Weather damaged windscreen-scraping off snow and ice

Weather damaged windscreen

As I write this, at the start of March 2023, snow is forecast in the UK this week.

Remember to clear your windscreen of snow and ice effectively and efficiently. A weather damaged windscreen could reduce your visibility. This is not only dangerous but illegal

But what is the correct way to do this?

Well, all of your car windows are made of glass. The front windscreen is laminated and the sides and rear windows are toughened glass. This makes them very easily damaged , by cracks or scratches.

Under no circumstances must you use hot or boiling water to melt the ice or snow.

If there is a stone chip on your front windscreen, no matter how small, the sudden change in glass temperature will cause the chip to instantly crack,. This will result in you needing a new windscreen.

You might not even realise you had a small chip as it might not have been previously visible. But i assure you the warm water will find it.

In extremely low temperatures, the addition of warm water could make the toughened glass explode. You certainly don’t want that!

Ice and snow scrapers work ok, but they have their limitations and some things you need to be aware of.

Make sure that it is a scraper designed for the job. Not a shovel or yard brush (yes I’ve seen them used).

The problem with scrapers is, if your glass was dirty before it froze or snowed. There is a chance that when using the scraper you scratch the glass unknowingly.

The preferred method is to use a form of de-icer and your cars interior heat. Start the engine and put the blowers on warm setting and air circulation setting. Spray the ice or snow with de-icer and let the warm interior air of your vehicle prevent ice from reforming on the glass.

Do not use your windscreen  wipers  until all of the ice is melted as this will damage the rubber on the wiper blades.

Remember , it is a criminal offence to drive your vehicle on the public highway with any form of reduced visibility. You could end up with a fine and/or points.

A weather damaged windscreen from scrapes or scratches is equally dangerous.