Car Heater causing window fogging

steve666 · October 29, 2004 10:35PM

Anyone know why a windshield would start fogging up when using the heater in a car? It just started happening on my mothers car a year ago. She also says that there is kind of a fishy smell too.

Any ideas?

I tried using a window cleaner that is supposed to prevent fogging but it didnt work.

applenut · October 29, 2004 10:40PM

um...ever hear of the defroster? use it

buonrotto · October 29, 2004 10:43PM

Isn't it just simple condensation? If one side of the windshield is a lot colder than the other, you'll get condensation -- water comes out of the air and collects on the surface. If you're ever with a girl in the car at night, you'll see this phenomenon.

Use the defroster to blow the same temperature air on both sides of the windshield so it doesn't happen (as much).

As for the fishy smell -- maybe some sort of oil issue?!

talksense101 · October 30, 2004 12:32AM

clean the windshield interiors with a cleaning agent.

airsluf · October 30, 2004 12:56AM

Kickaha and Amorph couldn't moderate themselves out of a paper bag. Abdicate responsibility and succumb to idiocy. Two years of letting a member make personal attacks against others, then stepping aside when someone won't put up with it. Not only that but go ahead and shut down my posting priviledges but not the one making the attacks. Not even the common decency to abide by their warning (afer three days of absorbing personal attacks with no mods in sight), just shut my posting down and then say it might happen later if a certian line is crossed. Bullshit flag is flying, I won't abide by lying and coddling of liars who go off-site, create accounts differing in a single letter from my handle with the express purpose to decieve and then claim here that I did it. Everyone be warned, kim kap sol is a lying, deceitful poster.

Now I guess they should have banned me rather than just shut off posting priviledges, because kickaha and Amorph definitely aren't going to like being called to task when they thought they had it all ignored *cough* *cough* I mean under control. Just a couple o' tools.

Don't worry, as soon as my work resetting my posts is done I'll disappear forever.

airsluf · October 30, 2004 12:57AM

Kickaha and Amorph couldn't moderate themselves out of a paper bag. Abdicate responsibility and succumb to idiocy. Two years of letting a member make personal attacks against others, then stepping aside when someone won't put up with it. Not only that but go ahead and shut down my posting priviledges but not the one making the attacks. Not even the common decency to abide by their warning (afer three days of absorbing personal attacks with no mods in sight), just shut my posting down and then say it might happen later if a certian line is crossed. Bullshit flag is flying, I won't abide by lying and coddling of liars who go off-site, create accounts differing in a single letter from my handle with the express purpose to decieve and then claim here that I did it. Everyone be warned, kim kap sol is a lying, deceitful poster.

Now I guess they should have banned me rather than just shut off posting priviledges, because kickaha and Amorph definitely aren't going to like being called to task when they thought they had it all ignored *cough* *cough* I mean under control. Just a couple o' tools.

Don't worry, as soon as my work resetting my posts is done I'll disappear forever.

ra · October 30, 2004 1:12AM

Switching the air source to outside air should help.

scott · October 30, 2004 8:04AM

Turn the air conditioner on when defogging.

roff · October 30, 2004 1:49PM

I work in the radiator industry. You probably have a leak in the heater core.

To make sure

1. Is there an odor of coolant from the vent.

2. There may be coolant leaking on either the floor mats, or there may be a drain on the engine side of the firewall.

3. A rad shop has equipment to pressurise your coolant system. If there is a leak anywhere this will find it.

Good Luck

roff · October 30, 2004 1:52PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Scott

Turn the air conditioner on when defogging.

Most AC systems run the compresser during defrost independent of the outside air temperature. This is done to dry the air to make the defrost operation more efficent.

steve666 · October 30, 2004 3:55PM

Quote:

Originally posted by AirSluf

Clean out and dry the defroster ducting. It has some stale funky water in it, so when you turn on the defroster you send hot extra-humid air straight onto a cold windscreen and it condenses instantly and won't go away until you physically heat the glass enough to dry it. You also need to find and seal the leak so the water won't get back in.

I have a similar problem in my old 911 whenever I go thru a deep enough puddle. But that's because of where the heater air intake is. It gets hot enough to dry out the ducts really fast, but it still leaves a couple minutes before the windscreen clears up.

I will try this, thanks

steve666 · October 30, 2004 3:56PM

Quote:

Originally posted by applenut

um...ever hear of the defroster? use it

I believe the correct response to this is.............duh

She is blowing the defroster on high, this only started happening last year.

Weather is cold outside, she turns on the heater and the windshield fogs like crazy. I can see a little fogging, but the heater is plenty hot and there shouldnt be that much fogging.

steve666 · October 30, 2004 3:59PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Ra

Switching the air source to outside air should help.

That was my first suggestion to her. Would you believe this car has no way to change this? Its a 1987 Chevy Celebrity and there is no fresh air/recirc switch.

steve666 · October 30, 2004 4:01PM

Quote:

Originally posted by ROFF

I work in the radiator industry. You probably have a leak in the heater core.

To make sure

1. Is there an odor of coolant from the vent.

2. There may be coolant leaking on either the floor mats, or there may be a drain on the engine side of the firewall.

3. A rad shop has equipment to pressurise your coolant system. If there is a leak anywhere this will find it.

Good Luck

I believe thats what her mechanic suggested to her, but he wasnt sure and she didnt want to pump too much money into such an old car unless this was a sure fix. I will have her go for a second opinion. Thanks

applenut · October 30, 2004 6:20PM

Quote:

Originally posted by steve666

I believe the correct response to this is.............duh

She is blowing the defroster on high, this only started happening last year.

Weather is cold outside, she turns on the heater and the windshield fogs like crazy. I can see a little fogging, but the heater is plenty hot and there shouldnt be that much fogging.

well you said when you put the heater on. not the defroster. sometimes solutions are pretty simple.

duh.

steve666 · October 30, 2004 6:21PM

Quote:

Originally posted by applenut

well you said when you put the heater on. not the defroster. sometimes solutions are pretty simple.

duh.

OKOK, dont get your panties in a bunch

applenut · October 30, 2004 7:03PM

Quote:

Originally posted by steve666

OKOK, dont get your panties in a bunch

plus, you're foreign.... you have been confused about stranger/more obvious things in america

steve666 · October 30, 2004 8:17PM

Quote:

Originally posted by applenut

plus, you're foreign.... you have been confused about stranger/more obvious things in america

foreign? where do you think Im from?

dave k. · October 30, 2004 8:28PM

Quote:

Originally posted by steve666

Anyone know why a windshield would start fogging up when using the heater in a car? It just started happening on my mothers car a year ago. She also says that there is kind of a fishy smell too.

Any ideas?

I tried using a window cleaner that is supposed to prevent fogging but it didnt work.

Have you mechanic look at your heater-core. I had the exact same problem with my old Bronco II. The heater-core is underneath your dashboard and would be causing this problem. The fogging isn't air, its actually antifreeze, thus explaining your weird smell. My repair bill was around $100. Good luck.

Dave

steve666 · October 30, 2004 8:30PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Dave K.

Have you mechanic look at your heater-core. I had the exact same problem with my old Bronco II. The heater-core is underneath your dashboard and would be causing this problem. The fogging isn't air, its actually antifreeze, thus explaining your weird smell. My repair bill was around $100. Good luck.

Dave

Dave, if the repair comes out to only $100 my mother will be ecstatic!

applenut · October 30, 2004 8:38PM

Quote:

Originally posted by steve666

foreign? where do you think Im from?

nowhere apparently

Car Heater causing window fogging

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