The frosted windscreen is a familiar sight to British motorists during the winter, and removing it is just one more challenge that winter driving poses. But taking the frost off your car’s windows is a fairly straight forward affair, and can also be prevented quite easily. Whether you are going for a short grocery trip or a long road trip, our advice is to get as much of the frost off as possible so you have a clear view of the road and other road users. Here are some helpful ways to tackle frosted glass:

  • You could go straight out and start scraping the ice off with an ice scraper, but doing so may risk scratching the glass. Instead, turn on the engine, the heating and the defroster to get as much heat to the glass as possible. Use a high quality ice scraper to remove the ice using vertical movements.

  • Use a spray de-icer along with a scraper – it is quick and low cost.

  • Use the windshield wipers and washer fluid: turn on the defroster (set it to high), then wait for the ice to melt at the bottom of the windscreen. Once it does, set the wipers to ‘fast’ and spray with washer fluid – undiluted.

  • If you think there may be frost overnight, lift the wipers from the windscreen to stop them freezing to it.

  • Pouring room temperature or cold water over the windscreen works well to help remove ice and makes it easier to start scraping. Boiling water can be counterproductive and give your windscreen a thermal shock that can result in cracking or chipping.

Prevention is the best cure:

On the other hand, you could simply place a towel over the windscreen overnight. Take it off in the morning and your windscreen should be clear. Be sure to put the towel somewhere it can dry for use the next day.