How To Prevent Car Windows From Fogging Up In Winter?

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Foggy windows are well known to all of us drivers during the winter period. Since it can be very frustrating and dangerous, today I’m going to show you how to prevent your car windows from fogging up.

To prevent car windows from fogging up during the winter, you should often clean them with a high-quality glass cleaner and always drive with air-conditioning ON. Also, I highly suggest applying Anti-Fog products on the windshield.

This was a very short answer, and not everyone has an AC option in their cars, so I’ll have to dive deeper into this topic and share with you as many tips as possible. 

Why Do Car Windows Become Foggy?

To successfully prevent car windows from fogging up, you should know what makes them foggy in the first place.

Three main culprits for foggy windows are:

• Moisture
• Temperature
• Dirty Windows

Windows will fog up when there’s moisture inside the car and when the temperature inside the car is warmer than the glass (windows surface) temperature. 

To simplify this, if it’s -10 Celsius degrees outside, and you get into a car and breath, the temperature inside the car will quickly rise, and windows will probably get foggy.

Dirt will attract moisture, which will make windows easy to fog up.

So, when the temperature of the windows is similar to the car interior temperature, and when there’s as little moisture as possible, the chances of getting windows fogged are reduced a lot.

For more detailed information, check this article: Why Do My Car’s WIndow Fog Up?

8 Tips To Keep Car Windows From Fogging Up

Here are actual tips you can try to prevent your car windows from fogging up. Make sure to follow as many of them as possible.

1. Clean Windows More Often

Usually, we clean the windows when we can’t drive because of dirtiness. However, during the winter, it’s important to clean windows often, even if they seem to be clear. Clean windows won’t have any dirt on them, and moisture won’t stick to them so easily.

Always use high-quality windows cleaner like this GYEON Automotive Glass Cleaner (check my review). 

Together with glass cleaner, use some high-quality glass cleaning microfiber cloth or paper towel and thoroughly clean the glass.

2. Remove Dump/Wet Items From Your Car

Removing all dump items from your car will reduce the chance of your windows getting fogged.

You should remove all items such as:

• Beverages
• Wet umbrellas
• Wet clothes
• Cloths and other equipment for car detailing

3. Turn On The AC

During the low temperatures, I always keep my AC turned on. Why?

Well, the air that comes through the air-conditioning compressor is completely dry and won’t get any moisture inside the car.

Also, make sure not to use the Recirculation button, always bring in the fresh air from outside.

4. Shake Your Shoes

If it’s raining or snowing outside, make sure to clean your shoes as much as possible before entering the car. Remember, there’s a lot of water on them, which will improve window fogging.

5. Check For Any Leaks

Before winter, check for any leaks in your car. Mostly, those leaks will come from old rubber around the door and trunk. 

6. Ventilate Your Car During Sunny Days

This is a very important step; ventilating your car during a nice sunny day will remove any moisture trapped inside your car (seats, carpets, etc.).

A few years back, I spilled my APC inside the trunk and didn’t realize it straight away. Guess what? Mold appeared in 2 days only. So, make sure to ventilate your car whenever you can.

7. Apply Anti-Fog Product To The Windows

If none of the above methods work, applying anti-fog spray does. If you’re constantly having problems with foggy car glass, it’s imperative that you apply an anti-fog product to all the interior windows in your vehicle.

I highly suggest you try this Nexgen Anti-Fog Spray, which is so my go-to anti-fog spray to use during the winter.

How to apply anti-fog spray:

8. Get a Silica Dehumidifier (Optional)

If you followed all the six tips above and still get your windows fogged all the time, consider buying a silica dehumidifier (check the price on Amazon now).

Dehumidifiers will help to remove any excess moisture from your car, which will again reduce the chance of getting fogged windows.

I Don’t Have Air-Conditioning; What To Do?

If you have a car without AC, don’t worry, you can still do a lot to prevent your windows from getting fogged. 

Follow all the steps above, and try not to turn the heating option to the MAX. I always try to keep it just a bit above the middle. That way, I’m not cold inside, and the glass won’t get too hot either.

If you wonder why, here’s the answer.

If you heat up the glass too much, it will remove the fog at first, but at the same moment you turn off the heating or open the car door, the glass will fog again.

I had cars without the AC and almost never had problems with windows getting fogged, even though I lived in an area with high humidity and low winter temperatures.

Conclusion

Preventing your car windows from fogging up isn’t as hard as most people think. By following the steps I showed you above, I believe your windows won’t get fogged easily. 

Remember that your job is to equalize the temperature of the car interior and the temperature of the glass, and also try to reduce moisture inside your car. 

And again, keeping your car well-maintained and clean will reduce the chances of car glass fogging up.