var json_comments = new Array("
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Snowblind
January 17, 2009 6:33 PM
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I keep my car ice free by living in California. =)

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12 replies
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whitecat
January 18, 2009 5:23 PM
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@Snowblind: Shouldn't that be \"I live in a place in California where it doesn't freeze?\"

Because there are plenty of places in California where it does, and even in San Diego they're not far away. I like to point this out when the locals who think California = Disneyland complain about \"California drivers who can't drive in snow.\"

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fever
January 25, 2009 1:45 PM
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@whitecat: California drivers can't drive in rain... Last year when I drove out to San Bernardino for some snowboarding and the road was closed to anyone without chains, I showed my Minnesota driver's license to the Trooper and he let me pass, lol.

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PinkBox
January 18, 2009 2:38 PM
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@Snowblind: In California, you have all of those tiny parking spaces and crazy traffic. Tough choice! ;)

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GinaLouise
January 18, 2009 6:42 AM
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@Snowblind: Three cheers for California! I live 15 minutes away from the beach and I've never even seen a snow chain in my entire life! I do, however, pay approximately 1 arm and 1 leg in rent. Sigh.

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Henry Miranda
January 18, 2009 3:28 AM
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@Snowblind: I live in San Diego CA and in winter 04/05 my windshield was iced up every morning.

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tjjex
January 17, 2009 10:48 PM
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@Snowblind:

earthquakes arent that bad... shoot we had one two weeks ago

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Starfury
January 17, 2009 9:25 PM
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@Snowblind:

I too keep my car ice free by living in California. The SF Bay Area doesn't have issues with wildfires/mudslides; earthquakes...well that is an issue.

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CupcakeKarate
January 17, 2009 7:24 PM
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@Snowblind: Oh, see I have a similar strategy- I live in Las Vegas.

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yurkinator
January 17, 2009 7:02 PM
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@Snowblind:

So hows those earthquakes, wildfires, and mudslides working for ya?

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jjason82
January 20, 2009 1:58 AM
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@yurkinator: Very well. I've only experienced a handful of very minor earthquakes (only so much to swish the water around in your glass). As far as wildfires and mudslides go, I've never in my life experienced either.

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Snowblind
January 17, 2009 7:14 PM
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@yurkinator: Sacramento has none of those things.

But then... it is Sacramento.

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cudthecrud
January 17, 2009 9:50 PM
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@Snowblind: But everything good is so close to us here in safe Sacramento. A little drive will take us to the coast or to the mountains. Of course the levees are worse here than in New Orleans, but I don't live near the river.

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kingofallcosmos
January 18, 2009 1:36 AM
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@cudthecrud:
@Snowblind:
I am also in Sacramento, but I have to clean the ice off of the car every morning.

It is nowhere near as bad as the ice I had to deal with when I lived in Tucson; the roads were constantly iced over and the windows got really thick with ice but nowhere sold any scrapers so I had to use my drivers license to scrape the windows.

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Snowblind
January 18, 2009 2:28 AM
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@cudthecrud:
@kingofallcosmos:
Shh! Don't tell anyone!

The Levees are bad in some areas, that is true. The worst were fixed in 2006. But most of the outlying residential areas are well protected. It is downtown that is at the most risk. Anyone living down there is very familiar with \"Freedom Lake\" knows minor flooding is a regular issue.

And it is those same rivers that make this such a great place to live. Where else can you stand in the middle of a river in a major metropolitan area and not see or hear a single sign of human activity? And the fishing is not bad either.

Frost on the windshield is a rare thing where I live, maybe 3 or 4 days a month and it is a fine layer that melts with a hit of wiperfluid. However, Sacramento is famous for it's micro-climates. 20 degree differences are not uncommon just a mile or two from each other. When it gets cold enough to frost we usually get a tule fog instead, which is just as blinding and does not scrape off!

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HogwartsAlum
January 17, 2009 7:12 PM
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@yurkinator:

After two years of ice storms and killer tornadoes in Missouri, I'd join Snowblind in a heartbeat.

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rubyfrog
January 17, 2009 6:39 PM
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I live in Wisconsin, so this is a constant problem. While the DIY solutions here are good, a gallon of de-icer washer fluid good up to -30 F is $3.30 in Walgreens... not sure the effort to mix up rubbing alcohol and vinegar concoctions in a spray bottle is worth offsetting the $3.30 :-p

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7 replies
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ninjatoddler
January 18, 2009 7:38 PM
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@rubyfrog: I never had a problem with those washer fluids. -30? I've been in lower temperatures and the lines have never gotten clogged.

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doctor_cos wants you to remain calm
January 18, 2009 12:32 PM
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@rubyfrog: Actually, I remember that stuff from when I lived up north (not much ice in FL)...

It was good to -30F, unless it froze in the wiper lines first.
The only stuff that worked and didn't freeze was the more pricey green stuff from Sheetz.

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downwithmonstercable
January 17, 2009 6:53 PM
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@rubyfrog: A gallon is a lot too, I bet buying the rubbing alcohol and mixing would come pretty close to that same price.

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Outrun1986
January 17, 2009 10:03 PM
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@downwithmonstercable: It would definitely be more than 3$ for alcohol, its over 1$ for a tiny bottle now, and you would probably need at least 3 of them for the mixture, so just buy the stuff from the store. How much will you actually go through during a winter anyways, I know I don't go through more than 1-2 gallons per winter.

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Shadowfire
January 17, 2009 6:47 PM
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@rubyfrog: -30 is a lie, though. Ours is \"good for\" up to -30, but when it was -24 the other night, my wiper lines were frozen right up.

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my_imaginary_friends_bore_me
January 18, 2009 8:50 AM
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@Shadowfire: I think it's more like \"Our product is good down to -30 in the washer fluid reservoir, but when it goes through your wiper lines, then well it freezes!\"

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Xkeeper
January 18, 2009 8:04 AM
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@Shadowfire: Ours is \"good to\" -20, and it froze in ~15 F.


Never believe that crap.

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echyone
January 17, 2009 6:45 PM
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Alcohol may cause the paint on your car to become dull.

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5 replies
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PølάrβǽЯ
January 18, 2009 9:17 PM
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@EducatedFlea_GitEmSteveDave: And since your windshield is far, far away from painted metal, you never have to worry about the alcohol/water mix running off your windshield and onto your paint - wait...

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NinjaMarion
January 17, 2009 8:49 PM
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@echyone: It's the PCP that makes it thrilling!

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Yossarian
January 17, 2009 7:19 PM
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@echyone: But it makes your date seem so much more exciting.

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MBZ321
January 17, 2009 6:56 PM
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If you know it's going to be a snowy/ icy night (which isn't always possible), cover your windshield with a thick piece of cardboard or something similar. Then you can just pull it off in the morning.

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2 replies
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silver-bolt
January 17, 2009 8:07 PM
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@MBZ321: Unless its ice rain, soaking the cardboard, which then proceeds to freeze on the windshield. Then you'll have frozen cardboard to scrap off.

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gStein_*|bringing starpipe back|*
January 18, 2009 5:19 AM
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@silver-bolt: just throwing out ideas here...
what about one of those moderately heavy plastic tarps you can get from walmart for $10ish?
assuming it isn't going to be very windy, could you just toss it over the windshield, and remove it in the morning?
really not sure if it would work, and living in NC, i won't have a chance to try it

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Chip Skylark of Space
January 21, 2009 2:18 PM
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@Gstein: Livin' in Minnesota, the idea is to get the cheap tarp at Menards or the Home Depot, and tuck it behind the doors on both sides to hold it tight against the glass. In the morning, open the doors, flip the ice and frozen crap onto the ground, and toss the tarp in the back of the car.

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karmaghost
January 17, 2009 7:01 PM
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I tried the preventative vinegar mixture one night and it froze instantly. I ended up with stinky ice.

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1 replies
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lifestar
January 20, 2009 1:44 PM
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@karmaghost: Yeah, the vinegar solution doesn't make sense to me. White vinegar from the stores are already diluted with water, so you're just diluting it even more when you add more water to it. The vinegar probably dropped the freezing point, but can't be enough to drop it to -30 degrees as the Prestone stuff guarantees.

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Skipweasel
January 17, 2009 7:09 PM
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Bucket of water from the hot tap. Squeegee it dry immediately before it can refreeze. A couple of drops of dishwasher rinse-aid increase the surface tension so the water prefers to just run off anyway.

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5 replies
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I want my Pepsi Throwback back!
January 17, 2009 10:28 PM
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@Skipweasel: I was once a shift manager at a local pizza place. I had to write these two kids up for getting into my register without permission, and they thought they could sure show me by pouring hot water over my car in sub-zero temperatures. Needless to say, not only did I get the pleasure of firing their asses on the spot, I also got the pleasure of seeing the cops nail their stupid asses to the wall for destroying private property, and they had to pay to fix my windows. Hot water is a bad idea in this weather.

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Fujikopez
January 17, 2009 7:49 PM
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@Skipweasel: Lol, that's a good way to ruin your windshield. We joked about this in North Dakota; it's akin to asking some gullible person to go to the store and buy blinker fluid.

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parad0x360
January 17, 2009 7:47 PM
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@Skipweasel: yea use hot water if you want a broken windshield. Hot water + cold glass = bad things

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ovalseven
January 19, 2009 6:24 PM
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@parad0x360:


Right. I learned that lesson the hard way when I poured a bucket of hot water into a new aquarium filled with cold water in an effort to raise the temperature.


...broken glass and 15 gallons of water all over the floor.

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snowmentality
January 17, 2009 7:26 PM
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@Skipweasel: Unless you've got any tiny cracks in your windshield. It wasn't hot water, but I'll never forget the day I turned on the windshield defroster/defogger so that it blew hot air on my icy windshield, and watched an enormous crack appear across the bottom of my windshield. There had apparently been a tiny crack in the center, so tiny that I hadn't noticed it, and the sudden temperature shock just made the whole thing go.

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Julia789
January 17, 2009 7:09 PM
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I used to have a problem with my windshield wipers freezing down, until I met my husband and he showed me to stick the windshield wipers way up in the air before a night of snowfall. It looks silly with them sticking out like flags, but then it's so easy to scrape the windshield in a few swipes with no digging around the edges of the wipers. When it's clean, just lower them back down and it's good to go.

And while people are cleaning their windshields, please, clean the top of the car, too! I was once almost killed on the highway when the person in front of me had a sheet of ice fly off their roof and crash into my windshield, shattering it so bad like a giant opaque spiderweb that I couldn't see a foot in front of me, and skidding all over the road trying to pull over from 60 mph to zero without hitting other cars!

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3 replies
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reynwrap582
January 18, 2009 12:26 AM
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@Julia789: A couple years ago I was driving on the freeway in Western Massachusetts in a rental car. I was pretty far behind a semi-truck, we were both going about 70-75 when I saw this giant, thin but solid sheet of ice lift off the top of the trailer and fly up into the air. It just hung there in the air for a moment, and all my mind could do was try to analyze where it would land and if I should slam on my brakes. After about half a second I realized that if I slammed on my brakes it would slam straight into the car (and the tailgater behind me would end up in my trunk), so I floored it instead and it ended up landing right behind the car and right in front of the car behind me, which slammed on its brakes (after the ice landed right in front of it) and ended up going off the side of the road and into a snowbank... I stopped driving behind semitrucks at that point. There was crap coming off of them constantly.

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Julia789
January 17, 2009 8:51 PM
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@SpearXXI: Yep - luckily I was in the slow lane, and there was a wide flat grass area off to the side of the breakdown lane, and a large snowbank to stop the car. If it wasn't for these factors, other cars might have been hit or I might have hit a light pole or bottom of a bridge.

I still, to this day years later, stay very, very far back from cars on the highway after a snowstorm. It's fine while people are driving around town at slow speeds, if the snow falls off it will fall onto the road. But on the highway at high speeds, it will come off at high speeds and fly through the air to hit the car behind it, instead of falling downward as it might at slow speeds.

People sometimes think the ice on the roof of their car is so thick and frozen solid that it wont' come flying off. But then they are in their car with the heat on for a while, and the heat inside the car melts the bottom of the sheet of ice on the roof, creating a liquid layer between the car roof and the ice sheet. A big, slippery surface for the ice to come off in one huge piece!

Ice sheets flying at a car at 60 mph is more dangerous than people realize.

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ninjatoddler
January 18, 2009 7:48 PM
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@Julia789: I see people on the road almost everyday with ice chunks and snow falling off the roofs of their cars like a freakin Hale Bopp comet.

Glad you made it out of there alive and in one piece. Got blinded by the trail of snow falling off the roof of some car a couple of weeks ago myself during rush hour.

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I want my Pepsi Throwback back!
January 17, 2009 10:31 PM
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@Julia789: I just wanted to add, for those people who think they can't get the sheet of ice off of the roof of their car... if you have a sunroof, slide open the sunroof cover when you heat up your car. After 10 minutes of heating the car, you should then be able to just slide it right off.

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Julia789
January 18, 2009 12:17 AM
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@I am Mrs. Nerdtastic.: Great idea! Would work without a sunroof, too, but would take a bit longer.

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HogwartsAlum
January 17, 2009 7:15 PM
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I discovered something during the last two years of ice storms, when thick sheets of ice would coat my entire car to the point where I couldn't get inside and the scraper wouldn't even make a pinhole.

Take a rubber mallet and give that ice a tap, and it pops right off! Not only is it effective, it's fun, too! :D

(Of course, make sure you don't leave the mallet inside the car. And take it easy on the windows. Tap the corner lightly.)

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rushevents
January 19, 2009 4:43 PM
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@HogwartsAlum: when I was a kid I tried to \"help\" my mom by scraping the ice off the car windows - the back window was covered with about 1/2 inch of ice. Scraper wouldn't work so I used a small mallet to clear a small spot to allow the scraper room to get started.

Oh yeah, the window totally shattered in that \"safety glass\" sort of way that we all know and love.

Funny thing - my Mom didn't really care about my intentions only the results. I learned a great life lesson that day.

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BartleyR7
January 17, 2009 7:17 PM
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With my old car and before I had a house with a garage, I used one of those windshield covers. You can find them in most major automotive stores. Below is a link to an example cover on Amazon.

[www.amazon.com]

@echyone: Agreed. I also wouldn't recommend using alcohol on your vehicle.

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ForrestWhitakersLazyEye
January 17, 2009 7:26 PM
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I heard urine works excellent!

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4 replies
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SJActress
January 18, 2009 8:51 AM
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@ForrestWhitakersLazyEye:

No, no...that's JELLYFISH stings.

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LiquidGravity
January 18, 2009 7:38 PM
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@SJActress: Slow kids stick their tongues to jellyfish?

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ShirtNinja
January 18, 2009 2:13 AM
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@ForrestWhitakersLazyEye: It's been unsticking the tongues of the slow kids from freezing metal poles for years!

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laserjobs
January 17, 2009 7:34 PM
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@ForrestWhitakersLazyEye: It does!!! I used it on your door handle and the ice came right off :p

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rexmus1
January 17, 2009 7:32 PM
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Lifelong Chicago resident and married to a mechanic for 15 years...not to be a know-it-all,but some of these ideas are very bad. For example:
-NEVER put hot water on frozen glass, are you MAD? The glass could explode in a million pieces: think ice cube into warm soda POP!
-While Julia789 is SO right on the point that you need to get ALL the snow off of your vehicle, I'd like to remind you: DO NOT use the scraping-edge of your snow brush on any of your car's exterior that isn't glass! My husband sees this damage on people's cars daily, and they aren't usually even aware of it. It will contribute to premature rust and affect your car's resale value. Only use your brush, or smarter still, keep a broom w/soft bristles handy, WAY easier and keeps you dry.
-Alcohol, vinegar, etc. are very likely to damage your paint. It is not worth 10 minutes saved to replace a paintjob that might cost $2,000 to fix.
I'm with rubyfrog: Get the slightly-more expensive \"good stuff\" for your windshield solvent, it's tested by those corporations we all hate, believe it or not, to be safe for your car's paint. Also,run your car for 5 extra minutes. If you want to keep your car long-term, you should be doing this anyways: cold is VERY hard on your engine. And you'll stay warm in the meantime with a scraper and some elbow-grease, sonny! (Lord, I've turned into my grandmother...)

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5 replies
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shepd
January 19, 2009 5:35 PM
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@rexmus1:

I agree with idling the car if it is supposed to be idled, or it doesn't say. However, greenies in many places up North have implemented brilliant laws that make it illegal to idle. Some of them for as short as 10 seconds.

Lucky, while my city is thinking of implementing one, at least they're putting exceptions in for freezing / extreme heat temperatures (Air Conditioning). Of course, then again, they plan to try to enforce the rules in drive thrus. LOL!

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Anitra
January 18, 2009 12:31 PM
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@rexmus1: Good suggestions, all... but I'm wondering where you live that the snow comes off that easily with just a broom. Most of the time when we get snow, it's a snow/ice mixture that freezes solidly onto the car. I end up alternating between trying to chip it off and then banging on it to dislodge the pieces.

How I wish we had a garage...

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reynwrap582
January 18, 2009 12:32 AM
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@rexmus1: I keep a large, long-handled house broom next to my front door. Better snow removal tool than anything else, and unlikely to do any damage to the vehicle. I see my neighbors trying to use snow shovels and ice scrapers ON their cars...my neighbor uses a snow shovel directly on the finish of his brand new Honda... Not only can I clear 10 inches of snow off my much larger car (Crown Vic) in a couple minutes, I do it faster than him on his tiny Honda.

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HawkWolf
January 17, 2009 10:08 PM
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@rexmus1: I second Bill Wohlgamuth on the idling part. My car's manual says specifically to _never_ idle the car to warm it up. It says to wait a moment or two for the engine to settle a little from the initial roar on starting, and then drive it carefully (under 3krpm) until it warms.

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Bill Wohlgamuth
January 17, 2009 8:25 PM
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@rexmus1: Good advice, unless your car is a diesel. Idling a cold diesel engine if very bad for it since the engine is too cold for complete combustion.

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menty666
January 17, 2009 7:36 PM
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I just turn on the car and go inside to have a cup of coffee while the defroster loosens it up. I like to pass the time by counting the number of baby seals dying because of the widening hole in the ozone layer I'm contributing to. But at least my car's ice free.

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??v???ë???v?
January 19, 2009 3:40 PM
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@menty666: I used to do that, until my car got stolen. Then I found out you can get a ticket for it as well. (I didn't get a ticket, the car was recovered.)

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sarahq
January 18, 2009 5:43 PM
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@menty666: Sadly, the police department I work for sees about twenty cars stolen each winter because they were left idling unattended in driveways.

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JulesNoctambule
January 18, 2009 1:26 AM
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@menty666: That's why my friends up North joke that winter is free car season!

. . .pretty sure they're joking, anyway.

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reynwrap582
January 18, 2009 12:37 AM
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@menty666: The cops came through my old neighborhood and wrote tickets to people leaving their running cars unattended, supposedly illegal because the chance for theft. I almost got one, but convinced the cop not to because my car was an old police car with a secure idle feature, which allowed it to idle with the keys out of the ignition. The engine was on but the shifter and wheel were locked so it couldn't be (easily) stolen.

I think he was jealous because he didn't have a similar feature installed, he had to leave a key in the ignition with the doors locked if he needed to idle his car while he was away.

But yeah, I believe it's illegal in most places to leave your car running without supervision.

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Anonymous
January 19, 2009 12:03 AM
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@reynwrap582: My first car was a Pontiac 6000 that would allow you to remove the keys when the engine was on. Was great until the morning my roommate turned on my car to get it warmed up, I drove the 20 miles to work, parked, and realized there were no keys in the ignition (they were still in his coat pocket). Luckily I could still turn the car off, but I learned to double-check for keys after that.

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Anonymous
January 17, 2009 9:17 PM
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@menty666: What kidnextdoor is true, it's actually illegal in many cities to let your car idle unattended.

That's also how a HUGE number of car thefts occur in the southwest part of the US where that kind of cold is only occasional.

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Paperclippe
January 22, 2009 10:03 AM
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@SienaPhiloctetes: But what if you have an autostarter? Your doors aren't unlocked and the keys aren't in the ignition.

Those things are my FAVORITE in PA winters.

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Chip Skylark of Space
January 21, 2009 2:26 PM
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@SienaPhiloctetes: Your Best Buy doesn't sell car starters? Spend about $125, and then while you sip your coffee inside, the car is warming outside, and no one can steal your car, cause there's no key in the ignition. Just remember to turn your heater up and your radio down, the night before.

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kidnextdoor
January 17, 2009 8:08 PM
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@menty666: In denver they call that 'huffing', and sadly it's illegal.

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unpolloloco
January 17, 2009 9:15 PM
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@kidnextdoor: I've had times where I had to do exactly that to even have a hope of scraping the ice off my windshield. 1/2 inch of ice + quickly dropping temperatures = 15 minutes of car idling while scraping to have a hope of seeing out my windshield.

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kepler11
January 17, 2009 7:39 PM
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good tips rexmus...I'm not going to be putting vinegar (acid) all over my car, especially with only a 3:1 dilution recommended by consumerist.

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parad0x360
January 17, 2009 7:45 PM
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You shouldnt use dish soap on auto glass. Rubbing alcohol by itself or with water works fine.

Pour a bottle of it in your windshield washing fluid and then fill the tank, that does the trick too.

I wouldnt go with vinegar either. It smells and its acidic so who knows what it could do to the paint.

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p012382
January 19, 2009 3:16 AM
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@parad0x360: @menty666: i live in toledo, ohio and we have been hit with the cold and ice and snow. since my automatic car starter set almost my car on fire, i just use my key to start the car and take the transmitter with me and set the car alarm when i get out of my car. so my car is locked and has the alarm on it i have no worries about it being stolen!

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BrazDane
January 17, 2009 8:20 PM
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I think you can save all the trouble with chemicals and simply take a big trash bag and cut it open along both sides, so you have one long sheet of plastic. When you park your car just open the passenger side door and stick one end in the jamb and close the door gently, otherwise it flies out from the air pressure. Then drape it tightly across the windshield and stick it inside on the driver's side and gently close the door. In the morning just take it right off, an you have a clean windshield.
Don't stick it in the windows, as some windows freeze shut and you might damage the motor or break a wire trying to get it open in the morning.

I used this for two months when I had a job that required me to get up really early and drive some student teacher to their schools. I did not want to spend that long deicing the windows and could not let the van run in a public lot w/o risking it being stolen.

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Eyebrows McGee (now with more baby!)
January 17, 2009 8:39 PM
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When you need to shovel heart-attack snow (heavy, wet, stick), spray Pam on the shovel first. Makes the snow slide off easier so you're not constantly stopping to kick the stuck snow off the shovel.

Also, and this is like the common-sense-est idea ever, but ... we have a detached garage now and it took us until the third winter here to realize it's a lot easier to keep a snow shovel IN THE HOUSE so you can just shovel right out instead of trudging to the garage to fetch it. Detached garages are the norm here, and people keep coming over, seeing the shovel and going, \"Oh, hey, I never thought of keeping one in the house!\" We stick it in the bathtub to try out when it's wet and we store it on some hooks on the basement stairs (which in the summer hold big floppy hats and light overshirts for sun protection).

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The_IT_Crone
January 18, 2009 3:35 AM
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@Eyebrows McGee: ... I'm SO trying the Pam trick tomorrow.

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Eyebrows McGee (now with more baby!)
January 18, 2009 1:32 PM
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@The_IT_Crone: You sometimes need to stop, go inside and let the shovel warm up a bit, and respray in the middle of the adventure. Eventually the Pammy goodness stops helping if you have to shovel long enough (and my driveway is RIDICULOUSLY LONG). But that's usually a good sign it's time for a break, anyway.

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intellivised
January 18, 2009 3:28 AM
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@Eyebrows McGee: WD40 works for shovels, too.

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reynwrap582
January 18, 2009 12:39 AM
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@Eyebrows McGee: Thanks for the tip with the Pam, I hadn't thought of that. Had to deal with the heavy wet stuff last week and it would just stick to the shovel until I banged it on something.

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mariospants
January 17, 2009 9:11 PM
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If you know there's freezing rain/snow in the forecast, just put some flattened cardboard or a garbage bag over your windshield. Come morning, just peel and drive away.

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mariospants
January 17, 2009 9:12 PM
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Oh, and Health Canada recently issued an advisory not to start pouring large amounts of ethylene glycol or alcohol onto your windshield - apparently it gets into your ventilation system and recirculates in the cabin, potentially cancerous.

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P_Smith
January 17, 2009 9:26 PM
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You would think people living in places with that sort of weather would know about tarpaulins. Cover the car and tie it down with bungee cords - next day, lift it off. Worked for me.


Of course, it was always snow where I lived, not ice storms....

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Dragonis
January 17, 2009 9:31 PM
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Do what my family does: schedule about 5 minutes each day in the winter and suck it up.

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PinkBox
January 18, 2009 4:24 PM
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@Dragonis: Haha, yeah... you're going to need much more than five minutes where I live, too.

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Anitra
January 18, 2009 12:34 PM
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@Dragonis: Hah. 5 minutes. hahahahaha.

It only takes 5 minutes if there's not much snow and NO ice on the car... and somebody else shovels the driveway for you.

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cynical_bastard
January 19, 2009 5:57 PM
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@Anitra: the one part that is AWESOME about living in a nice apartment complex...

No shoveling, raking, whatever...

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Feminist Whore
January 17, 2009 9:31 PM
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Ahhh, I don't miss the ice. I live in Phoenix now, but spent 30 years living in Philly -
~~~


Let me tell you a really cruel trick to play on your favorite enemy ---


SuperGlue in the keyhole of the car, timed to coincide with an ice/snow storm.


How long does it take to figure out the keyhole is glued and not merely frozen shut? - a long time.

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robdew2
January 17, 2009 9:49 PM
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why bother with commercial de-icer, when you have have a brand new paint job on your car instead?

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I want my Pepsi Throwback back!
January 17, 2009 10:40 PM
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My tip... while the car is warming up to clear the ice off the windshield, you can prepare to get the ice of of your side windows like so:

Take the edge of the scraper and scrape just around the edges of the windows.

By the time you get done with all four windows (or two, depending on your style car), start at the window you did first and open the door.

Roll down your window with the door open.

Ice will fall out of the window. If it doesn't (my back windows down roll all of the way down because of the child safety thing), knock the ice out of the window.

And upthread, I commented about getting that sheet of ice off the roof of your car. If you have a sunroof/moonroof, open the cover on the inside of your car. Let your car warm up with your heat on high for a few minutes, and it should make your roof window warm enough that you can just slide the sheet of ice right off. Very important if you have highway driving to do!!

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BytheSea
January 18, 2009 12:31 AM
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Keep the sunroof cover open. Where I live, it's often 20F and sunny. The car heats up like a greenhouse so it's at least 40F inside and the glass often defrosts itself.

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rexmus1
January 18, 2009 1:08 AM
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I never even thought of opening the cover, that's a great idea!
But Mrs. Nerdtastic, be sure to be careful you don't knock the snow inwards if you have electronic window controls, as repeatedly getting these wet can corrode, and eventually kill them.

OK, one last cold weather thing husband and I just discussed at dinner (yes, FIFTEEN years of this) most modern cars should not use the gas-line antifreeze product, \"Heet.\" It was designed to pull moisture out of your carburetor. But you probably don't have one of those, you have fuel injection. The alcohol in the product drys out the seals, gaskets, etc. through the system to the fuel pump, causing them to crack and your parts to fail...not a cheap repair.

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Sian
January 18, 2009 1:38 AM
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@Snowblind: More expensive than about any other de-icing method available, bud I admire your optimism.

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DeeJayQueue
January 18, 2009 2:57 AM
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I've found that warm (not hot) salt water works well for icy windows.

I know \"OMG that's bad for your paint!\" but if it's that icy out anyway, you're going to be driving through a lot worse on the way to work, so it's not that bad.

Salt lowers the freezing temperature of the ice, so it turns back to water.

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The_IT_Crone
January 18, 2009 5:00 AM
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@DeeJayQueue: The effectiveness of salt as a thaw agent decreases with temperature.

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Anitra
January 18, 2009 12:36 PM
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@The_IT_Crone: That's why you'd use it in conjunction with warm water - to heat up the ice JUST enough to get it back to liquid form.

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TheRedSeven
January 18, 2009 3:41 AM
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Easy! If you know a big snow/ice storm is coming, take an old sheet/blanket and put it over your windshield, tuck in the front doors, and under the wipers. In the morning/after the storm, just pull it off, shake off the loose snow, and toss it in the trunk.

Just like the trash bag mentioned above, but strong enough to hold up under the weight of snow/ice.

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Ninja Tree
January 18, 2009 9:48 AM
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@TheRedSeven: one big problem with that is that the water tends to funnel into the car. put a bucket under where you sheet ends, so the water can run into it, It's not fun having freezing cold water on your seats.

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nsv
January 18, 2009 4:30 AM
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After 30 years in New England I finally figured out the best way to de-ice the windshield. I moved to Florida.

Now I have to be careful not to park near the orange tree or I'll need to de-juice the windshield in the morning.

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Anonymous
January 18, 2009 5:04 AM
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I put the visors down, crank the defroster on high, and scrape the sides and back. They trap the heat against the windshield so by the time I'm done with the rest, the ice peels away a lot easier.

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t325
January 18, 2009 5:15 AM
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Even though I live in Missouri and frequently have ice storms, I deal with these problems by parking in a garage, both at home and work.

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bigwhitebear18
January 18, 2009 6:46 AM
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The cheapest and fastest thing I do is keep a box of cling wrap in the car and put some on the front and back windshield at night. Just peel it off in the morning with all the ice attached.
Fold it up for reuse or ball it up and throw it away.
It doesn't snow here so I can't vouch for anything too thick.

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b612markt
January 18, 2009 4:13 PM
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I live in metro Chicago in an apartment building and don't have a garage. When I need to de-ice my car, I go down to the car with a piping hot thermos of coffee, get in the car and turn it on. I blast the defroster at max, turn on the back defroster and flip down the sun visors so they redirect the hot air back onto the windshield instead of letting it run across the headliner. I listen to the radio, text a few friends and enjoy my coffee for 5-10 minutes. Then I get out and the ice just slides off.

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PinkBox
January 18, 2009 4:26 PM
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I just use a gallon of warm water when there is too much snow/ice along with idling my car for a few minutes while keeping an eye on it.

If the water isn't too hot, you don't have to worry about it causing the glass to break.

I'm not going to put alcohol on my still newish car.

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hi
January 19, 2009 2:23 PM
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whats wrong with this page, it's on the side of the screen i cant read what im tying. anyways, another usful method is to use an old shoe on your hand... keeps your hand warm and the sole of the shoe if good for scraping, and doesn't scratch.

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hi
January 19, 2009 2:24 PM
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since when is living in california free?@Snowblind:

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GreatWhiteNorth
January 19, 2009 5:26 PM
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Easy and economical solution that will not only leave your car ice free but also protect it from vandalism, theft and unwanted environmental damage... Park it in your garage! I know this only applies to those of you with a garage. So throw all that junk away that has filled your garage to overflowing and park your expensive (relative to the junk) car inside. There are lots of storage solutions available for those items that must share the garage with your car... so get them and use them.

Hey and you should also leave a window open so that all the moisture trapped in the car (from snowy shoes and boots) can get out.

For the rest of you... use the garbage bag over the windshield solution... and clean the snow off the rest of the car too, especially the head and turn lights! ... not doing so in most places will get you a 5 minute talk by the cops and a financial incentive too.

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geeniusatwrok
January 19, 2009 6:24 PM
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@GreatWhiteNorth: There's no incentive to clear the car of snow here in MA, other than safety and nobody cares about that, because there is no enforcement. You could drive an igloo down I-93 with just a peephole for viewing ahead and no cop would bother you, not when there's a Dunkin Donuts every 50 feet.

This should be a very expensive and frequent citation, but it's not.

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cheesebubble
January 20, 2009 3:16 AM
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Just scanned through the comments. Didn't anyone mention a good old ice scraper?

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