Posted: 13 Jan 13
If you're troubled by early morning frost on your car windows, here are some ideas to get you started solving this potentially disastrous problem:
- A quick Google search finds lots of answers. Here, see for yourself.
- And, here's a selection I especially like, from CoffeeBreakWithLizAndKate.Com, in an article entitled "Betcha Didn’t Know – these easy winter tips"
There's more. If you have condensation inside or out, ask our old faithful friend, Google.
Here's hoping that all your mornings will be safe and happy ones!
* Little experiment-set in Pittsburg, CA
Frosty-morning update: Last night, I laid a bath towel over the front window on one car and left the other car alone. This morning, the unprotected window was frozen, but when I pulled the towel from the other, it was clear and dry and ready to see and avoid running over things we'd rather leave alone.
Next experiment: spray bottle + 3 parts vinegar + 1 part water -- to apply to one car, the night before (to prevent frost) and to the other car, the next morning (to see if it melts frost as fast as they say).
0116 0615 -- Experiment #2's Results:
Frosty morning. As before, bath towel over window on one car kept frost away -- clear as glass. (Had to change the experiment a tad -- my wife didn't want me to spray vinegar at her brand new car. Oh, the trials and tribulations of science.)
Other car frosted. Tried vinegar spray on it and it CREATED A GLAZE (i.e. it instantly froze) which would have been dangerous to drive with -- which some of our more impulsive or hurried brothers and sisters might try to do. Perhaps, hastily deciding it's not worth 5 minutes, or less, to make ready for an enjoyable morning drive -- rather than risk the possible beginning of a profoundly sad life-milestone.
That wasn't supposed to happen -- maybe I didn't get the proportions right -- come to think of it, I did a 4-1 mix of water to vinegar -- SHOULD HAVE BEEN 3-1!!! I'll try again, tomorrow.
0117 0645 -- Experiment #3's Results:
Made an error -- I looked at the cars, around 4:30 am, saw they were wet, but not frozen, so I thought I'd have to wait another day or two to experiment further. Big mistake. When I next looked at the cars, around 6:30, THE WINDOWS HAD FROSTED OVER -- in that short a time!! I should have wiped the moisture off, before. (Maybe the error was good, for I learned the following)
So, I again tried the water-vinegar solution (carefully measured this time). Again, the frost changed into a glaze which was almost as hard to see through and tough to get off -- wipers and lots of vinegar spray only refroze.
BUT, THIS TRICK SAVED THE DAY -- I took an old newspaper and rubbed the glazed window, vigorously, which broke off the frost and gave my wife a safe window to peer through, as she headed off into the sunrise. That beats scraping, without that handy East-Coast innovation, an ice-scraper.
TENTATIVE CONCLUSION
The towel is best -- the spray is good (when combined with a little muscle grease)
BY THE WAY, THE RESULTS OF A GOOGLE SEARCH SEEM TO LARGELY AGREE
THAT VINEGAR WILL NOT HARM A CAR'S PAINT. Click here to see for yourself.
David Nelson
All Original Content © 2013 , The MENTOR Enterprises / ELMS, All Rights Reserved -- BUT, I hereby suspend those rights, to this extent: You may freely copy and pass this along, if you think it will do some good -- as long as it's free of charge, unchanged, and you include this statement.
