Cleaning Cabin Air Fan after Filter Change

Perhaps a long, flexible vacuum cleaner extension can reach into the fan area and suck out the debris.

 

I have a kit for cleaning dryer ducts with a long 1" flexible hose that would be perfect. Think I got it online with free shipping. under 10$

 

I just did this on my 2007. Sounds like you might have a mouse house on top of the cabin filter (the "gray cottony stuff" you mentioned) like I did. This is a very common problem with Prius' of all years (lots written about this in Prius Chat). Mice get into the ventilation system and use the insulation from various parts of the car to build their nests, especially on top of the cabin filter. To clean the fan area below the cabin filter I did this:

• Remove the filter
• Pull out as much as you can with your hands or long needle nose pliers (use rubber gloves and a dust mask if mice were in there)
• Use a vacuum cleaner with as skinny an extension wand as you have to get in there
• Then I used my "mini vacuum cleaner attachment kit" with my shop vac to get to all the little recesses in the fan housing. This kit has a small diameter hose with several different attachments that were useful.
• I also used a 2" x 4" inspection mirror to make sure I removed everything from all the little crevices inside the fan housing. In my case with the mouse nest there were bits of stuff everywhere.
• Then I blew out everything real good with a long air compressor wand. (I happen to own an air compressor)
• Before you put it back together start the car and put the fan on high to also help remove any more loose bits. Push the "recirc" button to open and close the recirc flap as well (you will see it move).
• Put in a new filter.

If you did have mice in there you can try adding some metal screening over the various openings to the ventilation system. There are several threads about this on Prius Chat. I will do this on my car soon to hopefully keep the little critters out!

Hope this helps.

 

Yup. That's the exact kit I have. With the small diameter hose in the kit it doesn't make a lot of suction, but will be enough for this purpose. You can use the hose with or without any attachment on the end. The inspection mirror really helped to make sure I got all the mouse fluff (and mouse turds!) out from all the little crevices in the fan housing.

Also, you can spritz a little air freshener or odor neutralizer (Fabreeze, et al) on the cabin filter if you were getting any smells from mice. Will only last a few days but helps to get rid of any smells you might have had.

 

hi all, i also just recently changed the cabin air filter, and flushed the evap coils
and i had a ton of stuff on top of the filter just like the first poster did.
with the filter removed, you can see quite well the top of the fan inside the housing.i did all of my work with the passenger door open and laying on my side into the passenger footwell area.
i used a vac, and then some damp rags to wipe the area out. rags with a long stick or screwdriver, i was able to wipe any residue, dust, away.
then turned car on, and ran fan on speed low, filter still out of course. then i pressed the recirc button and watched the flaps flip open, and then you can see the area BELOW the fan where more debris may have accumulated. this is visible via the air inlet that opens when you press the recirc button. neat to see. turn off car and vent system.
since i saw nothing in the lower area, i proceeded with the next step of my process, flushing the evaporator coils. you can buy several different kits to do this, either from toyota or aftermarket.
instead of crawling under the car to inject from below, its much easier to pull the carpet back that is in the passenger footwell towards the center console. start in the farthest front and left section up under the footwell, and work your way back towards the stereo. after you expose about a foot, you will see the same black rubber hose that goes thru the floor to drain the ac system. pull it up thru the floor, its only a few inches long... voila. dont have to crawl under the car.
trick is to inject the foaming cleanser into the hose and then clamp it off for 15 minutes. let the cleaner work, i used vice grips, but an type of clamp will be fine. when done, plug the hose with your finger BEFORE you unclamp it. then as fast as you can slip the hose back thru the hole in the floor. so as to minimize spillage. i placed a rag in the area to catch any liquid that came out. then approx 2 cups of liquid drainage will run out of the drain hose onto your driveway, did i mention do this outside ; ) the liquid isnt terrible nasty, mine looked almost clear.
once satisfied i had cleaned the evap coil, i then turned on car again, turned fan on high and turned on AC, but left the recirc button OFF. and liberally sprayed lysol disinfectant into the top of the fan intake via the filter housing. alot better than trying to spray it in from the intake at the bottom of the windshield. i cycled thru different settings for foot defrost face to get as much lysol into as much of the vent systems as possible
probable used 1/2 a can of lysol over about 15 minutes.
eventually i stopped spraying and just ran the AC for 5 minutes
then switched to AC off, and heat on high to dry out the system.
finally reinstalled the filter and reassembled everything.
went for a 20 min drive to really dry everything up.
car has been fresh ever since.