How to De-Ice Your Car Windows

It got REALLY cold this weekend. For those who don’t have the luxury of parking their cars in a garage, the below-freezing temperatures caused a lot of vehicles to ice over.

We’re likely to have more frigid weather this winter, and possible in the next few days, so we want to give you a few tips on how to cut your de-icing time in half in the mornings so you’re not shivering for 10 minutes trying to chip away the ice on your windshield before work.

1. Turn your car on and put the defroster on full blast. Make sure there’s no ice blocking the tail pipe as that could lead to carbon monoxide poisoning.

2. Find an spray bottle and fill it with two parts isopropyl alcohol and one part water. Spray the solution liberally on all your frozen car windows.

This should be at room temperature, so don’t leave it in your car overnight.

You can also use a saltwater solution, but you have to use it sparingly as it could damage your glass. We suggest the isopropyl alcohol method because you don’t have to worry about it harming the glass.

3. Use an ice scraper to remove the ice. The isopropyl alcohol and water solution will begin to melt the ice, but you’ll have to use a scraper or squeegee to wipe off the rest. Thanks to the solution, it will be easy to remove.

Why use an isopropyl alcohol and water solution instead of using water by itself, you ask? It’s because the isopropyl alcohol and water solution has a much lower freezing point than water. As we all know, water freezes as 32 degrees Fahrenheit, while the alcohol and water mixture freezes at 5 degrees. This means it will not refreeze on your windshield unless the outside temperature is below 5 degrees.

Do you have another method for de-icing your car? Let us know in the comments!