Homemade Washer Fluid
- Thread starter The Critic
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Sams Club usually has big cases of the cheapo brand stuff for 10 bucks, so each gallon comes out to a buck fifty. The only thing I do is add rain-x original! Apparently you're not supposed to do that, but I don't even need to use the windshield wipers in a downpour and it also repels ice.
Originally Posted By: MarkStock
Jetdry is rinse aid.
Well yea.....that's easy and way too obvious!
What's the chemical composition?
Jetdry is rinse aid.
Well yea.....that's easy and way too obvious!
What's the chemical composition?
Originally Posted By: The Critic
OK, just added 6 ounces of Walmart Ammonia, 1 303 tablet, and a couple quarts of warm water into the reservoir. We'll see how well it works tomorrow.
I tried using a 303 tablet crushed up in the reservoir per their directions and it left a nasty white speckled film on my windshield that was not easy to remove - took ample amounts of elbow grease and Purple Power auto glass cleaner to get it off.
Letting it dissolve in a jug of water first seems to work OK, but the more I try the 303 tablets, the less impressed I am with them.
In the end I think STARTING with a clean windshield (a la Deltona Dave's excellent 'Clean Windshields' thread is the key. Whatever OTC methanol-based washer fluid you get - even the 'cheap blue stuff' - tends to work far better at that point.
OK, just added 6 ounces of Walmart Ammonia, 1 303 tablet, and a couple quarts of warm water into the reservoir. We'll see how well it works tomorrow.
I tried using a 303 tablet crushed up in the reservoir per their directions and it left a nasty white speckled film on my windshield that was not easy to remove - took ample amounts of elbow grease and Purple Power auto glass cleaner to get it off.
Letting it dissolve in a jug of water first seems to work OK, but the more I try the 303 tablets, the less impressed I am with them.
In the end I think STARTING with a clean windshield (a la Deltona Dave's excellent 'Clean Windshields' thread is the key. Whatever OTC methanol-based washer fluid you get - even the 'cheap blue stuff' - tends to work far better at that point.
Here in the south (FL) I just use Distilled water and about an ounce of LA's Totally Awesome (the yellow stuff....not the ammonia/bleach based stuff)....it's basically 2-butoxyethanol....
1 oz. in a gallon jug serves my purposes great.....but I also squigee my windshield at the pump.....every gas stop I make.....it's all about maintaining cleanliness
1 oz. in a gallon jug serves my purposes great.....but I also squigee my windshield at the pump.....every gas stop I make.....it's all about maintaining cleanliness
Originally Posted By: scurvy
Originally Posted By: The Critic
OK, just added 6 ounces of Walmart Ammonia, 1 303 tablet, and a couple quarts of warm water into the reservoir. We'll see how well it works tomorrow.
I tried using a 303 tablet crushed up in the reservoir per their directions and it left a nasty white speckled film on my windshield that was not easy to remove - took ample amounts of elbow grease and Purple Power auto glass cleaner to get it off.
Letting it dissolve in a jug of water first seems to work OK, but the more I try the 303 tablets, the less impressed I am with them.
In the end I think STARTING with a clean windshield (a la Deltona Dave's excellent 'Clean Windshields' thread is the key. Whatever OTC methanol-based washer fluid you get - even the 'cheap blue stuff' - tends to work far better at that point.
Well said.
The mix I made last night seems to work pretty well, but I swear my eyes water a bit from inside the car each time I use it. This can't be good.
Originally Posted By: The Critic
OK, just added 6 ounces of Walmart Ammonia, 1 303 tablet, and a couple quarts of warm water into the reservoir. We'll see how well it works tomorrow.
I tried using a 303 tablet crushed up in the reservoir per their directions and it left a nasty white speckled film on my windshield that was not easy to remove - took ample amounts of elbow grease and Purple Power auto glass cleaner to get it off.
Letting it dissolve in a jug of water first seems to work OK, but the more I try the 303 tablets, the less impressed I am with them.
In the end I think STARTING with a clean windshield (a la Deltona Dave's excellent 'Clean Windshields' thread is the key. Whatever OTC methanol-based washer fluid you get - even the 'cheap blue stuff' - tends to work far better at that point.
Well said.
The mix I made last night seems to work pretty well, but I swear my eyes water a bit from inside the car each time I use it. This can't be good.
If you want every last spec of grease, grime, and dirt off your windshield, use Bonami! BMW even issued a TSB saying it's the end all be all glass cleaner, and it's completely safe. Heck, the liquid version might be a candidate for washer fluid mix as it's non toxic.
http://bonami.ehclients.com/index.php/about_bon_ami/environmental_stewardship/#ing_list
http://bonami.ehclients.com/index.php/about_bon_ami/environmental_stewardship/#ing_list
LOL I rented a car once in California and I think the rental place was using a "homemade" recipe. It was nothing more than soapy water! I drove the car to Reno over Donner Pass and as soon as the ambient temperature dropped below 32 degrees, it froze up. No washer until I got below Truckee. And in March, there's a LOT of spray from traffic! It was bad...
All the California issues are because the state prohibits including alcohol in washer fluid everywhere except in the Sierras.
I stopped using store-bought washer fluid when I moved out here. It's just water and blue dye.
Now I use tap water and a few ounces of whatever household surfactant I have at the time. I add methanol if I'm heading toward cold weather.
I stopped using store-bought washer fluid when I moved out here. It's just water and blue dye.
Now I use tap water and a few ounces of whatever household surfactant I have at the time. I add methanol if I'm heading toward cold weather.
My thought is that anything that can clean a windshield better than regular old blue washer fluid using only a wiper is probably not good for your paint (or the environment, if that's a concern).
Originally Posted By: Stu_Rock
I add methanol if I'm heading toward cold weather.
Where do you buy methanol?
I add methanol if I'm heading toward cold weather.
Where do you buy methanol?
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: Stu_Rock
I add methanol if I'm heading toward cold weather.
Where do you buy methanol?
just add a 16oz bottle of heet it is methanol or a hardware paint store might carry it in gallons.
Originally Posted By: Stu_Rock
I add methanol if I'm heading toward cold weather.
Where do you buy methanol?
just add a 16oz bottle of heet it is methanol or a hardware paint store might carry it in gallons.
in my town is a speed shop, that sells methanol to drag racers. i mix my own methanol, nitromethane, castrol, for my RC cars. i can make any percent i need. i dont recommend doing it, its some trouble.
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