growing due to the water so I blasted the coil with evap cleaning spray.

You also may have to replace the evap insulators if they have decomposed.

Bottom line this is a temporary repair the leaves and debris will find their way to the drain again in time. As a quick fix though go for it!

[EricTheCarGuy]

@Bushougoma Yes you are correct it is but a temporary repair. You might try parking away from that tree though.

[princejaa]

haha. I WIN!! lol

[EricTheCarGuy]

@princejaa I take every one I can.

[MooseBaker]

Not yellow any more(:

[EricTheCarGuy]

@MooseBaker No, just kind of black and smelly.

[MooseBaker]

@EricTheCarGuy I was talking about the sub button.

[KNTRIDER]

Clean your A/C drain, and don't do what I used to do if you're working under someone's car in the summer, and stick a 3/8 extension bar into the drain tube to stop the water from coming out on your head, because you might forget to take the extension out...like I never did........LOL

[EricTheCarGuy]

@KNTRIDER Naw keep doing it cause I've gotten a couple of free extensions because of that.

[KNTRIDER]

@EricTheCarGuy Well, at least they're going to good use, let me know if you need any other tools LOL

[MurphManPB]

Thanks for the video Eric.

I look forward to watching your next video.

- Travis

[EricTheCarGuy]

@MurphManPB Thanks for the comment Travis.

[jdubdoubleu]

I hate car piss

[EricTheCarGuy]

@jdubdoubleu They pee on me all the time, it sucks.

[DavidSyntax]

easy does it !!! cool tip