Winter is harder on car glass than any other season. Road salt, grit, and freeze-thaw cycles occur. Constant wet weather also contributes. Proper car glass care is essential. Your windshield takes more abuse in three months. This is more than the rest of the year combined.
Most of the damage is preventable with an hour of preparation. Here is what to do before it turns cold.
Deep clean both faces first
Everything else works better on clean glass, so start here.
The inside matters as much as the outside in winter. Interior film is what condensation clings to. A greasy inside face fogs faster. It fogs thicker and takes longer to clear. This means a difference on a frosty morning. You could leave on time. Or, you might scrape your windshield with a credit card.
Two microfiber towels, cool glass, spray the cloth rather than the glass. Vertical passes outside, horizontal inside.
Apply a water-repellent layer
This does more in winter than in any other season.
Water that beads and runs off has less opportunity to freeze. Frost and light ice form thinner on treated glass. They also release more easily. This makes morning scraping considerably faster.
The salt argument matters more, though. Road salt spray degrades visibility between November and March. It bonds to glass as it dries. If water runs off, less salt residue stays behind. This is better than sheeting and drying in place.
Do the side windows and mirrors as well. Those ice up first and are the surfaces you need when pulling out of a junction in the dark.
Replace the wipers now
Winter is when worn blades bite. Cold makes rubber stiffer and more brittle. A blade that was merely tired in September will chatter. It will also streak in January.
Replace them before the season, not during it. Every time you park in freezing conditions, lift the blades. Lift them off the glass or place a cloth under them. Blades that freeze to a windshield tear. They tear when you switch them on. That is how a new set is ruined in a week.
Switch to winter washer fluid
Summer fluid freezes. It freezes in the reservoir, in the lines, and in the jets — and a frozen line can crack.
Buy fluid rated for well below the coldest temperature you expect, not just below freezing. And never top up with plain water in winter, even briefly.
Run the system for a few seconds after switching to make sure the new fluid has reached the jets.
How to deal with ice properly
Never pour hot water on the windshield. Thermal shock can crack glass, and a windshield with an existing stone chip will crack readily.
Use a proper plastic scraper. Not a credit card, not a metal blade, not a house key. Those scratch, and scratches scatter light permanently.
Start the engine and set the demister first. Let the glass warm from the inside while you scrape the outside. Much faster than scraping cold glass.
Do not drive with a porthole. Clear the whole windshield and all side windows. Partial clearing is illegal in many places and genuinely dangerous.
Use a windshield cover if you park outside. Removes the scraping problem entirely and takes thirty seconds to fit.
Interior humidity is your winter enemy
Wet boots put moisture into the cabin. Snow carried on floor mats adds moisture. Damp coats also contribute moisture. That moisture ends up condensing on cold glass.
Swap to rubber mats for winter, dry them out regularly, and run the air conditioning with the heat to dehumidify. AC works as a dehumidifier at any temperature and clears fogged glass far faster than heat alone.
Wash more often, not less
Counterintuitive, but salt is corrosive and it accumulates on glass, trim and paint. Rinsing it off regularly matters more in winter than the cosmetics of a clean car.
Reapply your glass treatment more often too. Salt and frequent washing wear it down faster than summer conditions do.
The pre-winter car glass care checklist
Deep clean both faces of every window. Apply a repellent layer to windshield, side glass and mirrors. New wiper blades. Winter-rated washer fluid. A scraper and a windshield cover in the car. Rubber mats in the footwells.
ClearVision™ Glass Cleaner covers the first two steps in one pass. That is why it is worth doing. Do this before the weather turns rather than after.
Questions?
Have questions about your glass, your order, or which product fits your situation? Reach out to us at https://clearvisioncleaner.com/pages/contact and we will get back to you.
