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let's settle an age old debate.. you have a misty windscreen, it is cold outside. Hot or Cold blower to clear it quicker?
which and why?
All about shaving foam i'm told ( i always use hot.. before i found out about the shaving foam trick)
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=shaving+foam+windscreen
Hot.
Dunno why, but when my heater stopped blowing hot the other week I finally cracked this long-standing mystery.
Once fixed, it was clearing again no problem.
Que'?
Aircon sorts this out dun nit?
Ford Quickclear is the actual answer to a question you didn't ask.
Hot, you want to evaporate the moisture on it. A warm (not boiling) kettle of water is quite effective too and helps to keep it clear until the heater actually heats up.
hot - damp air is condensing on a cold surface - heat the surface. Air movement generally will help and in most instances you'll barely be getting any heat though anyway.
If its misting up during a journey then getting fresh air in is more important than the temp of the air - make sure you're not set to recycle the air inside the car. And make sure the car is dry - a leaking door seal / damp carpets or water leaking into the air intake can mist you up while driving. My GF's car was doing that because the heating was sucking air in through a wet pollen filter
Worst stripper name ever.
Hot - air con - recycled air (if you have air con).
Hot - fresh air (if you don't).
Ford Quickclear is the actual answer to a question you didn’t ask.
No no it isn’t. My car heats up automatically in the morning so it’s nice and warm when I get in it. No ice/condensation or anything
Followed by Ford quick clear/air con/hot air/cloth
Ford Quickclear is the actual answer to a question you didn’t ask.
Not just Ford any more - now available from VW group so your STW approved Audi, T5 or Octavia Estate can have it.
Hot, for the reasons outlined above. Some cars seems more prone to it though. Recently switched from a mk4 golf to a mk2 Octy and it mists like a mfer.
Hot, you want to evaporate the moisture on it. A warm (not boiling) kettle of water is quite effective too and helps to keep it clear until the heater actually heats up.
I tried this but just couldn't keep the kettle balanced on the dashboard when cornering
would have thought hot, too.
but when I switch my (Octavia) direction to windscreen, AC comes on and that seems to deliver cool air (or maybe it's blasting hot to windscreen only, and the cabin is cooler, I don;'t know)...
The dryer the car is, the less it'll mist- quite hard if it's a mountain bike carrier but those big dessicant bags make a big difference ime.
When you first start a car, you don't have that much choice about hot or cold anyway.
Warm as it can absorb more moisture than cold air.
mk2 Octy and it mists like a mfer.
If it's an estate, there's a known leak at the back - mine did this, the rear carpet was often soaked in the boot. No end of investigations by the dealer and I were able to sort it. Comes through on LH side up at the top. Ended up just leaving dehumidifier packs in the car over winter.
All our VWs have been bad for misting up.
It's even more annoying when they have a clear screen,then mist up once you start the engine.
Have had a Golf and Polo back to get filter changes(which helped a bit) ,but it's a real pain at this time of the year.
Thinking about getting bags of Silica gel as suggested on some VW forums.
No no it isn’t. My car heats up automatically in the morning so it’s nice and warm when I get in it. No ice/condensation or anything
This.
I left my lovely warm clear car on Monday and walked to the MIL to borrow her car. Sat for 5 minutes in a cold frosty car waiting for the quick clear to kick in.
I have this issue with my VW Golf and it does my tree in. Had the car checked for any leaks etc and it was completely bone dry. I've had ice build up on the inside so I'll invest in some big bags of Silica and get the screen as hot as I can before driving off.
Mines generally cold air as the engine hasn't heated up enough. That said someone once did tell me cold air is supposed to be better (drier, less prone to re-condense) but that may be a fallacy...
My car heats up automatically in the morning
Please tell us more about this car that heats up automatically 😐
Next door's boyfriend has a Volvo S90 that seems to do this without starting the engine. Never seen him long enough to actually ask him.
My car sits around doing nothing alot. There are also trees nearby. Some of the leaves from said trees find their way into the air intake scuttle(?), along with some of the moss that grows in the little cracks and fissures around the windscreen. This debris can block the drains in the scuttle causing very moist air to be drawn into the car and onto the windscreen. It does help if I get into it and dig it out occasionly. HTH someone.
I have this issue with my VW Golf and it does my tree in. Had the car checked for any leaks etc and it was completely bone dry
All our VWs have been bad for misting up.
mk2 Octy and it mists like a mfer.
ON VAG cars check the plastic tray under the bonnet edge/ windscreen - if it hasn't seated properly the run off from the windscreen is channelled straight into the intake / filter for the heater/blower so the air being drawn into the car is being drawn through wet filters and pipework. Its quite a fiddle to get the filter in and the tray refitted properly so it can get bodged at services
The Erberspacher does this automatically and gets the car toasty even if its parked, frozen and covered in snow...
Oh, you don't seem to have one....
@maccruiskeen, not only that but on some VAG carsit'll also fill the wiring loom with water- pretty much wrote off my dad's old passat, it went senile and started having random electrical faults and spasms (like setting off the central locking at random)
I learned a few tricks from friends who live in places which get cold enough that even the polar bears won't go out.
Hot. Because of the relative humidity thing as mentioned. Hot with the A/C compressor going if possible, because it lowers the RH even further. ( Most vehicle A/C or defrost compressors won't work when it is below 0 to protect the coil from freezing - if it below freezing the outside air will have really low RH anyway.
To prevent misting up overnight, drive the last couple of miles home with the windows fully open and the hear on full cold blowing on the floor with full fan. This dries out the floor mats (biggest source of moisture in the car) and flushes out all the moisture from the occupants etc. Obvs. Don't do this if it is pissing down. This requires dedication when it is minus 30 but is absolutely necessary because you will have a layer of ice on the inside of the windscreen which the heater will take a long time to shift.
Cheers jake. Noticed a tiny bit on the parcel shelf last week so I'll investigate the area you suggested.
@mac I hadn't heard of that one. Will have to double check it's seated correctly. Needs a clearout anyway at this time of year.
Quick clear screen and heated leather while I wait FTW.
I was in a colleagues C1 last week, wet day, 4 if us I there, Aircon off, air on recirculate, heat to the max... Having negotiated Southampton airport exit onto the motorway via a small clearing in the condensation on the windscreen, I finally snapped and suggested the recirculate and air con be changed. I was told 'oh no, this car is just a steamy car, is been like that for the couple of years I've had it'.
3 mins later we looked through clear Windows with the owner exclaiming it was a miracle..... 🙄🙄🙄
I start with cold and the windows down an inch on the basis that you get loads more airflow than forcing it through a cold heat exchanger. This gives the engine a chance to generate a little warmth and then I switch it to hot. If you go hot straight away, you are just chilling the engine (and if idling, the engine will take an age to generate any heat)
getting fresh air in is more important than the temp of the air – make sure you’re not set to recycle the air inside the car
Not if it's hosing it down outside.