# Idiot's Guide To Cleaning Snow Off Your Car **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 9, 2003, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909 "2003-12-09T13:49:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![SeekingTruth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@SeekingTruth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeekingTruth)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2003, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/61 "2003-12-10T14:39:30Z")
eli\_the\_fantatic. The only time you don’t ever hit the gas is in a rear-wheel drive car. On front-wheel drive, steer into the skid and normally you want to gently hit the gas to help the tire tread gain traction and help pull you out of the skid. But never gun it! ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2003, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/62 "2003-12-10T14:46:58Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by lorene \* > \*\*I realize I don’t know you at all, **Homebrew** , but as soon as I read this, I muttered to myself, "God, I hate that f_cker." No offense, of course, I just have stiff and sore…well, _everything_ from shoveling.\*\* I feel as if I’m being punished today for the remarks earlier in this thread. Today it is a bone chilling 36 F with a windchill of \***25[/i**!! That’s too damned cold! ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2003, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/63 "2003-12-10T14:48:17Z")
See! It’s so cold one of my ]s froze and broke when I tried to put it in place. ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2003, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/64 "2003-12-10T15:28:43Z")
[Nelson] HA ha! [/Nelson] Here I am, sitting some 800 or so miles north of you, and it’s actually warmer here. Instant karma! ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2003, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/65 "2003-12-10T15:31:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by featherlou \* > Okay, the word on snow brushes from the expert (Canadians are experts in all things cold and snowy - that’s just the way it is. Sorry, all you Americans in Northern states, but you just aren’t Canadian.) Buy the cheap $1.99 ones at Canadian Tire/Walmart. Since you buy one nearly every year, don’t bother with anything expensive or fancy - scraper at one end, brush at the other. That way, when you break it whacking your car when you are nearly crying with frustration at trying to get the layer of ice off, or leave it on top of the car when you drive away and lose it, it doesn’t cost much to replace it. Central Colorado Rockies resident here. I consider myself a bit of an expert on snow as well. I’m afraid I have to disagree. Buy the best damn snow brush/scraper you can find. Make sure its made of HEAVY plastic, with a good stiff brush on one end (side really) and a strong scraper about 3" wide on the other. IMHO, those cheap wooden/plastic ones are pretty worthless. You get what you pay for. ---
**Author:** ![chaoticbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@chaoticbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chaoticbear)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2003, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/66 "2003-12-10T18:02:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by enipla \* > **with a good stiff brush on one end (side really) and a strong scraper about 3" wide on the other. IMHO** Hmm, I only live in Arkansas and I find my scraper like this handy. Incorporates the scraper/ridges idea linked to and the scraper/brush one too. Wal-mart all the way. ---
**Author:** ![ThatDuckIsEvil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@ThatDuckIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThatDuckIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2003, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/67 "2003-12-10T21:36:09Z")
THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!! Amen, Bravo, Hear Hear, and all those other agreeable phrases Everyone I know, including my own FATHER, thinks I’m a complete ninny for brushing/scraping every inch of snow and ice from my vehicle before departing. I turn the car on, crank the heat and rear window defrost, then I begin my brushing. I have the Ultra Titanium Snow brush with squeegee and 3 inch scraper ($6 at Wally World) This is my third winter with it, it’s hardy as ever. By the time every exterior surface is clear of snow, I can hop in my nice warm ready-to-go Civic and be on my merry way. Road Rage doesnt even come close to the emotion I feel when I see some dumbass with 6 inches of snow on the hood, trunk and top of his car. Exactly how LAZY can one be? Yay. It’s so nice to know I really am normal. If only slightly. ---
**Author:** ![Will\_Repair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a698b9/32.png) [@Will\_Repair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Will_Repair)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2003, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/68 "2003-12-10T22:11:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by slu \* > **How in the hell does one drive without being able to see out the back window** By driving forwards. “The First Rule of Italian Driving is ‘What’s behind you is not important.’” _Gumball Rally_ ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Serpentine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3be4f8/32.png) [@Silver\_Serpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Serpentine)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2003, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/69 "2003-12-11T05:03:53Z")
Y’know what I like in the winter? Anti-lock Breaks and Traction Control. Hell. Yeah. I’ve never lost control of my car. Drove in Tx for 3 years. The funniest thing I ever heard of from my mom (I avoided the highways when it iced over), was someone trying to go up a spaghetti bridge thing (anyone in Austin’ll know what I’m talking about - I-35 where 183, 222, etc all overlap), and sliding RIGHT BACK DOWN. HA! Goofy. Anyway, I’m moving back to Tx once I can afford to. I hate driving in snow. I’m one of those people who trns my car of and brushes off all the snow in my car, just to make sure no one hates me. Hehe. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Serpentine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3be4f8/32.png) [@Silver\_Serpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Serpentine)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2003, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/70 "2003-12-11T05:05:19Z")
\*turns my car on. Damnit. ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2003, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/71 "2003-12-12T07:58:07Z")
Well, Here in Arkansas, the N/W corner, ( AR ) We get a little snow, a little ice , a little frost and lots of idjits. If it is really going to be where I need big wheels and the forecast says that the falling stuff will be sticky, I set my little thermostat heater in the Blazer and plug it and the oil pan heater to the extension cord. If not that, I put it in the other car and when ever I feel like going, I go out and get in my totally clean and warm car / truck and drive away. No frozen locks, wipers, windows, fingers or standing out in the cold with brushes and chippers and brooms and letting the car run for 20 minutes and stuff and such. With the thermostat on the little heater, it comes out about like running a 300 watt bulb all night if the wind is really blowing and it is below 20. I plug it in about midnight before going to bed and I’m set. I have run 2 X 100 foot cords when in apartments to also do this, and with heavy duty cords, it works good. Not really pulling that much juice. YMMV (oh, it does have an upset switch on it and I set it on a fire proof plate so that if it does go over, nada will burn if the switch does not cut it off. ) ---
**Author:** ![LadyMack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4491bb/32.png) [@LadyMack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LadyMack)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2003, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/72 "2003-12-12T08:28:39Z")
Gosh, it’s good to have **GusNSpot** for a spouse. He’s even been known to help me to the car, or clear the walk, so I don’t bust my a@@. 😃 I’ve lived here all my life, and I kid you not, I was probably 30 years old before I knew that people in northern climates _plugged in their car_. What?? HOW do you plug one in? Where? They run on gas, don’t they? My uncle from Alaska finally explained to me about outlets at stores, etc. My least favorite winter drivers here, are the Bubbas who use their ten foot tall monster trucks to “Go out and see whut it looks like. Mebbe we’ll find some people in the ditch…” Yeah, they can be helpful. When they aren’t spinning **BIG** rocks back at your windshield on the way out of the ditch. Or when they aren’t driving in the middle of the road, so you have to hit the ditch. Or when they actually knock off the huge chunks of mud and ice on their fenders, sometime before the Spring thaw, or before the chunks bounce back into the car behind them… ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2003, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/73 "2003-12-12T14:44:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by LadyDragon \* > \*\*\I’ve lived here all my life, and I kid you not, I was probably 30 years old before I knew that people in northern climates _plugged in their car_. > > What?? HOW do you plug one in? Where? They run on gas, don’t they? My uncle from Alaska finally explained to me about outlets at stores, etc. > > \\*\* Was your uncle kinda, you know, pulling your leg? Cause we don’t actually have outlets at stores - we plug in at home, and often at work (but not always), but while out shopping, you’re pretty much on your own. Unless the parking lots in malls in Alaska are a hell of a lot posher than the ones here in Calgary. (Just for the record, there are a lot of Canadians who are also unfamiliar with the “plugging your block heater in so the car starts in the morning” procedure - Southern Ontarians and Vancouverites come to mind. I guess I have to retract my earlier statement about all Canadians being experts on cold and snow.) ---
**Author:** ![SeekingTruth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@SeekingTruth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeekingTruth)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2003, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/74 "2003-12-12T15:04:56Z")
As mentioned before, I live in North Dakota. Block heaters are standard here unless you come from a warmer clime to attend UND. In fact, a guy from my city invented the head-bolt heater when my mom was a kid. What it does is this. A circular block-plug is knocked out of the engine block, into which is inserted a heat coil, which is in the cirulation system of the anti-freeze. You plug it in, and the coil keeps the anti-freeze warm, making for easier starting, and much less stress on the engine. Not germaine to the OP, but as long as it’s brought up already… ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2003, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/75 "2003-12-12T15:52:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AnimistDragon \* > \*\*Y’know what I like in the winter? > > Anti-lock Breaks and Traction Control. > > Hell. Yeah. > \*\* Y’know what I like? Heated seats. Ohh, yeah … ---
**Author:** ![lilbtagna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4491bb/32.png) [@lilbtagna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lilbtagna)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2003, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/76 "2003-12-12T16:35:06Z")
Ah, heated seats are just about the best thing on my car right now. My booty stays all warm and toasty. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2003, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/77 "2003-12-12T22:32:48Z")
If I want heated seats, I have to crap in my pants. Kind of yucky when it cools off. ---
**Author:** ![Nightsong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nightsong/32/3083_2.png) [@Nightsong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightsong)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2003, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909/78 "2003-12-13T01:04:20Z")
And, to contiune on with **SeekingTruth** ’s comment about block heaters and North Dakota: some hotels (not all) have places for guests to plug in their block heaters, and the married student housing at UND has 'em as well. (Don’t know about the other parking areas there though.) In a pinch, cheap liquor can be used to help de-ice stubborn windshields. Or you could always pee on it. 😃 (back to the OP) Preach it! And it also goes for those who’s windshield is so fogged over, it can’t be seen out of. (Except for an itty bitty spot that was obviously cleared by the side of someone’s hand.) Back windows I can understand, not all cars have rear defoggers, but the windshield? How are these idiots driving: telepathy? * * * \<\< Computer programmers know how to use their hardware. \>\> [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/idiots-guide-to-cleaning-snow-off-your-car/217909.md?page=3)