How to prevent windows from freezing on the inside?

P

pmanliu

iS VIP
iS VIP
Location
NYC
Car
2017 WRX
So living in the northeast, and parking outdoors comes at a price. Basically the windows keep freezing on the inside and it takes forever for the defroster at 90F to blast away. Indoor parking is not an option (grr... college campus).

The cause of indoor windows frozen to death syndrome is moisture inside the car, prob from wet shoes, etc. I was wondering if anyone could share some techniques to soak up this moisture so the windows dont freeze. Its around -3 right now, parked the car a half hour ago, and its frozen again already!

Google suggests a silica pack under the seats to soak up moisture. Seeing if anyone else has a good technique

thanks!:tup:
 
Pat, I live up on the shores of Lake Huron in Ontario and we have tons of snow and it's cold. You are tracking too much snow and slush in the car with your boots and it is melting on your mats, which brings in too much moisture and it is always in your car. My mats are rarely wet, if they are, it's not for long. I always have my controls set for the defrost/foot heat combination the majority of the time. I do not have a garage so my vehicles are outside 24/7 If there is a fair bit of water on my mats I dump them out. No dampness ever gets on my carpets since I use the Weathertech digital fit winter mats, they hold all the winter slush and crap and keep the mats dry.
 
silica pack...the most common material to absorb moisture, in your case you're gonna needs huge balls of silica ..:wink (2):

jokes aside, the best way to prevent this from happening is to clean your car of any source of moisture just like GEE suggested. you could also leave the windows slightly open. hope your car has proper insulation and not developed a leak somewhere.
 
this has never happened to me, and I live in NY on the hudson river and go to school in central PA; it has never frozen on the inside. You may have one of the larger cabin seals missing or something, like as if your sunroof were open and moisture was caught inside and freezing.....
 
Simple fix - move to Texas, lol.

I have to agree with everybody else on bringing moisture into the car, but it still seems strange that this happens to you more than others. It might just be the climate you live in? I seriously doubt that silica packs would have any effect in the cabin airspace - it's not like the cabin is completely sealed from the outside.

I have seen solar powered air circulation fans that attach to the top of the window. It is meant to remove hot air from the cabin while parked (Texas product), but I am guessing it would work with cold humid air as well. Might be worth a try?

http://www.amazon.com/Trillium-Worldwide-TWI-7001-Solar-Powered-Ventilator/dp/B0007LXTN2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1297433716&sr=8-2
 
I honestly think Pat's carpets are quite wet and this is the root cause of the problem. Throw the floor heaters on high for a lengthy time to dry them out, or leave a portable in car heater running in the FX to dry them out and get the moisture out of the car..
 
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Not sure, but maybe when you're blasting the heat to try and melt it, have the A/C on to help remove the moisture quicker.
 
thanks everyone for the helpful responses:wink:

Thought about what you all said and narrowed it down to two possible culprits

1) like gee mentioned, my carpets are indeed wet. We've had nonstop snow and slush here for awhile and everyday been having at least 5 people in my car, 4 of which dont brush their shoes off :rolleyes:. Going to take out the carpets and blast the heat to dry them out. I have the oem all weather mats in the front and generic autozone ones in the back, however they prob dont compare to a set of weathertechs

2) In terms of any leaks... i have two hairline cracks on my windshield. You cant catch the crack with your fingernail from the inside, only the outside. They are about 2.5 inches long each. I doubt their letting water in, but might be a possibility.


To address the window freezing issue happening to me more than others - took a quick walk around where the fx is parked. I would say at least 50% of the cars there have windows that are frozen from the inside... ouch!
 
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pmanliu said:
2) In terms of any leaks... i have two hairline cracks on my windshield. You cant catch the crack with your fingernail from the inside, only the outside. They are about 2.5 inches long each. I doubt their letting water in, but might be a possibility.


To address the window freezing issue happening to me more than others - took a quick walk around where the fx is parked. I would say at least 50% of the cars there have windows that are frozen from the inside... ouch!
Click to expand...

Did you know there are two panes of glass on the front windshield? Almost all modern glass is actually two pieces with a layer of resin between them. A crack in the outside glass does not transfer to the inside glass unless there was a very strong impact. I don't think air or moisture have a chance of coming into the car that way.

Sounds like it is just outside moisture being brought into the car.
 
jumbosrule said:
Did you know there are two panes of glass on the front windshield? Almost all modern glass is actually two pieces with a layer of resin between them. A crack in the outside glass does not transfer to the inside glass unless there was a very strong impact. I don't think air or moisture have a chance of coming into the car that way.

Sounds like it is just outside moisture being brought into the car.
Click to expand...

i did not know that... learn something new from iS everyday, thanks jumbo! :smile (2):
 
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