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Isopropyl Alcohol. (IPA)

9.5K views 10 replies 10 participants last post by  Andy from Sandy  
#1 ·
OK someone has suggested to me that adding Isopropyl Alcohol to my washer bottle is better than any windscreen cleaner and obviously doesn't freeze.

My only concern is I also have headlight washers and using the washers with the lights on causes it to overspray all over my bonnet.

Anyone have any opinions on this?
 
#2 ·
I would advise against it on the basis that IPA will degrade/strip any protection on your paint and other surfaces that the screenwash will come into contact with.

I would recommend keeping a bottle of water in the car for the windscreen on those sub zero mornings if you havn't applied a windscreen coating already.
 
#4 ·
OK someone has suggested to me that adding Isopropyl Alcohol to my washer bottle is better than any windscreen cleaner and obviously doesn't freeze.

My only concern is I also have headlight washers and using the washers with the lights on causes it to overspray all over my bonnet.

Anyone have any opinions on this?
Get some of the blue scuff Lidl is selling for the winter ahead. I dilute it to half of what they say and it works fine as we don't have sub -10C winters here in Essex. It has a touch of antifreeze in it. Also alcohol has a softening effect on clear coat if left for long periods, can you guarantee all of the liquid will evaporate in the time it takes to clean your windshield and you won't get overspray?
 
#9 ·
I use 20% conc of IPA in mine not had it freeze on me yet
Wow! That is overkill, and enough to soften your paint! IPA won't strip all waxes
and sealants, but I have soft enough paint as it is! I simply use the Sonax
screen wash, diluted down to 100:1 and I think that's too strong. Mind you, I
have a nano coating and a very low raked screen, so it's only when a lorry
coming the other way does a muck spray that I need to wash the screen.

All you need to know about IPA

With Season's Greetings,
Steve
 
#6 · (Edited)
Has any one actually looked at what screen wash contains?

I think a distilled water/ IPA mix looks rather gentle compared to the screen wash chemical makeup as shown on the COSH sheet for a major screen wash manufacturer that i have copied in below...

Hazardous ingredients:
ETHANOL 10-30%
EINECS: 200-578-6 CAS: 64-17-5
[F] R11
•
PROPAN-2-OL 1-10%
EINECS: 200-661-7 CAS: 67-63-0
[F] R11; [Xi] R36; [-] R67
•
SODIUM ALKYL C10-16, ETHER SULPHATE 1-10%
[Xi] R36/38
And just a little more info on each of the ingredients...

ETHANOL 10-30%
Ethanol is a grain alcohol that can be blended with gasoline and used in motor vehicle fuels. Many gasoline stations provide a blended fuel, which typically is 10 percent ethanol and 90 percent gasoline.

PROPAN-2-OL 1-10% (IPA)
We should all know this one already!

SODIUM ALKYL C10-16, ETHER SULPHATE 1-10%
Sodium laureth sulfate is often used in laundry and hand dishwashing detergents. In addition, it can be found in cleansers, carpet cleaners, toilet cleaning products, stain & odor removers, all-purpose cleaners, etc.

.
 
#8 ·
Whatever you will put into the water to clean your water (with the option of protecting your window/water from freezing) will strip your wax in most of the cases. As already said: safety and visibility is the very first issue in this matter.

Applying a nanocoating on your windscreen might help against all sort of dirt (wiping the window might even get rid of all the ice?).