How To Stop Car Windows From Steaming Up
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- Опубликовано: 26 дек 2018
- How to prevent your car windows from steaming up, fogging up, misting up - whatever you might call it.
In this video, I compare a selection of household products against Rain X's dedicated "Anti Fog" product. We will be looking at Shaving Foam, Toothpaste, Hand Sanitizer, Soap, and Car Wax.
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Those expensive Anti-Fog products contain a secret ingredient called a Surfactant.
Your most common house product that is very high in Surfactants is something like Lenor or Comfort fabric softener, that you use in your laundry.
Have you ever wondered why your laundry fabric softener says NOT to use it on towels (after all, a nice soft bath towel sounds fantastic)? It's because Surfactants are water-repellent! If you use Lenor or Comfort on your towels, they'll feel wonderfully soft, but they won't help you get dry, because they won't absorb water. Eeek!
So, how and where can you use fabric softener on your car?
First a word of warning ⚠️ : Do NOT apply to the Outside of your windscreen on any vehicle with a flat upright windscreens like the Land Rover "Defender"! I'll come back to this after talking about interior misting or fogging.
Thoroughly dry and clean your windows, inside and out, using Brasso or similar. Then take a 50% solution of Lenor/Comfort on a soft cloth and polish the inside glass. Less is More, else you'll spend forever polishing the stuff. And do make sure you've got the car heater on, else it's very difficult to get the stuff to dry and polish. YOU REALLY MUST GET THINGS WARM AND DRY ELSE THIS WON'T WORK!
Once dried, the Surfactants won't allow any water vapour from your breath or dampness in your car to condense on the glass. So, you've put an end to interior misting problems. - The important phase is polishing those Surfactants on, so put the effort in.
That's dealt with the Interior glass. But what about the Outside glass?
Well, the Surfactants won't allow water - including dirty road spray, frost, ice, or snow - to stick. So you can also apply Surfactants to:
• side and rear windows ;
• door mirrors ;
• headlamp glass
• indicator, side light, tail light & break light glass.
It won't stop dirty road spray getting onto, and dulling, your lights completely. But as each successive lot of dirty spray hits the glass, the water it contains will actually wash the glass cleaner. So you'll only lose around 20% of the brilliance of your lights. Put simply, the glass has become non-stick.
What about your front windscreen? ⚠️ CAUTION, because on certain types of windscreen, Surfactants will make things much worse (including those expensive ones they sell in the motor factors)!
The idea is to make your windscreen water-repellent, so any rain or snow can't stick. With your typical SLOPING windscreen, the rain or snow droplets will be blown up and over your windscreen, often meaning you don't need to use your windscreen wipers nor screenwash jets. Fantastic! BUT, if you have a totally flat upright windscreen, such as those fitted to the Land Rover "Defender", the wind created by driving won't blow those water droplets up and over or off the sides of your curved and angled windscreen. Instead, those droplets will combine into larger and larger pools of water, until they totally obscure your windscreen! And, worse, you will probably find your windscreen wipers have lost their efficiency, as they'll skit and jump across the windscreen, no-longer working efficiency. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED ⚠️
One last thing: fabric conditioner smells nice. So your vehicle will stop smelling of damp, and take on the nice scent of whatever fabric conditioner you chose.
Enjoy,
Rick
**************
[ No idea why the text is repeated, below, but my smart-ass phone won't let me easily remove the duplicate post. Just ignore it. Oh, and Merry Mist-Free Christmas, Rick ]
There expensively Anti Fog products contain a secret ingredient called a Surfactant.
Your most common house product that is very high in Surfactants is something like Lenor or Comfort fabric softener, that you use in your laundry.
Have you ever wondered why your laundry fabric softener says NOT to use it on towels (after all, a nice soft bath towel sounds fantastic)? It's because Surfactants are water-repellent! If you use Lenor or Comfort on your towels, they'll feel wonderfully soft, but they won't help you get dry, because they won't absorb water. Eeek!
So, how and where can you use fabric softener on your car?
First a word of warning ⚠️ : Do NOT apply to the Outside of your windscreen on any vehicle with a flat upright windscreens like the Land Rover "Defender"! I'll come back to this after talking about interior misting or fogging.
Thoroughly dry and clean your windows, inside and out, using Brasso or similar. Then take a 50% solution of Lenor/Comfort on a soft cloth and polish the inside glass. Less is More, else you'll spend forever polishing the stuff. And do make sure you've got the car heater on, else it's very difficult to get the stuff to dry and polish. YOU REALLY MUST GET THINGS WARM AND DRY ELSE THIS WON'T WORK!
Once dried, the Surfactants won't allow any water vapour from your breath or dampness in your car to condense on the glass. So, you've put an end to interior misting problems. - The important phase is polishing those Surfactants on, so put the effort in.
That's dealt with the Interior glass. But what about the Outside glass?
Well, the Surfactants won't allow water - including dirty road spray, frost, ice, or snow - to stick. So you can also apply Surfactants to:
• side and rear windows ;
• door mirrors ;
• headlamp glass
• indicator, side light, tail light & break light glass.
It won't stop dirty road spray getting onto, and dulling, your lights completely. But as each successive lot of dirty spray hits the glass, the water it contains will actually wash the glass cleaner. So you'll only lose around 20% of the brilliance of your lights. Put simply, the glass has become non-stick.
What about your front windscreen? ⚠️ CAUTION, because on certain types of windscreen, Surfactants will make things much worse (including those expensive ones they sell in the motor factors)!
The idea is to make your windscreen water-repellent, so any rain or snow can't stick. With your typical SLOPING windscreen, the rain or snow droplets will be blown up and over your windscreen, often meaning you don't need to use your windscreen wipers nor screenwash jets. Fantastic! BUT, if you have a totally flat upright windscreen, such as those fitted to the Land Rover "Defender", the wind created by driving won't blow those water droplets up and over or off the sides of your curved and angled windscreen. Instead, those droplets will combine into larger and larger pools of water, until they totally obscure your windscreen! And, worse, you will probably find your windscreen wipers have lost their efficiency, as they'll skit and jump across the windscreen, no-longer working efficiency. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED ⚠️
One last thing: fabric conditioner smells nice. So your vehicle will stop smelling of damp, and take on the nice scent of whatever fabric conditioner you chose.
Enjoy,
Rick
Jesus.... That's a hell of a post!
@@TheDetailingSpace I own a 1987 Land Rover "Defender" which vehicles are notorious for misting and dimmed headlamps. I post this same information every year, ever since someone put me on to the amazing uses of Surfactants. Hope it helps those of us who love classic cars.
One year on… Thank you for this comment.
So, what other household items have you tried, or heard of, that help prevent windows from steaming up? Let me know below, and I'll create a second video using those.
A spit and buff works on the inside of face masks used for scuba and snorkling. I don't know if it works on car windows though. :-)
Yeah, I had considered that. Would be there all day spitting on the windows LOL
The unicorn foam and now this.... the neighbours will definitely think you've lost the plot now Mat. In all seriousness though, this is what detailing and valeting is all about. Experimenting and finding a new product/technique that you'd have never thought of before and having fun at the same time. Great video mate, keep them coming.
Haha, I think they know me well enough now. But yes, definitely always worth playing around.
Shaving foam works
I smashed all my windows to prevent from fogging up.
That's one way of sorting it
Buy an older Land Rover "Defender". I can wind down my side windows, roll up the rear window of the ragtop, and best of all is that the front windscreen folds flat. Much better than smashing the glass, as I avoid the risk of puncturing a tyre. You were on the right track though 👍
Excellent experiment with clear results 👍🏻.
Thanks 👍😁
Thank you for this. My EOS steams up like crazy. I’ve just ordered rainx 👍🏼
Nice video thanks for taking the time to share,that soap reminded me of trying to take off the yellow tin simoniz after I'd let it dry on too long,some years ago now😀
lol..... Best thing is, the soap was left for a few seconds. It was hard as anything to remove.
Thanks for the tip
Excellent effort. Will be using shaving gel or toothpaste as no anti fog sprays available where I am located
Great video, I'll try the shaving gel to save a few quid and also have my inside of my car smelling like the best a man can get :)
Use washing up liquid or liquid laundry detergent.
it stays clear for weeks. It’s great for diving masks, but as soon as you rinse
the mask its best to redo it.
Might have to try that in another video 👍
Laundry detergent works because it contains Surfactants. This is the vital water repellent part that helps clothes (or dishes) dry more quickly, as it makes the water wetter. That said, you'll find that Laundry Softener has even more Surfactants, so will work even better at stopping misting.
There is a slight downside - fabric softener vs detergent or washing up liquid - you've got to polish the fabric softener into the glass. That means the inside of your vehicle has to be absolutely dry. Whereas, dishwashing liquid or laundry detergent can be used if you're doing the anti-mist treatment on a cold wet day.
Thanks for reminding me, David, as I need to treat my Landy glass and haven't got time to do the full Laundry Softener Surfactants treatment for a week or two. Good tip.
Rick
Thanks for this video! I have a Peugeot and I swear they are the worst for foggy windows. I really appreciate you trying out all different methods, it must have taken some effort buffing out toothpaste & soap!
Yes, it was a PITA! I drive a Peugeot Bipper for work, so I know what you mean
you buy a rover, its like driving through the north pole
On a related topic [not actually misting] but unless your vehicle has headlamp washers, you must have noticed how your vital headlamps grow dimmer and dimmer at this time of year, due to road dirt spray building a layer of crud on the headlamp glass.
As I mentioned elsewhere, polishing the glass with a Surfactant (such as Lenor or Comfort fabric conditioner) will help stop the muck drying and sticking on your hot headlamp glass. The non-stick water repellent coating of Surfactant allows each fresh spray of mucky road spray to wash of some of the previous muck. However your biggest problem is that your headlamp bulbs are heating the headlamp glass, so causing that mucky road spray to quickly dry, leaving road dirt all over the glass.
This is where LED headlamps are a big help. They tend to be a lot cooler than any other bulb type. And so the glass doesn't get hot, enabling the air-flow combined with the non-stick Surfactant polish to blow the wet road spray off before it dries.
However, it's not as simple as replacing your old bulbs with LED bulbs. It's a UK Legal Requirement that you also change the reflectors in your headlamp units. That's because the new LED bulbs won't have their bright spot in the same place as your filament bulbs. You'd be blinding other motorists (making you liable to prosecution) and it's an immediate MoT FAIL.
So you need to budget for a pair of new LED Headlamp units. I've done it through a reputable dealer, and now enjoy even better road lighting with very little loss of brilliance through dirty road spray.
Safe driving and Happy Christmas,
Rick
Thank you bro
No problem 👍
Angelwax H2G0 and I have two heavy silica bags in my van too.
Thanks.... Guess I should do a video experimenting these silica bags and suchlike (think I may still have my bag in the garage)
Tech at work (with big beard lol) advised shaving foam rather than gel. Worked in bathroom for a few weeks really well. Not tried the car yet.
I used to only use foam, then for some reason switched to gel.... Seems to last longer, but then again, I rarely shave 😂
I am Greek, you looked like muslim with that kind of beard but after the 10:48 comment the things settle-up.
Thank you for the video sir, very useful !
+1 like from me.
Haha, thank you 👍
Many years ago in my biker days I used to use washing up liquid on the inside of my visor. Only a very small amount was needed but it seemed to work for a while at least.
What about good old WD40 though? It seems to get used for everything else lol ....
I did think of WD40, but didn't fancy spraying oil over my windows.... Someone mentioned on facebook the other day that he uses Fairly Liquid in his crash helmet (racing cars)
I’ve tried this shaving foam I used Gillette, I started on my rear window then did the 2 rear side windows and by the time I’d finished my rear window was steamed up, how is this possible, what am I doing wrong and then trying to get the shaving foam from in the window channel was a nightmare
i was having a shave in the shower and the hand held mirror was fogging up , so i rubbed shower gel on it then rinsed it , to my surprise it worked !. maybe neat shower gel rubbed onto a car windscreen has the same effect ?.
Mmmm.... Nice suggestion
@@TheDetailingSpace **Update** prior to making my 10 pm cuppa tea i rubbed neat shower gel onto my large mirror on my bathroom wall , i presented boiling hot steam from the kettle to the mirror...no fogging whatsoever !! .... i'm using this at the earliest opportunity on my car windscreen 😀
My car heater doesn’t work so sometimes I use cold Ac sometimes makes it worst. I roll down all windows I’m freezing to death after 30 to 45 minutes using cold Ac the fog start to go away. I will buy the anti fog rain-x hopefully works for me.
Yes, putting a window down can help speed up the demisting process. Also seen videos of opening one window and then on the other side of the car you waft a door open and closed to circulate the air
Have quite a few steamy mornings at the moment, I do have one of the moisture absorber bags but can't say it makes a huge difference. How long does the rain x last for?
I used to have one of those bags a few years ago in an older car and it never really worked.
I only applied Rain-X all around after finishing this video, so will report back.... I did go out yesterday morning, and the side windows were crystal clear. The windscreen was a tiny bit hazy, but that is either due to me not applying enough (will give a second coating tomorrow or at the weekend), or because the car has so much moisture.
It's a 2018 car, and the front window has always been soaked on the inside. I blame the seals on the side windows. Even when I put them down, the glass doesn't clear (like it would on any other car when rubbing against the seals)....
Anyway, I'll let you know how well it performs over time.
One won't work you need at least 4 of them. I use the 1kg ones and they keep the inside dry. They need recharging every few weeks in the Microwave for several minutes until toasty.
Well I saw rain x today in asda for a fiver so have picked up a bottle. Gave the windows 2 coats, let's see how it goes...
Can't complain for a fiver TBH. Then again, full price in Halfords was only £5 LOL
I get 10% discount, every little helps 😁
Could it be that the top fogs less 🤔. Will try 👍
Could be
I remember years ago granny experimented some thing similar by rubbing the inside of a banana skin on her car windows to see if it would stop them freezing (it didnt work),
Haha, did she?
Watching the video it looked like the Rain X anti fog worked the best, yet when I checked out some of the online reviews, some where saying it was a terrible product, and it only managed to make a mess of the windows, so I'm thinking it's back to looking for a solution to my problem
Maybe poor prep and application from the reviewers 😉👍
See my solution or David Cushley's version. It's the same active ingredient that makes Rain-X shed water off your windscreen without using your wipers and that they use in their interior anti-mist treatment
@@rickbear7249 well a year later and I still have the problem, so I've been out and bought a bottle, I can only but try it, the problem is not only dangerous but annoying, and driving with a window open in this weather is not recommended
@@Ratsotone Rain-X is good on the outside, for getting the rain blown off your windscreen without having to use your wipers. But the anti-mist version is no better than Fabric Softener or even quality dishwashing liquid. As I explained in my very long post, it is just Surfactants. These are water repellents.
If you're using Rain-X anti mist, make sure you really warm your car up to absolutely dry the glass. Then clean the glass with Brasso. And, when you're absolutely sure it's dry, polish the stuff on the glass. Loads of elbow grease. It really does work and is worth the effort, Cletus. Just not worth the price.
You've probably seen people suggesting loads of things - shaving foam, wash up liquid, my laundry fabric softener - they're all just products contain a lot of Surfactants
Have fun and Merry Christmas
Rick
@@rickbear7249 thank's for that, but I bought the Rain X earlier today, it was only £5.50 so worth giving it a go, but I don't have any brasso, but I do have a spray on glass cleaner, so what's with the brasso??
i'm going to secretly rub something on my moms glasses and see if her glasses stop fogging from the mask hehe
🤣
Can I assume the shaving foam is not from your bathroom?????
Haha.... Cheeky sod, I do shave the cheeks and neck area lol.... Beard will be trimmed new year as usual (I seem to let it grow from October/November time)
Gimana cara mendapatkannya???
Eerrrmmmmm.... 👍
"How do I get it?"
Bet he was late for work😂
🤣
This is an exact copy of another video I just watch isn't it? Lol
😂
isoprophyl alcohol