DIY De-Icing, Prepare Now
DIY De-Icing, Prepare Now
With Winter approaching, you need to be thinking about some things to prepare for the season. With weather so crazy in the South, One day you will be wearing shorts and the next you have a sweater on. One, you need to go to your storage area and get out that ice scraper and also find you a good spray bottle from the local store. Use this bottle to mix up a batch of DIY De-Icing solution and keep it in your vehicle. I live in a rural area and we keep a small one in every vehicle and also keep a large one at the main door t the garage. I also keep a small bottle with us on trips and in the cargo / travel trailer. Here is a good mix we have found that works great. De-Icing Solution
STEP 1 Fill a spray bottle with two parts rubbing alcohol to one part of water. Add ½ teaspoon of liquid dish detergent for every 2 cups. Shake well. Label it as de-icer spray with your marker.
STEP 2 Generously spray the mixture onto an iced-over windshield. Spritz a bit on your door locks too, to free them of ice. Wait just a minute or so as it softens the ice, or melts it altogether.
STEP 3 For extra-heavy ice on windows, you may need to do a little scraping. If so, grab your scraper to clear away the thicker patches
STEP 4 Turn your windshield wipers on and with a couple good swishes, your windshield should be de-iced, clean, clear, and ready for some driving!
BONUS TIP: To keep your windshield wiper lines clean and clear of ice, mix isopropyl rubbing alcohol in your windshield wiper fluid at a 50:50 ratio. It’ll keep you ice-free when you need to clean your windshield of sandy, salty snow-splatter spat up from vehicles ahead of you on roadways, and help keep streaks to a minimum.
Several years ago when two of my cargo / travel trailer locks iced up, I broke the key off in the locks due to ice inside the locks. What a pain it was to cut off the locks and then go out and look for another set of quality locks while on the road. I decided then to always be on the lookout for better ways to protect my trailer and also prepare for all seasons of weather. I used to put alcohol in a small bottle and kept it in my traveling kit. I used this to squirt inside the locks of my vehicles after they iced up and it worked pretty well to melt the ice, but I went thru a lot of alcohol and it didn’t store very well.
I have since found a great alternative to protect my vehicles and also carry on the road. The night before any potential winter weather go spray all your vehicle exterior locks with Ballistol and it will protect the locks from freezing also protect & lubricate them. Also take Ballistol and spray a rag and wipe down all the rubber weather seals on the doors and truck lid to prevent them from sticking and freezing shut. I do this on all locks, not just vehicles around our property as well as all exterior doors and storage building locks.
It is also time to swap over those Vehicle Emergency Kits from Spring / Summer to Fall / Winter. Make sure everything is up to date, fresh food & water and blankets. We have done several articles on vehicle kits from basic to advance to also be prepared for your pets and make sure you have a kit for your pets. MTM Case_Gard makes some great cases for home and vehicle Emergency Preparedness Kits (See Links Below)
You should have already revisited your home kits and make sure you are prepared for Hurricane Season as well as pending Winter weather. Top off those Genies, make sure you have those propane bottle filled and portable heaters checked now, not later. Schedule a day to go over the Winter home kit with the entire family and get them involved so everyone knows how to use those items. Double check all those items you need to update and make sure your portable heaters are all in good working order. This may also be the perfect time to go over everyone’s vehicles kits as each family member should have the basics but I may want more than my spouse; we do more traveling in the Tahoe than her van so mine may have a few extra items. Take time now to prepare and save time later and this could save your life.
Fortune Favors A Prepared Mind!
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