As of September 2026. Prices are from the price list of Kraken Detailing, ul. Powstańców 20, Kraków.
Cabin air always carries water vapour. In a Polish winter the glass is almost as cold as the air outside. The air next to it cools down and drops its water as tiny beads, and that film of beads is the fog you see. Below zero the beads freeze, so in the morning you find frost on the inside of the windscreen.
Most cars fog up for a few minutes after a cold start. Look for water when the glass stays misty after the engine is warm, or when you get frost on the inside every morning. A musty smell on top of that means the water has been in the car for a while.
If you come from a country with mild winters, expect this in your first Kraków season: the car sits cold for months, and every trip adds water from boots and coats.
A sweet smell in the cabin and a greasy film on the inside of the glass that smears when you wipe it can mean coolant is leaking from the heater core. That also needs a mechanic.
On an older second-hand car, check the seals and drains first. If a rental car already smells damp or has a wet carpet when you collect it, point it out at pick-up.
Don't wipe the glass with your hand or sleeve. Skin oil stays on it and the glass fogs faster next time. Keep a dry microfibre cloth in the glovebox for that.
Drive off once the windscreen is fully clear. Polish law expects the driver to have a clear view, and we explain the winter rules on windows, lights and plates in our guide to snow on your car and fines in Poland.
Over time a film of dashboard fumes and hand grease builds up on the inside of the glass. Vapour condenses on it first, and at night it scatters oncoming headlights. Clean the inside of the glass twice: once with glass cleaner, then with a dry microfibre cloth until it shines.
If the windows have tint film, use an ammonia-free cleaner and nothing sharp. Wipe the heater lines on the rear window along their length, without pressure. A rain-repellent coating goes on the outside of the glass and does nothing for fog inside; how it clears rain is in our article on rain-repellent glass coating. For ice outside and frozen locks, see frozen windscreen and locks.
Find where the water gets in first. Otherwise any drying lasts until the next rain. Then:
In winter you run the air conditioning to dry the air and clear the glass. The water it takes out of the air condenses inside the system. Dark, damp air ducts are where bacteria grow, and that is the cellar smell you get for the first few minutes after switching the fan on.
We clean the AC system with ozone. We set the ventilation to recirculation, and the ozone travels with the air through the system's ducts. It removes the smell and the bacteria in the ducts and treats the whole cabin on the way. The treatment takes 40–50 minutes with nobody inside the car. We air the cabin out afterwards and you can drive off straight away. It costs from 150 zł.
If the damp smell is also in the upholstery, we clean the fabric first and do the ozone last. A clogged cabin filter is replaced by a mechanic.
When water has soaked into the seats and carpet, we start with upholstery cleaning. The extractor pushes cleaning solution into the fabric and pulls it back out with the dirt and smell. The interior then takes 2 to 6 hours to dry, depending on how deep the cleaning goes. For full interior cleaning we take the seats out and reach the places you can't get to otherwise.
| Service | Price | When |
|---|---|---|
| Fabric upholstery cleaning | from 600 zł | damp seats and carpet, smell in the fabric |
| Full interior cleaning with disassembly | 1,500 zł | water under the seats, whole cabin |
| Leather cleaning and conditioning | from 500 zł | leather seats |
| Ozone treatment | from 150 zł | damp smell after cleaning, AC odour |
Have the leaking seal or blocked drain fixed before the cleaning, or the carpet will get wet again.
There is too much moisture in the cabin and the glass is cold, so the vapour condenses on it. In winter most of the water comes from snow on shoes and wet fabric mats.
Air to the windscreen, fan on full, high temperature, air conditioning on, recirculation off. Open the side windows a crack for the first minute.
Yes. It dries the air before it reaches the glass, so the windscreen clears faster. On some cars the compressor won't run in frost.
Find the leak, take the mats out and drive with warm air on your feet and the air conditioning on. If the carpet is wet to the touch, extractor cleaning helps, and the interior dries in 2–6 hours afterwards.
Yes, with ozone. We run it through the system on recirculation, and it removes the smell and the bacteria in the air ducts. It takes 40–50 minutes and costs from 150 zł.
Clean the fabric that holds the smell first, then have an ozone treatment from 150 zł. An air freshener only covers the smell.
Kraken Detailing is at ul. Powstańców 20, Kraków (Prądnik Czerwony), open Mon–Sat 9:00–19:00, phone +48 510 510 082. We speak English. We'll check the upholstery and carpet, see how deep the water has gone, and tell you whether ozone is enough or you need upholstery cleaning. A damp smell in the cabin or from the vents goes with ozone treatment. Washing: car wash and detailing.
