Lvangundy

Anyone else have a yellow sponge inside their washer fluid reservoir?

I do, and tried NEVER to use my washer fluid because soon as I did and water sprayed out I had this horrible rotten peanut stench come thorugh the vents into the cabin!

So I'm cleaning my car out and decide to try and flush out all the old water and as I'm spraying the hose down into the reservoir this 'goo' started coming up which looked like mucous. I'm thinking this is like a scene out of a horror movie expecting something weird to come out.

I try pulling out the yellow sponge which was about 12" long and towards the bottom at the collection point the sponge was covered with more of the clear mold and black mold spots. I sprayed more of it off and ran more water through the pump.

Anyone know of somethign I can put in there to clean it out? Alchohol, vinegar? Most of it is cleaned out, but just to get a little more. Also, will using winshield wiper soap fluid help prevent mold growth?

I wish* I would have gotten a pic.. :-)

ChuH

Hey Lvangundy:

In the future use the premixed washer fluids that comes in a gallon jug. Most washer fluid contain alchohol to prevent freezing but it also prevent mold growth.

As a suggestion, to kill the remaining molds use a diluted bleach (Chlorine) mixture. Let it sit for about an hour then run the washer until it is empty then fill it up with clear water and repeat as necessary. After then refill with premixed washer fluids.

Chu...

meanboy

Duiluted bleach is the best cleaning solution.

Or find a replacement from a wrecking yard and just toss your moldy one.

ychachad

NOOOOOOOOO!!!
Do not use bleach (even diluted) in the washer fluid tank, it will cause rubber and seals to deteriorate and you will forever be stuck with a leaky reservoir. Trust me. Try Vinegar instead
Y. Chachad

meanboy

Will cleaning it with bleach and then flushing it out of the reservior before sending using it work? Or are you stating that the trace amounts will contaminate the washer components and related hoses?

ychachad

bleach is a corrosion promoter in metals as well as polymers. do not add it, since it can damage components immediately, in a matter of minutes. Also when you squirt it out of your nozzle and onto your car and it runs on the paint and other metal parts, it can't be good. Vinegar is acidic too, but less damaging.

meanboy

What if you spray it throughly rinse it before you spray it thru the wiper system or does he need to clean the entire system? I understand what you are saying but I am curious about the process.

meZoom!

BLEACH is not necessary!! any strong basic/acidic solution used will damage the paint it touches if the whole car isn't thoroughly rinse down within a matter of seconds.
Lvangundy, you could try to shoot the water into 2 buckets positioned to catch the spraying solution before it hits the window. that way you could use any solution you want...but bleach would smell bad for a while.