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Not only are misted up windows an annoyance when you’re hurrying to work in the morning, but they can also significantly impede visibility on the road. This article will explain why windscreens fog up, as well as providing you with some top tips to demisting your windscreens so you can drive safely.
Misted up windscreens occur when the temperature is colder than dew point causing excess moisture to form inside the car and create condensation on the glass. Although it is a simple problem to correct, many drivers don’t know how to get rid of the steam on their windscreen, causing them to drive in dangerous conditions with a foggy windscreen.
If you’re familiar with the problem of having a misted up windscreen, the good news is there are plenty of quick and easy solutions which can rectify the issue and restore your car back to a driveable condition:
It’s recommended that you switch your air conditioning on at the same time as your heater, as the hot air will dry the glass by evaporating condensation, while the air conditioning will keep the atmosphere dry.
However, if your windscreen has fogged up on a cold winter’s morning, chances are you’re not going to want to put the air conditioning on. In such situations, switching on your heating is the best solution as it will keep you warm, despite taking a little longer to demist your windscreen.
To prevent your windscreen from fogging up in the first place, make sure you clean your windows regularly; a buildup of dust and oil on the glass creates a larger surface area for water vapour to appear on, so ridding your windows of this buildup can help to prevent your windows from steaming up.
Not only that, applying an anti-fog coating to your windscreens will help to clean the windscreen further to achieve a crystal-clear view.
When deciding what action to take to demist your windscreen, it’s also important to know what to avoid doing to ensure you don’t make the problem worse.
The moisture from your breath when leaning across the windscreen to wipe the glass with your sleeve can cause the surface to mist up again.
Air circulation inside the car is crucial to stop your warm, moist breath from reaching the windscreen, so there needs to be as much of a breeze flowing through the car as possible.
Over the past few years, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have been developing a special coating which prevents windscreens misting up, whatever the weather.
This coating resists rain whilst absorbing moisture from the atmosphere to stop condensation from forming on the surface of the glass. Other proposed uses for this specialist coating have included on the inside of car windscreens, ski goggles, inside supermarket fridges and double glazing.
However, many question the validity of this “miracle windscreen glass”, stating that simply using the vehicle’s heating controls correctly can make a significant difference.
Here at 1st Call Windscreens, we provide a comprehensive windscreen repair and replacement service to customers throughout Kent, including the Maidstone, Gillingham, Sittingbourne, Rochester and Chatham areas. If your windscreen is suffering from a chip or crack, our experienced team will try their best to restore it back to a fully functional state using specialist repairs equipment. If your vehicle requires an entirely new windscreen, we have an extensive stock available, whatever make or model you need.
Simply get in touch with our expert team today to find out more – we are always happy to help.
Posted by: 1st Call Windscreens
We are proud to be a leading windscreen company covering our local areas of Maidstone, Sittingbourne and the rest of Kent since 1996. Our 25+ years experience in windscreen services includes windscreen repair and replacement for cars, vans, trucks and more! Our expert technicians hold the relevant qualifications so you can rest easy knowing that your windscreen is in safe hands.
Discovered my Volvo V50 was not sealing at the top. Autoglass wanted to replace it for £700, called 1st Call and they removed and resealed it for £100+vat and said that if it had broken it would only ...
- 6 days ago
Absolutely the best. From the first phone call to collecting my car with new side window that had been vandalised being replaced. next day service so my car was back on the road promptly. Extremely ...
- 3 weeks ago
Excellent Workmanship Good Value and Top Quality Customer Service: I recently had my Ford Fiesta ST heated windscreen replaced by 1st Call Windscreens, I couldn't be happier with the whole experienc...
- 1 month ago
Brilliant service. Would recommend 1st call windscreens to anyone looking for an efficient service. Friendly and helpful above and beyond ! 0...
- 1 month ago
Asked for a quote online which came through quickly. Just £48 inc vat for windscreen stone chip. Phoned to book a repair. I could either take the car to them or they would come out to me the next day....
- 2 months ago
Tom turned up on time, he was professional but friendly, he kept me informed on what he was doing and progress, and did a great job! Thanks Tom. Would highly recommend...
- 2 months ago
I needed my windscreen replaced due to a large crack; I was booked in straight away and I couldn’t be happier. They came to my house to fit the replacement, only took them about 20 minutes and they ev...
- 3 months ago
Couldn't be happier, had my Evoque windscreen re sealed as was leaking. Highly recommend 1st Call Windscreens. The guys were extremely helpful & friendly both on phone and doing the work. The work was...
- 3 months ago
Fantastic service, booked for a site visit to alleviate any disruption to the engineers day and it all went seamlessly. I would definitely recommend 1st Call Windscreens and will use them in the futu...
- 3 months ago
Customer service were great responded to my call out vey quickly and the guy that came out was very nice and helpful Thank you...
- 4 months ago
Had my chip fixed at my home this afternoon - cannot praise the service enough!!!! Lovely man who took 10-15 minutes - perfect job and no issues - very good price and highly recommend them Jo Seveno...
- 5 months ago
Very helpful and carried out a repair at very short notice on our way to catch a ferry. Very polite and stabilised the chip in our windscreen so that we could continue abroad for our holiday uninterru...
- 6 months ago
Made a call to 1st call windscreens as I was worried about a chip in my screen. The guys were very helpful, turned up on time and carried out a fantastic repair and was cheaperthan my insurance acce...
- 6 months ago
We had an emergency windscreen repair needed when travelling down from Oxfordshire to Kent. The Sittingbourne team went out of their way to help us at very short notice and allowing us to resume our j...
- 6 months ago
Jake was friendly, polite and helpful. He left no mess inside or outside the car and took away the boxes the seals came in even though they were supplied direct by the BMW dealer....
- 7 months ago
Arrived on time at my home address. Was very professional, polite and efficient. No hassle and no mess. Screen was replaced on my mini in no time at all and looks perfect. Thank you will highly recom...
- 7 months ago
So happy with Byron and Jake today very friendly and professional from 1st Call Windscreens Ltd. They come extremely well prepared with attention to detail. A great job was done on replacing my wind...
- 7 months ago
1st Call windscreens are absolutely 1st class. Spoke with David on the phone and he was so helpful and knowledgeable. Took our car up to them to advise on the correct windscreens which embarrassingl...
- 7 months ago
George west from 1st call windscreens Ltd was quite friendly and managed to do a fantastic job on my stone CHIP WINDSCREEN....
- 7 months ago
Excellent all round service and a very quick response so we highly recommend 1st Call Windscreens every time....
- 8 months ago
Great service from Kieran. Easy to arrange. Convenience of a home visit and great professional job. So happy....
- 8 months ago
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