You cant beat a hot nozzle !!!

[ianrandom]

Love my heated nozzles too. One of them still managed to freeze a bit while heading North on Saturday though. Still, it was minus 10 lol.

 

[Alex M Grieve]

Doesn't meths strip the polish off the car?

Or any other damage?

Hi Helen,

I have used a homespun windscreen washer fluid in all the cars I have ever had. No paintwork damage, or degradation of seals.

I use a couple of tablespoonsful of dish washing liquid, about 250 mls of industrial meths per 5 litre flask and add water to taste.

The theoretical possibility of damage exists, I agree, but the washers are generally used when there is lots of other water sloshing about (rain, sleet, snow) so the mixture does not dwell on the paintwork.

Never freezes and gives a nice clear screen. You do get a whiff of meths occasionally, but I am a non smoker!

and it is cheaper than commercial solutions too!

PS and if that doesn't work, I shall have to pop round and check your hot nozzles!

 

[Pappilo]

Not sure about the benz as I havent driven it much in the snow but the ones on my Pug 307 always freeze up and burns out my fuse. Still changed a 10amp fuse yesterday

 

[st4]

As LTD says the key is a good concentration of anti freeze. If the car is stopped, the tank, pipes, and nozzles ain't heated, it will take time to get them upto temp.

And also, in the time is sat out in the v.cold it can freeze and expand and burst your reservoir.

I bought an emergency screenwash stash, 5l premix carplan stuff. Good to miunus 15, its only minus 8 just now.

 

[keith100]

As LTD says the key is a good concentration of anti freeze. If the car is stopped, the tank, pipes, and nozzles ain't heated, it will take time to get them upto temp.

And also, in the time is sat out in the v.cold it can freeze and expand and burst your reservoir.

I bought an emergency screenwash stash, 5l premix carplan stuff. Good to miunus 15, its only minus 8 just now.

Well, quite right.

I have heated nozzles and headlamp washers, but they are only there to melt ice that forms around them over night, if you parked a warm car and the melting snow freezes around the nozzles.

I don't think they mean you don't need anti-freeze in the system. I use premix that's good for about double the expected low, so that it will still handle wind chill at 70.

Regarding antifreeze attacking paint, it is true that the cheaper stuff does contain the same basic ingredient as paint stripper! Just flush it out when the weather turn warm.

Cheers