fishy smell

[psohershey]

wow. it's wierd when i turn on the heater i get a fishy smell at first then it goes away. I thought it might be the coolant so i checked and refilled the tank, but it still gives a fishy smell at first whenever i turn on the heater. Don't know what to do. Every happen to anyone???? should I get my radiator flushed?

[rwood13]

tell your girlfriend to wash better ......... you have something in the air path for the heater/AC, check with parts stores to see if there is a deodizer you can use, the smell of the coolant has nothing to do with the smell in the car unless the heater core is leaking

[x3mtm]

i think u might have somthin caugh up somewhere in the heater conducts.... might wanna get it check out... might have a dead fish in there..lol

[lightheaded]

Heated up antifreeze smells fishy. You may have a bad heater core. If so it will not smell so bad until the engine heats up and the thermostat opens then it will get worse.

[t-bank]

I have a 99 Durango that sometimes has this same smell, normally in the summertime when the A/C has been operating. I've spent 30 years in the refrigeration & A/C business so I know a bit about mold and bacterial growth on evaporator coils. I've also seen this same comment posted before about the smell. Unlike a commercial refrigeration or even a residential air conditioning evaporator coil where the cooling fins run vertically and allow the moisture evaporated from the airstream to drain down into the condensate pan the evaporator in the Durango is constructed in more of a honeycomb type of pattern which results in some of the moisture being being trapped in the coil, which I believe contributes to mold and/or bacterial growth which directly causes the smell.
You can run the heater or fan only on high for a short period of time before shutting off the car and this will probably evaporate the majority of moisture and minimize the smell. The other alternative would be to hit the coil with some scented commercial cleaner, (non acid base), which should improve the odor problem.

T-bank

[cousincletus]

If it smells like cologne, leave it alone.
If it smells like fish, eat as much as you wish.