Defogging

I am on the search for something....a way to defog my car windows easier. With temps that keep going from one extreme to the other, my windows get foggy and I have to wait for the car to heat up some nights when I leave work. After an 8 or 10 hour day of up and down steps and greeting people all day, last thing I want is to set in my car with it running for it to heat up enough that my windows won't fog.

I had to take Shelby to school this morning for my daughter and the windows were a tad foggy. Now, Shelby is only 9 years old but she is a HUGE fan of 5 Minute Crafts on You Tube (takes her me on that topic). So she informed me today, that according to a You Tube video she watched on that channel, the silica gel packs you find in new purses are moisture absorbing and can be placed in your car window to pull moisture from the inside of the car and prevent fogging up. Who knew? 

Obviously, I went online to research. You have all kinds of "easy" fixes. Two popular ones were

1. Wipe your inside windshield and windows with vinegar - Um, no. I hate the smell and sure don't want to dry around all day with it. Plus, you would have to do it on a regular basis which sounds like a lot of work.

2. Barbasol shaving cream - Again, no. Too labor intensive to maintain and how will I know when I need to do another coat except for it to be fogged up just when I need it to be clear.

So, then I checked out her silica gel video which let me to other research about silica gel and weather you could buy it and put it in something larger than having to collect a ton of packets from purses to make it work. You can purchase the packets in quantities but then you would have to lay them across your dash and take them down or they would slide when you drive. But that was when I stumbled on the cat litter sock video. I hit pay dirt. You take a sock and wrap the top around a shipping tape roll or something like that (jar ring, anything to hold it open). Then fill it with the silicon gel cat litter (which you can get at Walmart for around $5-$6 a bag.

Once filled, removed whatever you used to hold it open, tie it off and fold the top down. Place in your windshield and it will keep them from fogging up. 

There are several brands out their and they do recommend you use only 100% silica gel. And they recommend that if it has color changing crystals only get the kind that goes from clear to orange. Do not get any that turns blue or is already blue.

I read many sites about this and watch several videos. As with everything you have a ton of nay-sayers and negative Nellies. But for the most part, people say it works. The main video I watched is from a guy who is an engineer with NASA and he posted his studies and samples of his testing on his video. Then I read another site that explained why some people say it is worthless. The guy from NASA is quoted a lot. It does work because the cat litter does absorb moisture. What they don't say is that it is good for about a month because by then, the crystals have retained so much moisture they are not long effective and you simply open the sock, toss the crystals, wash and dry the sock and pour in fresh litter. Your $5 bag is enough to last for many, many, many months of this. So I am going to go to Walmart and get a sock and do this. One video that swore by the NASA guys hack says that he has been doing this three years and he tosses one in each side of his windshield and one under each seat. He said it has worked perfect for him. So off to sock shop I go. I'll let you know if it works.