00:00Onions, toothpaste, potato juice, what do all these things have in common?
00:05Well, these are all weird and interesting ways you can apparently de-ice your car.
00:11More well-known methods include pouring boiling water on the screen or using a card to scrape off the ice.
00:17But these are also myths that can in fact damage your windows.
00:21So to find out the best and most efficient way to de-ice your car, I spoke to the AA.
00:27We are all about basically back to the basics, not trying all these myths that are out on social media, things like that.
00:34We've seen people using hot water in bags, boiling water over the windscreens, everything like that.
00:40No, just your standard ice scraper, start your vehicle, get your heater fan on, get it de-misted that way is the safest and best way to do it.
00:50The biggest worry, if you're using all these myths to try and clear your windscreen, you're putting all sorts of potatoes all over it, toothpaste, stuff like that.
01:00You are going to smear it, you are going to put your greases over it, juices over it.
01:04So when you do come to use your windscreen wiper, it's just going to smear whatever you're trying to clear.
01:09It's just going to be like an oily substance.
01:11Another thing that a lot of us like to do is leave our engine running with the hot air on while we go to the front and scrape the windows.
01:18But if you're on a public road and you leave your engine running, this is actually illegal.
01:23So what are we meant to do?
01:24Go out to your car, get it started.
01:27Firstly, make sure you've got plenty of petrol and diesel or if you've got an electric car, make sure you've got plenty of range for your journey.
01:32Get the engine started or turn your EV car on, get the heaters on, start the de-misting process.
01:39And then what you can do or what we're asking drivers to do is not shut the door because we don't want keys getting locked in the vehicle.
01:46And to not walk away from the vehicle either because leaving a vehicle running, it can be illegal to do that.
01:51So do these, go do your other checks while you're waiting for your car to de-mist.
01:56They were saying stick to the basics, a little ice scraper, wear gloves if you need to because obviously we understand it is cold while you're doing it.
02:04But yeah, definitely don't be trying these myths out.
02:07What we're advising drivers to do is obviously, you know, no one predicts a breakdown, no one expects a breakdown,
02:13but just be best prepared for if the worst was to happen.
02:16So make sure your vehicle's packed correctly.
02:18So to conclude, the safest and most efficient way to defrost your car is by keeping it simple.
02:24Using a de-icer spray, putting the air on with the engine running, gently scraping off any snow or excess ice
02:31and doing some car checks while waiting on the windows to clear.
02:34So good luck out there.
02:36Kristen Hawthorne for CAM TV in Gillingham.
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