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This article explains how to get rid of mold, mildew, or musty odors in cars, trucks, campers, boats, and similar vehicles. We discuss the diagnosis of the cause of moldy or "mildewey" smells in cars and other vehicles, how to track down the odor to its source, how to clean or remove the problem, and the importance of finding and fixing the leak that caused the smell in the first place.

This article explains the causes and cures of moldy, musty or "mildew" smells in cars or similar vehicles, and how best to get rid of the offensive, unhealthy, or unsafe as well as obnoxious moldy odor.

Readers should also see BOAT & CAR SMELLS & ODORS for our complete diagnostic list of odors in cars, and see SMELL PATCH TEST to Track Down Odors. Readers are welcome to Contact Us to submit their own car or other vehicle smell and its resolution.

The photo above shows a nearly-new car that developed an unbearable mold smell traced to leaks at the passenger side window pillar. Even though mold was not visible in the car interior and little mold was found in air and vacuum tests of the accessible vehicle surfaces, MVOCs from mold contamination in the leak area had produced a very strong musty "mildew" (actually mold) smell that required extensive cleaning and some material replacement to make the vehicle usable. Details of this successful car deodorization process are included in this article.

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Car Odors - Mold: Boat, Camper, Car, or Truck Mold Contamination Can Cause Moldy Smells and May be a Health Risk

Mold growth in a vehicle such as a boat, camper, car, or truck can be hard to see but easy to smell, producing an obnoxious moldy or musty smell that some owners refer to as car "mildew". Usually a moldy smelling car that stinks as soon as you open a door to enter it, with the engine off, is due to a water leak and mold contaminated soft goods such as sound insulation, carpets, or even seats or the head liner. Don't forget to check the trunk for leaks and moldy smell sources too.

A moldy smell "mildew smell" coming out of the heating/cooling vents may be associated with mold growth inside the A/C evaporator itself according to Car Talk whose hosts suggested trying to "kill" the mold with Lysol spray. In general we need to clean up or remove mold from problem areas; killing mold is ineffective, incomplete, and may leave harmful particles that continue to plague the car's occupants respiratory systems. See MOLD KILLING GUIDE for details about attempts to kill mold in buildings - it also applies to cars. .

What you are actually smelling if you report a "moldy odor" is not necessarily air containing mold spores. You may be smelling MVOCs, gases produced by some mold species under some conditions. If we smell mold, is mold present and is that a problem? Most people have a pretty good idea of moldy or musty smell as associated with mold. If you smell mold or find it at important levels in screening samples of air, dust, or vacuumed surfaces, (by quantity or by particle type in samples) it is probably there.

Or it was there. The moldy smell may persist even after the actual mold reservoir has been removed. That's because the volatile MVOC gases may have penetrated and been absorbed into other soft goods (car seats, headliner, carpeting) even if those items were not themselves ever wet or mold contaminated.

MVOCs themselves can be a respiratory irritant and might even be toxic to some individuals. We discuss MVOCs in more detail in our building hazards section at Mold Odors - MVOCs.

"At Risk" Moldy Car Occupants

A moldy car is more than an obnoxious-smelling vehicle in which to travel. For occupants who are at extra risk of respiratory or health problems such as asthmatics, elderly, infant, or immune-compromised people, exposure to high levels of mold, or of mold smells (MVOCs or mold volatile organic compounds) may be affected even when there is no actual visible mold.

Cost of Removing Smelly Mold Odors from a Vehicle

The cost of successfully removing a moldy smell from a car ranges from low if you found and fixed a small problem early (wet smelly floor mats) to very high if the smell contamination is extensive and involves extensive car interior materials such as the seating and head liner.

If the vehicle interior is visibly moldy throughout, the car is, in our experience, likely to be a total loss. This is certainly likely to be the case for a car that has been under water, such as in a flood zone or hurricane. Don't get fooled into accepting a superficial "clean-up" job on such a vehicle.

Here is our step by step moldy or smelly car cleanup guide

The most reliable to find and remove the source and cause of a moldy smell in a vehicle involves several steps. We list the car deodorizing steps, and following the list we discuss each of these car smell cure steps in more detail.

1. Identify the smell in the vehicle: is it mold or something else?
2. Confirm that the moldy or "mildew" smell comes from inside the vehicle, ruling out having simply parked in a stinky area. Confirm that it's a moldy smell identify the smell in the vehicle to be sure it's "moldy" and not something else such as the other vehicle odors discussed throughout our vehicle-odor diagnosis article: BOAT & CAR SMELLS & ODORS
3. Rule Out Indirect Odor or Smell Sources: Track the Stink to the Source, by ruling out odors that seem to be coming from a vehicle but actually come from an indirect source such as a boat cover, parking in a smelly area, etc.
4. Find where in the vehicle the smell is strongest. Use the subjective test of a smell-test person, or if necessary, use our SMELL PATCH TEST to Track Down Odors to confirm that the odor source is a specific item such as car carpeting, sound insulation, seat, or headliner.
5. Look for and trace the source of water leaks into the vehicle. Mold needs water to grow, and food to eat - carpeting, plastic surfaces, cloth head liners, sound insulation, even paint will do. Mold does not grow on clean metal surfaces in a car.
6. Remove moldy, smelly materials such as moldy carpeting or seats, clean the remaining car interior, and repeat the steps above. The moldy smell should be significantly less. It probably won't be completely gone, because the mold odor-source - the MVOCs that you were actually smelling, is a gas that also permeates other porous vehicle materials.
7. Use "odor-killing" deodorants or ozone to get rid of moldy car smell? Generally we do not recommend car deodorants - they only cover up the smell, the do not get rid of the source. It will be back. Ozone generators produce ozone gas, a strong oxidant (and dangerous to breathe) that temporarily fills the car interior to try to "oxidize" or "kill" mold that your car cleaning company couldn't reach - such as sound insulation padding up high inside the front fire-wall of the car, under the dash board. Be very careful if you're going to permit someone to ozone-treat your car. If the ozone treatment is over-done, the ozone can oxidize other car materials, causing a more horrible odor than ever.
8. Let the cleaned vehicle "cook" in sunlight on warm, dry days, with the car windows open.
9. If the boat, car, camper, truck, or other vehicle still smells as bad as before, you have not found the source and you'll need to be more aggressive in finding and removing smell-contaminated materials. Go back to step 1.

These car mold removal steps are discussed in detail below.

Identify the Smell in the Vehicle: is it Mold or Something Else

Most people are pretty accurate in recognizing a musty, "mildew" odor or moldy odor indoors or inside of a car. To be technically accurate, mildew, a smaller group of mold types, grows only on living plants and not in cars. If it smells moldy, it's mold (not mildew).

But because tackling a moldy car smell can be difficult, expensive, and frustrating, it would be smart to be sure we're fighting the right battle before beginning to tear the boat, car, camper, or truck apart to find and get rid of moldy materials.

Confirm That the Moldy or "Mildew" Smell Comes From Inside the Vehicle and Look for Visible Mold

To confirm that the smell is indeed coming from inside the car, and that it's a moldy smell, begin with the car with engine off, the vehicle washed clean, including the under-carriage, (you weren't out driving through a manure-covered barnyard first were you?).

Should you test your car for toxic mold contamination? No. Not normally. Smelling and looking for mold in a vehicle should be sufficient, and you would not normally need to actually test a car for toxic or allergenic mold contamination.

In our photo (left) you can see our field test kit for mold at the smelly-car's rear corner. For the owners, we performed a series of pro-bono mold tests on this moldy-smelling car in preparing this article.

We tested the vehicle air for abnormal levels of airborne mold and we collected vacuum samples of dust from the vehicle's carpets and padding to look for evidence of problem mold contamination. We did not need to test for MVOCs - smelling the car was enough.

Our mold test lab photos (below) show examples of what we found in our carpet dust samples from this moldy-smelling car: dog hair, dog dander, cat dander (see CAT DANDER in BUILDINGS for a general discussion about pet allergies and dander), dust mite fecal pellets, road dust and dirt, incidental plant fragments, and occasional typical outdoor airborne mold spores. We also found a some starch granules and some yeast cells, possibly associated with food spillage. There was no significant visible mold spore contamination in the sampled areas. The contamination was by a moldy smell - MVOCs from mold that more likely had occupied harder-to reach areas under the dashboard.

How to smell-test a car for mold: Close all of the vehicle windows, doors, hatches.

Let the vehicle sit in the sunlight until its interior is warm. On a summer day this may require just a half hour or so.

Select your smell-test person, someone who is particularly sensitive to mold, such as your wife or girl friend. (Make sure she's not one of the at-risk people we've described above.) Women usually have a keener sense of smell than men, and we have found that pregnant women sometimes have an extremely sensitive ability to detect odors. However we think that exposing pregnant women to possibly moldy cars or any other obnoxious stuff is a not good idea.

Have the smell test person approach the car, breathing normally. Starting with the door closest to where you already think the mold smell is strongest, open the door, quickly slide into the seat, and close the door.

Take a whiff of the smelly car interior. Get out of the car and close the door again.

Report the results: did the car smell moldy? How bad was it?

Rule Out Indirect Odor or Smell Sources: Track the Stink to the Source

If your smelly vehicle is an RV, camper, or boat, check that the moldy odor source is not coming from an indirect source such as a moldy boat cover or RV cover. If your boat or RV cover contains plastic or vinyl, see VINYL Siding or PLASTIC Window ODORS in Buildings as an example of that material as a potential odor source in buildings; odors from hot vinyl in cars are a similar phenomenon..

Parking a vehicle in a smelly area, over manure or over a dead animal, or covering a vehicle with a moldy canvas or vinyl car cover are examples of indirect car smell sources.

Other examples of tracking down indirect odor sources are provided at DUCT & AIR HANDLER ODORS (duct work picking up and transporting odors from one place to another in a building - this can happen in a car too), and at ODOR DIAGNOSIS CHECKLIST - our list of steps to track down a smell in a building. Some of the strategy discussed there, such as noticing the time of day, weather conditions, etc. may help track down a smell in a car.

Find where in the vehicle the smell is strongest

Often the moldy smell is stronger in one area of the vehicle. In the moldy car case used as an example in this article, the strongest moldy smell was observed in the front passenger compartment.

Our photo (left) shows the peeled-back floor carpeting in the moldy-smelling car's front passenger area. The car was nearly new and things looked clean, but carpeting, padding, and sound insulation extending up under the dashboard had been wet in this area - the primary odor reservoir in this vehicle.

If necessary, have the smell-tester repeat this procedure for the other car seats and doors, waiting five or ten minutes in fresh air between each test.

Beware: your test results can be thrown off: repeated or prolonged exposure to a moldy smell makes many people become less sensitive to the odor, potentially making their report unreliable if the smeller does not wait long enough in fresh air between smell-tests of the vehicle.

Look for and trace the source of water leaks into the vehicle

It is essential to find and cure the cause of a moldy smell in a vehicle - otherwise the entire diagnostic, cleaning, and testing process will be wasted. In the moldy car case used as an example in this article, a water leak at the front passenger side windshield pillar was sending water down inside the pillar into the area behind and under the dash board on the passenger side, ultimately onto the passenger side floor. The car's owners first noticed the leak problem as a wet floor mat. On exploring they found that carpeting below the floor mat was still more wet. This meant trouble. In our photo (left) the author points to the very origin of the roof and windshield pillar leak on the car's passenger side.The dealer was able to trace the leak to its source, and the leak was repaired. But the moldy smell remained.

Remove moldy materials from the Vehicle

Getting rid of a moldy smell in a vehicle means first, removing the wet or moldy materials that are the home of the stink. The proper approach to cleaning out a mold problem is to remove the mold. Approaches that focus on "mold killers" or mold deodorants are ineffective.

But how much smelly, moldy, or previously wet material needs to be removed? We did not have to remove the rear carpets in this case.

Our photos (above) show the inspection of rear carpeting where it terminated under the front passenger seat. We looked for evidence of wetness having extended back to the rear floor of the car, such as moisture or stains. Remember that if you are checking for leaks and moisture in dry weather, the wet carpeting may have dried out and may look just fine. Smell it and look for water stains.

Carpeting, seats, sound insulation, head liners, door liners, or other vehicle materials that have actually been soaked and that smell moldy need to be removed and disposed-of, and the exposed surfaces of the vehicle cleaned using conventional cleaners (soap and water would be fine).

Our photo (left) shows the primary smell reservoir in this mold-stinky car: the carpet padding and sound insulation material. A topic of considerable discussion was just how much of this padding to remove.

Ideally all of the padding that had been wet would have been pulled from the car. The problem, explained by the car dealer, was that that this padding extends up under the dashboard, higher than can be readily pulled out from inside the car, unless the entire dashboard assembly is first removed.

Our opinion and possibly that of car experts Click and Clack the Tappet Brothers (NPR) is that we do not ever want to have the dealer remove the car's dashboard if we can possibly avoid it. Too often wires and connections are not properly restored, and electrical, control, and maybe other problems may plague the car for the rest of its life. The owners heeded this advice and compromised on the mold deodorizing process. Sound insulation was pulled out and removed completely, for "as far as the dealer's service tech could reach" without removing the dashboard.

The decision, which is one with which we agree, to leave the dash board in place might explain why after all the removal of smelly padding and carpeting, it took quite some time for the remaining moldy odor to nearly disappear from the car.

Nearby porous materials such as the vehicle's head liner that were never wet but that have been exposed to moldy odors may continue to smell even after the original smell source has been cleaned.

Sometimes, a combination of cleaning, sun-cooking with windows open, and the passage of time will dissipate the remaining MVOC-related moldy smell from these secondary smell reservoirs, enough that the vehicle is usable. If not, additional materials may need to be removed.

Two additional moldy car smell deodorizing steps are described next.

Can I Use "odor-killing" chemicals, deodorants, or ozone to get rid of moldy or other bad car smells?

Generally we do not recommend car deodorants - they only cover up the smell, the do not get rid of the source. It will be back.

Ozone generators produce ozone gas, a strong oxidant (and dangerous to breathe) that temporarily fills the car interior to try to "oxidize" or "kill" mold that your car cleaning company couldn't reach - such as sound insulation padding up high inside the front fire-wall of the car, under the dash board.

Watch out: Be very careful if you're going to permit someone to ozone-treat your car. If the ozone treatment is over-done, the ozone can oxidize other car materials, causing a more horrible odor than ever. Details about over-dosing with ozone are found at OZONE for MOLD OR ODORS.

Field Report: Unsuccessful Try at Removing Car Odors: "Chemical Cleaner" followed by "Ozone Overdose" Ruins Car?

Question: The Dealer's Attempt to Deodorize a smell in my car's A/C vent system made things much worse. Is it safe?

I took my automobile to a Chrysler dealer to have the evaporator (AC vent system ) cleaned due to a bacteria/mold smell which I was told is common in Chrysler products.

The dealer used a chemical “cleaner” which on the market which was supposed to remove this material. It apparently worked however I was left with a terrible perfume-like odor that would not go away.

This went on for a few weeks until they finally had a company come in and ozone treat the interior.

I need to point out I have severe emphysema and asthma.

The individuals there at the dealership including the service man from the company all said the equipment was used “over the weekend” for an extended period of time to remove the perfume smell and allowed to run over the weekend.

They used 2 ozone generators inside the car: one in the trunk and one in the interior cabin area.

The “expert” from the cleaning company said what he smells is “CLEAN AIR” – MY REPLY IS SIMPLY BULL.

NOW I have a serious odd “chemical odor” in the car which is more (and then some) irritating than the perfume odor. This smell has now persisted for over 30 days now with the car left running with the AC and fans running, sitting in an open area with the windows down and so on, they even cleaned the upholstery and rugs.

Question is what the dickens is going on?

Is my car ruined due to ozone treatment?

Has a chemical reaction started or occurred? And most significant is this dangerous? I need to get rid of the Auto but cannot dump a car on someone that may he harmed by this odor!

Please advise me about what has happened here! - M.R.

Reply: It may have been less expensive and more effective to do it right the first time.

OPINION: With just an email naturally no one can accurately diagnose nor cure an odor problem nor really assess its level of risk, but here are some thoughts based on our experience and your report:

What you describe does not sound like the most effective approach to a car odor and worse, as if it has indeed made things worse. We can only guess from so little info, but

1. Chemical deodorants for cars? It is common for people to try to "treat" an unwanted odor by using (by spray or other means) a "deodorant" chemical (perfume?) that does not actually remove anything. Rather it superimposes a new odor that drowns out or disguises the old one. "Air fresheners" often work this way.
   • Because under continued exposure our brains eventually tune out odors or smells - at least to some degree - the perfume deodorant is first covering up and then desensitizing the human being's nose rather than removing or cleaning up a problem.
   • This is not so horrible if the original problem was not health related, though not effective as it does nothing about finding and removing the original odor problem. In this case the original odor may later return, or if it's a "new car smell" or an odor from new materials it may eventually outgas, dissipate, and thus become much less noticeable.
   • A related problem is that some people are or become sensitive to the new "deodorant" chemicals themselves, suffering from asthma attacks or other complaints.
2. Shampoo plus chemical deodorant? A similar approach to car odor reduction is to wash or shampoo carpets or seats hoping that that step removes an odor problem (if those materials were even the original problem source), combined with an odorant or "air sanitizer" chemical as we described above.
3. Heavy dosing a car interior with with ozone, as you describe, risks oxidizing plastics and fabrics inside the automobile, making a new horrible smell that frankly, is unlikely to go away unless the car is gutted.
   • Worse, the odor from an oxidized material, say a carpet, often penetrates and is absorbed into other materials such as a headliner or seats, so we no longer have the option of just replacing the smelly oxidized carpet, seats, or whatever the offender is.
   • The new odors are themselves respiratory irritants to some people, especially people who are chemically sensitive, asthmatic, etc. The new odor is not going to be ozone itself (which is certainly dangerous at high levels) because ozone is so volatile that it doesn't stick around long after the ozone generator machine has been turned off. Rather the new odors are, in our experience, from oxidized materials in the car. We don't know the actual risk in any given case as individual sensitivity varies widely.

These reasons are why, even though it sounds like a lot more trouble, it is actually often more effective and less expensive to find and remove the original odor source in the first place, along with finding and fixing its cause.

Now, we are afraid, it may be too late for this car and it might have been rendered unusable. And we agree that what you smell is certainly not "clean air" - if the air in the car were clean - odor free - it would not smell.

Before giving up on the overdosed, over-ozoned car, you can try the next suggestion we list below:

Air out the car and let it bake in the sun with its windows open (and watch out for rainstorms). Otherwise, to restore the car now may require identifying just what in-car components are smell sources, they have to then be removed, the car aired-out, and new materials installed. These might include:

• Car carpets
• Car seats
• Car headliner
• Car door liners
• Car sound insulation padding
• Trunk carpeting or sound insulation padding

We do not advise just passing on the car to someone else before these problems are fixed - you wouldn't want to be responsible for some future car-occupant's health or respiratory problem that might be caused, contributed to, or blamed-on the smelly car.

Let the Cleaned Vehicle "Cook" in Sunlight

On warm, dry days, with the vehicle's windows open, or if it's a boat, with any covers removed, expose the vehicle to full days of sunlight and fresh air. In the moldy car case used as an example in this article, a combination of removal of smelly carpeting and sound insulation from the front of the vehicle, combined with cleaning and deodorizing, left the car with a slight moldy odor that we could just barely detect eight months after the cleanup began. The owners were satisfied.

If Your Boat, Car, Camper, Truck, or Other Vehicle Still Smells Moldy

If the vehicle still smells as moldy as before, you have not found the source and you'll need to be more aggressive in finding and removing smell-contaminated materials. Go back to step 1.

Also see our details about wet, moldy, smelly carpeting at Carpeting odors: diagnose & cure carpet smells due to mold, mildew, pet urine, and carpet testing advice

Additional Useful References for Odor Detection, Diagnosis, & Removal

• ODOR DIAGNOSIS CHECKLIST provides a checklist of places to look and things to do to track down the source of an odor or smell in building air, water, mechanical systems, heating, cooling, or other locations.
• Animal Smells may be due to current or prior pets in a building, pet urine or fecal waste, cat boxes, animal hair, dog dander, cat dander (are allergens and are indicators of the level of prior pet activity), dust tracked in by dogs. But animal odors in buildings can also occur when an animal such as a mouse or rat has died in a building cavity.
  
• Carpeting odors: diagnose & cure carpet smells due to mold, mildew, pet urine, and carpet stains - thermal tracking, and carpet testing advice
• Gas Odors: A Toxic Gas Testing Sampling Plan for Residential Indoor Air Investigations. This document outlines gas toxicity levels and gas testing procedures we use in field IAQ and environmental health investigations for a range of indoor gases which may be produced by building product outgassing, mold and MVOCs, mechanical systems, fire damage, or contamination from nearby industrial, beauty parlor, dry cleaning, or other activities which often produce noxious or toxic odors and gases.
• Gas Exposure Hazard Levels: for Toxic Gas Exposure to Ammonia, Arsine, Arsenic, Bromine, Carbon Dioxide, Carbon Monoxide, Hydride, Ozone - allowable exposure levels and hazard levels
• Gas Measurement Tools recommendations for selection and use of gas detection equipment and descriptions of how gas testing equipment is used
• Gas Testing methods of screening for various odors, gases, and chemicals in the indoor environment
• Mold Odors and Moldy or Musty Smells: Here are articles on diagnosing moldy or musty building odors
  • Mold Odors, Musty Smells in Buildings: this article summarizes the common sources and causes of moldy and musty odors in buildings.
  • Mold Odors - MVOCs: If we smell mold, is mold present and is that a problem? Most people have a pretty good idea of moldy or musty smell as associated with mold. If you smell mold or find it at important levels in screening samples of air, dust, or vacuumed surfaces, (by quantity or by particle type in samples) it is probably there. Testing and ASTM Test Standards for MVOCs are also cited below.
  • Mold Odors FAQs: Why do mold odors occur in our home following rain? Odors at exterior outlets sure sound as if there has been leakage into the wall and a probable mold colony. We need an expert visual inspection and possibly invasive sampling, combined with building history, to find and follow leak paths and high humidity cavities in order to inspect the most-likely mold reservoir targets in a building. The odors may be MVOC's which may be produced by some mold genera/species at varying levels as humidity, temperature, air pressure, and other variables change.
    
  • Mold Information Website: This website provides information and procedures for finding, testing, cleaning and preventing indoor mold, toxic black mold, green mold, testing building indoor air quality, and other sick house / sick building investigations. Here are research articles, inspection and testing procedures, and contact information for expert services.
• Odor Diagnosis Log Sheet: Use this Odor Log Spreadsheet or this Odor Log printer-friendly file to record your observations for further analysis. Also see ODOR DIAGNOSIS CHECKLIST
• Ozone Odors & Ozone "deodorizers": The Use of Ozone Generators Indoors for Control of Odors and Mold Removal in Buildings: A Summary of Hazards and False Claims.
  Ozone is widely promoted by ozone generating equipment companies and cleaning services for use in indoor building environments to deodorize, disinfect, "kill" mold, and for "general health".
  This article explains the effects of using ozone in buildings for these purposes and warns consumers about misapplication of and health risks from ozone in buildings. Because at least some of these claims are based on marketing desire, not good science, and because ozone exposure can be both dangerous and ineffective indoors, we have collected some information and references on this topic.
• Ozone generators: The Hazards of Ozone & Ozone Gas Generators. This article gives an overview of the hazards associated with use of ozone indoors as a "mold remedy" or as an "air purifier". Ozone is widely promoted by ozone generating equipment companies and cleaning services for use in indoor building environments to deodorize, disinfect, "kill" mold, and for "general health".
• Ozone Toxicity & Ozone Gas Exposure Hazards This article discusses Ozone Toxicity in Buildings - A Summary of Hazards of Indoor Ozone, Ozone Generators, and Use of Ozone for Mold Remediation. While there are some important uses of ozone (such as for medical disinfection under controlled conditions), in general this is an idea which ranges from bad to dangerous in the home. This article explains the effects of using ozone in buildings for these purposes and warns consumers about misapplication of and health risks from ozone in buildings. Because at least some of these claims are based on marketing desire, not good science, and because ozone exposure can be both dangerous and ineffective indoors, we have collected some information and references on this topic.
• Ozone Gas Hazards Description
• Pesticide Odors U.S. EPA advice on pesticides and possible pesticide contamination
• Pet Odors: from dogs, cats, or other pets, source identification, testing, removal, are discussed in detail at ANIMAL ODORS IN BUILDINGS, with special focus on cat odors and allergens beginning at Cat Dander: how to inspect and test a building for past or current presence of cats, cat hair, cat dander, and cat allergens" . Also see Pet Allergens.
• Plastic odors: Plastic Odors, including Siding Odors. This discussion also pertains to other vinyl or plastic materials used in buildings such as diagnosing odors from plastic trim, plastic or vinyl windows, window screens, doors, or similar materials. This article includes a plastic odor diagnosis checklist and it lists common sources of plastic-like smells in buildings.
• Sampling for gases in air such as VOC's, MVOC's, toxic chemicals, and combustion products.
  Unfortunately no single test or tool can detect all possible building contaminants. We use methods and equipment which can test for common contaminants.
  
  MVOC Testing Standard: As of 3 March 2009 the ASTM Committee E50 on Environmental Assessment, Risk Management and Corrective Action released ASTM E2600-08 Standard Practice for Assessment of Vapor Intrusion into Structures on Property Involved in Real Estate Transactions.
  
  Gas testing instruments, their applications, and their sensitivities (minimum detectable limits) for specific gases are described in our Gas Sampling Plan online document.
• Siding Odors: Vinyl Siding Failures, Diagnosis, Repair, Proper Installation: Siding, window, screen, & other "plastic" odors: We've investigated a number of reports of strange odors in residential buildings that were ultimately traced to vinyl or plastic which was outgassing. we have observed this phenomenon with vinyl siding, plastic or vinyl window or door screens, and plastic or vinyl windows. A key diagnostic step was the observation that the odors were strongest when the material under investigation was exposed to sunlight or other sources of heat. [This article is under development, September 2007, and we welcome content suggestions or questions].\
• SMELL PATCH TEST to Track Down Odors - a simple procedure using paper towels and aluminum foil can help track down a building odor to a specific surface indoors.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about diagnosing & curing odor and mold smells in cars, boats, RVs, trucks, trailers

Question: My used car smells like mold, mildew, chemicals; the prior owner denies any problems. Can you help?

Hi, I love your site and can often spend hours on it gaining valuable honest and accurate information. I need your help as I am going crazy over a car I purchased for my son. I flew to Iowa and spent every penny I had to buy him the car he always wanted. I drove it home 1000 miles to Mahopac NY. I had to stop many times for fresh air as my eyes were burning and I felt sick.

The previous owner denies any problems with the car and denies any cleaning treatments or ozone. Of course he does. This is a 2007 Chevy Monte Carlo with 3000 miles stored in a heated barn surrounded by 100's of acres of corn or soy fields. The carpet has a moldy smell. The vents have a moldy smell. The seats have a chemical odor. I needed to throw away my clothing after unsuccessfully washing three times. The seat belts and seats have white mold stains when looking across the face of them. The jute padding smelled of mildew. The butyl tape used to seal holes smells like death burned over?

I have stripped the car down to the steering column being the only remaining object in the car. I have covered almost every inch with dynamat to block out odors. I still get a sweet odor coming from the chassis opening for the seat belts. This is the same odor that contaminated the interior insulator attached to the front fire wall.

All of the hoses in the car interior or engine have a white powder substance inside them. I found a 1" pattern of growth behind a headlight that I wiped off already. The best way to describe it was almost braile like formation, as in reading for the blind. I don't know if this car suffered from aerial pesticide overspray, crop harvesting dust, ozone, chemical clean up? I don't want my son to get sick from this car and the only way I will be able to sleep is if I get some of these things tested. Can you please help?

I notice you are in PK and I could easily drop off some of the suspect items for your testing. I realize there will be a cost for your service. Thanks - Jason

Reply: some suggestions for dealing with a just-purchased, very moldy-smelling car

I'm sorry to read about your aggravation with the car, Jason, and will offer what I can to assist. Given your strong conviction that there is a mold problem in the car I'm not sure that further testing is the place to start. If there is a mold smell in a car it is very difficult or even impossible to remove without

• identifying which components are contaminated, and removing them, cleaning the exposed surfaces, and r
• replacing them. Candidates include headliner, seating, carpets, carpet padding, soundproofing padding.

Speculating: If the car was previously exposed to flooding it may have been condemned and disposed-of, then sold improperly on the market. If so, fraud may have been involved in its sale to you. I recommend some checking up based on the vehicle VIN to review its history. If the car was flooded you may want to consider returning it to the seller for a full refund.

Another source of car odors can be trouble with the heating and A/C systems, and leaks into that system ductwork. That's not itself a mold issue.

If it's a mold contamination problem, the alternative, which could be costly, is to track down odors in the car to sources that you haven't found and replace those materials. See SMELL PATCH TEST to Track Down Odors.

Questions & Answers regarding this article

Questions & answers about removing mold and mold smells from cars, boats, campers, RVs, and other vehicles

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Technical Reviewers & References

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• Additional technical contributors & reference sources for this article are listed below.

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Diagnosing Building Odors

BOAT & CAR SMELLS & ODORS
  Car Burning / Gas Smell Safety
  Car Odors - Animals
  Car Odors - Antifreeze
  Car Odors - Body Odor
  Car Odors - Cigarettes
  Car Odors - Climate Control
  Car Odors - Exhaust Gas
  Car Odors - Gasoline
  CAR SMELL - Mold DEODORIZING
    At Risk - Moldy Car Occupants
    Cost of Car Deodorizing
    Step by Step Car Odor Cleanup
    Identify the Smell
    Confirm Smell in Vehicle
    Track Stink to Source
    Finding Strongest Smell
    Remove Contaminated Materials
    Chemical Cleaners, Ozone for Cars
    Car Deodorize by Sunlight?
  Car Odors - Plastic
  Car Odors - Sweet Smells

• ASTM E2600 - 08 Standard Practice for Assessment of Vapor Intrusion into Structures on Property Involved in Real Estate Transactions is available from the ASTM at astm.org/Standards/E2600.htm .
  
  "This practice is intended for use on a voluntary basis by parties who wish to conduct a VIA on a parcel of real estate, or more specifically conduct a screening evaluation to determine whether or not there is potential for a VIC, and if so, identify alternatives for further investigation."
  
  The standard goes on to emphasize the uncertainty in testing any site for gases and vapor intrusion.
• "Shaky Seats, Leaky Fluids, Toyota" Scott Sturgis, The New York Times, 01/24/2010, Automobiles section, p. 4.
• Thanks to B.L., Poughkeepsie, NY, for discussion of the cause and cure of moldy car smells and permission to take and use photos of the family's moldy car during its mold deodorizing procedure, 2009.
• Thanks to M.R. for discussing an ineffective attempt at deodorizing a smelly car - November 2010
• Click and Clack the Tappet Brothers, is the nom-de-radio for NPR's Car Talk radio program hosts Tom and Ray Magliozzi, who can also be contacted by telephone at 888-227-8255.
  
  An online discussion of the detection, cause, and cure of smells or mold in cars, reviewing this InspectAPedia article has been opened at Car Talk at http://action.publicbroadcasting.net/cartalk/posts/list/2136105.page

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

• Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.
• Environmental Health & Investigation Bibliography - our technical library on indoor air quality inspection, testing, laboratory procedures, forensic microscopy, etc.
• Adkins and Adkins Dictionary of Roman Religion discusses Robigus, the Roman god of crop protection and the legendary progenitor of wheat rust fungus.
• Kansas State University, department of plant pathology, extension plant pathology web page on wheat rust fungus: see http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/path-ext/factSheets/Wheat/Wheat%20Leaf%20Rust.asp
• "A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture, and Your Home", U.S. Environmental Protection Agency US EPA - includes basic advice for building owners, occupants, and mold cleanup operations. See http://www.epa.gov/mold/moldguide.htm
• US EPA - Mold Remediation in Schools and Commercial Building [ copy on file as /sickhouse/EPA_Mold_Remediation_in_Schools.pdf ] - US EPA
• US EPA - Una Breva Guia a Moho - Hongo [on file as /sickhouse/EPA_Moho_Guia_sp.pdf - - en Espanol

Allergies, Allergens, Allergy Testing in Buildings - References & Products

• Air Conditioning System Blower Fans & Filters Cascading for Optimum Indoor Air Quality
• Allergen Tests in Buildings advice about how to test, what to look for, in evaluating the level of dog, cat, or other animal allergens in a building
• "IgG Food Allergy Testing by ELISA/EIA, What do they really tell us?" Sheryl B. Miller, MT (ASCP), PhD, Clinical Laboratory Director, Bastyr University Natural Health Clinic - ELISA testing accuracy: Here is an example of Miller's critique of ELISA http://www.betterhealthusa.com/public/282.cfm - Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients
  The critique included in that article raises compelling questions about IgG testing assays, which prompts our interest in actually screening for the presence of high levels of particles that could carry allergens - dog dander or cat dander in the case at hand.
  http://www.tldp.com/issue/174/IgG%20Food%20Allergy.html contains similar criticism in another venue but interestingly by the same author, Sheryl Miller. Sheryl Miller, MT (ASCP), PhD, is an Immunologist and Associate Professor of Basic and Medical Sciences at Bastyr University in Bothell, Washington. She is also the Laboratory Director of the Bastyr Natural Health Clinic Laboratory.
• Allergens: Testing for the level of exposure to animal allergens is discussed at http://www.animalhealthchannel.com/animalallergy/diagnosis.shtml (lab animal exposure study is interesting because it involves a higher exposure level in some cases
• Allergens: WebMD discusses allergy tests for humans at webmd.com/allergies/allergy-tests
• Animal Allergens: Dog, Cat, and Other Animal Dander - Cleanup & Prevention Information for Asthmatics and regarding Indoor Air Quality.
• Atlas of Mold Related Illness Symptoms & Complaints - long list of both documented, studied mold related illness, and complaints ascribed to mold contamination or allergens in buildings
• Cat Dander: how to inspect and test a building for past or current presence of cats, cat hair, cat dander, and cat allergens
• Clinical Atlas of Mold Toxicity - An Online Description of Toxic, Pathogenic, Allergenic Fungi, Fungal Diseases
• Fiberglass Insulation Contains Mold© 2005 comments about a field study in process, & more about health hazards from fiberglass insulation
• Humidity: What indoor humidity should we maintain in order to avoid a mold problem?
• Mold Action Guide detailed guide on finding, removing, and preventing indoor mold contamination
• Odors, Odor Detection, Smells, & Gases how to find and identify sources of noxious or toxic odors and gases
• Other environmental risks, Our much longer list: Asbestos, carbon monoxide, electromagnetic fields, etc.
• Ozone: The Use of Ozone Indoors for Control of Odors and Mold Removal in Buildings: A Summary of Hazards and False Claims.
• Pollen Allergens: identification, plant pollen and indoor air quality
• Products to Reduce Mold & Allergy Problems to reduce indoor mold or allergen levels: air cleaners, air purifiers, dust mite covers, vacuum cleaners, crawl space vents
• Recognizing Allergens: What various indoor allergens look like - identification photos to help identify pollen, dust mites, animal dander, toxic or allergenic mold - Common Mold and other Allergens, Irritants, Remedies & Advice
• Rodent control issues, including dander, fecal, and urine contamination of Buildings and Building insulation are discussed at our
• Sewage and Septic backup contamination in Buildings: inspection, testing, remediation, & references to expert sources
• Action Guide: What to do about mold, mildew, and other indoor allergens
• ...

Mold Contamination Testing, Cleanup, Prevention: references & products

• The Mold Information Center: What to Do About Mold in Buildings, When and How to Inspect for Mold, Clean Up Mold, or Avoid Mold Problems
• Aerobiology, Building Science, Microscopy, & Laboratory References, an extensive technical bibliography
• Allergens: what they look like in buildings
• Associations: Sick House, Sick Building, SBS - Air Quality, Government, Private Associations and Information Resources
• Atlas of Clinical Fungi, 2nd Ed., GS deHoog, J Guarro, J Gene, & MJ Figueras, Centraalbureau voor Schimmelcultures, Universitat Rovira I Virgili, 2000, ISBN 90-70351-43-9 (you can buy this book at Amazon)
• Atlas of Mold Related Illness: Index of Symptoms and health, physical, neurological, psychological, and other complaint which people suspect may be mold or building-related.
• Atlas of Indoor Mold, Online Clinical Mold Atlas, Toxins, Pathogens, Allergens and Other Indoor Particles - Medical Health Effects of Mold (separate online document)
• Black Mold that is Harmless Photos of recognizable, usually harmless black mold on wood, bluestain, ceratocystis, ophistoma
• Building Floods: quick steps after a building flood or plumbing leak can prevent costly mold contamination
• Classes of Mold: what types of cosmetic, allergenic, or toxic mold are a problem? Can mold be cleaned-up successfully?
• Clinical Mold References - Detailed bibliography of mold reference texts
• "A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture, and Your Home", U.S. Environmental Protection Agency US EPA - includes basic advice for building owners, occupants, and mold cleanup operations. See http://www.epa.gov/mold/moldguide.htm
• "Disease Prevention Program for Certain Vegetable Crops," David B. Langston, Jr., Extension Plant Pathologist - Vegetables, University of Georgia (PDF document) original source: www.reeis.usda.gov/web/crisprojectpages/209797.html
• "Disease Prevention in Home Vegetable Gardens," Patricia Donald, Department of Plant Microbiology and Pathology, Lewis Jett
  Department of Horticulture, University of Missouri Extension - extension.missouri.edu/publications/DisplayPub.aspx?P=G6202
• "Management of Powdery Mildew, Leveillula taurica, in Greenhouse Peppers," Ministry of Agriculture and Lands, British Columbia - Original source: www.agf.gov.bc.ca/cropprot/peppermildew.htm
• Environmental Health & Investigation Bibliography - our own technical library on indoor air quality inspection, testing, laboratory procedures, forensic microscopy, etc.
• Fiberglass: Mold in Fiberglass Insulation© 2005 comments about a field study in process, & more about health hazards from fiberglass insulation - DJF
• Fifth Kingdom, Bryce Kendrick, ISBN13: 9781585100224, is available from the InspectAPedia online bookstore - we recommend the CD-ROM version of this book. This 3rd/edition is a compact but comprehensive encyclopedia of all things mycological. Every aspect of the fungi, from aflatoxin to zppspores, with an accessible blend of verve and wit. The 24 chapters are filled with up-to-date information of classification, yeast, lichens, spore dispersal, allergies, ecology, genetics, plant pathology, predatory fungi, biological control, mutualistic symbioses with animals and plants, fungi as food, food spoilage and mycotoxins.
• Fungi, Identifying Filamentous, A Clinical Laboratory Handbook, Guy St-Germain, Richard Summerbell, Star Publishing, 1996, ISBN 0-89863-177-7 (English) (buy at Amazon)
• Looking for Mold Procedure: what mold is often found where in buildings - simple technical presentation
• Meruliporia: the house eating fungus or "poria"
• Mold Action Guide: Step-by-Step Instructions, What to do about mold, mildew, and other indoor allergens
• MOLD APPEARANCE - WHAT MOLD LOOKS LIKE Photos of what mold looks like in buildings
• MOLD APPEARANCE - STUFF THAT IS NOT MOLD Photos of NOT-mold material that is sometimes mistaken for mold
• MOLD ATLAS & PARTICLES INDEX, Pathogens, Allergens and Other Indoor Particles - Medical Health Effects of Mold (separate online document)
• MOLD BY MICROSCOPE Mold under the microscope - photo identification of the most common indoor molds found in buildings
• Mold FAQs Answers to Most Questions about Indoor Mold, Mold Related Illness, Mold Cleanup, Mold Prevention
• US EPA: Mold Remediation in Schools and Commercial Building [ copy on file as /sickhouse/EPA_Mold_Remediation_in_Schools.pdf ] - US EPA
• Mold spores in the Home - a Photo ID Library for detection and identification of mold allergens
• Mold Test Kits - How to Collect and Send Your Own Mold Sample to our mold testing lab or to any mold lab you wish
• Most Common Indoor Molds Found in Buildings, A Table of
• Mycology, Fundamentals of Diagnostic, Fran Fisher, Norma B. Cook, W.B. Saunders Co. 1998, ISBN 0-7216-5006-6 (buy this book at Amazon)
• Ozone Warnings - Use of Ozone as a "mold" remedy is ineffective and may be dangerous.
• Rot concerns in buildings-some building mold such as Meruliporia incrassata "Poria" risks serious rot and hidden structural damage
• US EPA: Una Breva Guia a Moho - Hongo [on file as /sickhouse/EPA_Moho_Guia_sp.pdf - - en Espanol

OTHER IAQ ISSUES: How To Find and Address Other Indoor Air or Indoor Environment Contaminants Besides Mold

Mold or allergens may not be the only or even the main indoor environmental contaminant. Don't let media attention to mold cause so much enviro-scare fear that other, possibly more urgent hazards go un-addressed.

• Fiberglass building insulation and HVAC duct work insulation hazards
• Sewage and Septic backup contamination in buildings: inspection, testing, remediation, & references to expert sources
• Other environmental risks: Asbestos, carbon monoxide, electromagnetic fields, environmental illness, fiberglass, MCS - multiple chemical sensitivity, toxic gases, etc
• Indoor Gas Sampling Plan for Residential Buildings lists a number of toxic indoor gases which we test for, depending on the building complaint and building conditions
• Ozone Warnings - Use of Ozone as a "mold" remedy is ineffective and may be dangerous.
• Pet control - if you can't say goodbye to your bird, cat, dog, guinea pig, hamster, tropical fish, then limit the areas they occupy and limit the airflow from that area to sleeping or other areas of the building, use allergenic bedding, eliminate wall-to-wall carpeting, improve housecleaning including use of a HEPA-rated vacuum cleaner. For more details see our article Dog, Cat, and Other Animal Dander - Information for Asthmatics and Indoor Air Quality
• Rodents, Mice, Squirrel Control - I find high levels of mouse and rodent dander, fecal dust, and urine-contaminated dust in some buildings, and high levels of these materials in building insulation in those locations. If you have a mouse problem, particularly if mice and their waste (fecals or urine) are contaminating the building HVAC or building insulation, may need both steps to clean up or remove infected materials and steps to stop an ongoing rodent problem. If squirrels are a problem, the cleanup needs to include closing off entry openings into the building. Get some help from a licensed pest control expert.