If you live in Northwestern Canada, frozen windshields are a fact of life during the winter months. Here are four tips for easily clearing the ice off your car.
START YOUR CAR FIRST
If you turn your car on five to 10 minutes before you have to leave, it will allow the window to warm up and the ice and snow that covers it will start to melt. A remote starter allows you to turn your car on from the comfort of your home, but if you don’t have one, you’ll need to go outside to start your vehicle before leaving.
USE THE DEFROST SETTING
The defrost setting on your car’s air conditioning system blasts hot air onto the windshield to heat up the glass and thaw the ice or snow on it quickly. Be sure to always turn the defrost setting on when parking your car for the night. This ensures that it’ll switch on when you use your remote starter.
USE DE-ICING SPRAY.
If you don’t have time to wait for your car’s defrost system to melt the ice on the car, a de-icing spray can help. This type of product melts ice on your car, allowing you to simply wipe it off with a brush. There are many such products available in stores, but you can easily make your own by mixing two parts isopropyl alcohol with one part water in a spray bottle.
SCRAPE PROPERLY
The best tool to use to scrape ice off a windshield is the plastic scraper end of your snow brush. Using a makeshift tool like a key, spatula or metal scraper can scratch your windshield or damage the car’s paint.
WHAT NOT TO DO WHEN DE-ICING YOUR WINDSHIELD
Never pour hot water on your car’s windshield to melt the ice. Rapid temperature changes can cause the glass on your window to crack. What’s more, if it’s extremely cold, hot water can turn to powder upon contact with the freezing air, rendering it useless to melt ice.
WINDSHIELD REPAIR AND REPLACEMENT IN NORTHWEST CANADA
Driving with a damaged windshield is dangerous, so it’s important to repair or replace it as soon as possible. All-West Glass offers same-day auto glass repair and replacement services in all of its 19 locations, including those in Edmonton, Grande Prairie, Fort St. John, Yellowknife and Whitehorse. Contact us today to get a free quote or to find out more about our services.
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