Just wondering what everyone is using for their car.
I was looking to purchase some as the fluid in my car is running low now.
Any tips would be appreciated. Thanks.
Windscreen Fluid Additive - What Do You Recommend?
shadow131 on 14/05/2017 - 16:25
Comments
Whats do you mean by "suds"
Can you link me?
Bar's Bugs.
Yes, that's the one.
Morning fresh
Seriously? i thought the ammonia in dish washing screwed with the car's coats.
No idea. I've done it for over 10 years. Just 3 drops per refill
1 or 2 mls/litre is hardly likely to hurt much, but who knows.
Washing up liquid is full of phospherous, salts and other chemicals. When left to dry out under things like windscreen seals promote rust, especially where they remain damp or constantly suffer from condensation at night and/or heating up in the sun during the day. The daily temperature and dampness cycle, combined with detergents are the sort of thing that at best cause light chemical attack. Ask any windscreen installer- they all say it causes catastrophic rust in difficult to see crevices under the window and door seals, etc..
Washing up liquid might be cheap in to buy, but has terrible effects: Especially if the car has already had a windscreen replaced. Once the factory paint seal is broken, the metal can be prone. Many installers use Stanley knives and leave great scratches/trenches in the paint surface where pure water alone could seriously reduce a car's usable lifespan.
SCA fluid, Barr's, etc. I don't trust any of the cheapies. Another thing necessary in the fluid are chemicals that do things like stop it freezing, and reducing the build-up of legionaires disease (common in the water reservoirs, that escapes in humid air that is expelled by the unsealed tank. That endangers not just your mechanic, but anyone inside the cabin which absorbs air from the front of the car.
Also, good fluids do do a much better job at clearing the screen than basic detergents, so you get a quicker clean, fewer wipes… all improved safety, at a cost.
Tip: Many cleaners lose efficacy over time too, so it can save you money to not put a lot in and fill it more often.
@niggard: The smell will stop kids drinking it.
The SCA fluid comes in a handy metering bottle that lets you put the right amount in.
Just a word of caution. If anyone is changing from one fluid to another, drain the reservoir and run some water through first. On my wife's car, the tubes between the reservoir/pump and the outlets got blocked due to two different fluids gumming up together.
It's also a smart move to top up your washer reservoir before your car goes in for a service, so they don't put incompatible fluid in. It also stops them charging you $15 for "Washer Refill", for 15c of fluid.
@kmwa: on my friend's last service with BMW, he got charged $25 for a fluid top up haha.
The SCA fluid is cheap but smells so bad I have to block my vents before spraying. I've got more than 3/4 of a bottle left and I don't know how to use the rest of the smelly liquid. I use Bar's bugs in the 5L bottle and buy them when they're on sale.
@niggard: BMW fluid is a very expensive BASF concoction, made in Germany and shipped here. You can buy it and top it off yourself easily enough if you want to avoid your dealer charging you for it. The dealer will, if they do their job properly, make sure your car is tip top during a service- esp. given that it is how they make their money. $25 sure isn't cheap (unless your 2.5L tank was empty), but you buy dealer service for peace of mind, and to know your car is perform like new again.
If they didn't do the fluid, or used crap like the other brand's dealers often do, then you get a crap wipe for crap money. But most people in Oz wouldn't notice, let alone complain anyhow.
@zerovelocity: sorry, I should've specified the $25 fluid top up was for his washer bottle. His routine service costs hover around $650-800 depending on what gets done. If he managed to get the other fluids topped up for $25, then it's a bloody bargain.
@niggard: No, I thought that is exactly what you said.
You should see what it costs to service a Porsche, Ferrari, Maserati, Lambo, or a Bentley… hell Suttons tried to charge me $800 to do fluid changes on a VL commodore, and that was 20 years ago!
@zerovelocity: Crikey. 20 years ago a VL was 10yo. I thought commodores stopped needing fluid changes after 10years.
@zerovelocity: at the end of the day when a bird shits on your windscreen, the bird does not stop to consider what washer fluid you have. If this $25 washer fluid beats bars bugs, then I'd be interested in getting some too.
Mostly just water. Clean it at the servo with their suds or wash it at home properly and water only is seems fine 90% of the time.
I did get some stuff free with wiper blades once and used it a bit, but it smells like a mix of windex and dish soap which isn't really pleasant. I wouldn't get it again, rather just use the wate.
Voss
water is best, sometime the additives you put in the water and it doesn't wash off properly on the wipers they can dry them out quickly and become hardened and make the rubber chip easy when you do use them..
if you find that you get lines across your windscreen and your wipers streaking, usually they are dry, like most rubber things if you keep them exposed to sun for a long time they will dry and chip.
Earth Choice dish suds - trade secret. A bottle is $2/lit and lasts a year. Plant based and have used this or similar with zero ill effect on any vehicle in the fleet since day one including the show vehicles. No stains, no streaking, corrosion or any harmful effects noticed since day one. The quicker a cleaner works, the more water we save the planet.
As for the odour(what odour) who cares, I am inside, it is outside. The lemon scented juice keeps the washer bottle clean of bugs/germs etc too. No more clogged washer jets either, as there is no sediment from stale/off water.
It works very quickly and very effectively on dried droppings, dirty/dusty or slimed/spotted screens. I replace my wiper inserts(the rubber/silicone bit) only on average once a year usually after a long dry spell/season.
At the end of the day, it is up to you to believe or not the advertising hype or personal experiences surrounding the many products, including windscreen - dish - suds based on price, effectiveness or even potential damage due to miss use.
I use Earth Choice for my kids bottles. I fill up the foam dispenser and add appropriate amount of water for dilution. It works for a few months then the foam bottle crap out. This does not happen to Morning Fresh.
There is very fine mesh filter at the end of the foam pump where it meets the draw straw. It gets clogged up by some slimy thick white build-up that needs to be cleaned from time to time. The white build-up is also trapped in the foaming pump.
If you don't mind white slimy build-up in your washer system then go ahead.
Interesting. Good to hear from your experience.
I just use a few drops of dishwashing liquid, works brilliantly.
Dihydrogen monoxide
you monster!
Lol this is ozbargain, use any clean water you can get for free - ie parks, schools, popular walking tracks.
just a little tip,always carry a medium size potato in your vehicle and something that can cut it in pieces,if your wipers suddenly stop working while raining you cut the spud and rub the inner flesh all over the windscreen and the rain will run off the windscreen giving the driver a better sight in front,if you are sceptical try it at home with your hose
I had a spary that was similar to this.
Lasts around 6 months but the water just beeds off the glass and rarely did you need the wipers, even when doing 110.Nowdays i use a cap of windex and all is good.
Rainex is great. Can drive without wipers
You can get the suds to add to the water at supercheap auto.