Freezing washer jets?

Windex also has detergents in it, which will harden rubber and plastic and cause them to crack. It also has glycol in it, which can kill pets and wild animals if they lick it. It a terrible idea to use windex as something that drains onto the streets.

 

My 2nd Gen freezes every winter to remind me to switch pisses me off everytime because I forget and then freezes the one time I need it. Hmm maybe I should buy some winter today lol

 

Yep, replaced a few wiper fluid pumps after they froze and cracked open in my younger days..
These days I run -40c fluid year round.

 

wind chill factor only affects live subjects, has no factor in machinery

 

only relayed 1st person experience this latitude

these parts ( state capital ) use salt like bonneville

the anti freeze specifics leave a smear on windshield..............cant see thru

no less a few drops of dawn im off down the road

mid atlantic we seldom get blizzards...............have been gettin progressively warmer ( plz NO arguement or debate )

snow today......gone tomorrow

freeze tonite................sunny afternoon

‘ HOPPES ‘ gun ‘dry lube ‘ works great on door locks/ignition

 

I'm curious if you used the 4wd on either leg of the trip to dance practice?

My vote is also to replace your washer fluid with a winter type.

 

I haven’t swapped the fluid out yet but this morning I see that it’s frozen in the reservoir so that’s clearly it. Funny that it never occurred to me that there were summer and winter formulas of washer fluid. I’ll swap out when I get out in the world today.

Yep, I used it on the way home when there was snow on the road.

 

I learned the hard way as well when I used to live in upstate NY. I then got lazy and would just use the winter type all year long.

 

Knowing Toyota they just use colored water in the juice box at the factory .

 

It is, more or less, a measure of how fast something cools. It is layman’s term for convective cooling. And they are a factor in machinery. Radiators have cooling fans due to this. Jets are exposed to the wind wen you drive, so the fluid inside the jets (and tubes leading to the jets just under the hood) will freeze faster than the fluid inside the reservoir due to wind chill effect (aka convective cooling).

 

Prestone makes a booster additive that will help bring down the freezing point of what you have in there - just need to thaw it enough to mix & circulate.

 

Whatever you do never stick anything hard/sharp into the washer jet nozzle (holes). The water does not come straight out they go thru these channels that are not straight and the nozzle opening has a specific shape and can be damaged if you stick something in the nozzle. Trust me I know.

 

I’ve learned this lesson the hard way too... dealer topped off with obviously not winter stuff and never gave it a thought.
Now, I even mix the -40 stuff 50/50 with methyl hydrate. It don’t ever freeze, melts frost off with ease and helps keeps the wipers from icing up. I dunno if isypropal would be better to use or not..... I’m sure one hardens plastic stuff up and the other causes other issues..

 

I’d never heard of summer washer fluid until reading this thread. I’ve never had my washers freeze either. Sometimes they get caked in snow, but never have they gotten clogged by frozen washer fluid. I’m pretty sure that stuff is good to -40F or thereabouts. Must be a warm state thing?

 

It warmed up a little today, a balmy 16 degrees or so, and the washers were working again. I topped off the reservoir with some fluid rated to -27. I’m just relieved that it wasn’t some design flaw. Now I know that summer formula washer fluid exists. Why they’d put it in vehicles sold in cold climates is a mystery.

 

https://sciencing.com/wind-chill-affect-objects-like-metal-10056448.html

 

The dealer I worked for bought washer fluid in bulk and stored it in a large tank. The pump pulled from the bottom. Alcohol is less dense than water so when the tanks were and we filled the little jugs to refill customers cars, the alcohol content would be less. Thus allowing it it freeze faster.

Now that I no longer work there and get free fluid, I buy the -40 stuff since I live in snow belt and get cold temps. The taco squirts do suck compared to most cars and the snow build up usually blocks the squirters too. My next truck I might spend the money and add one of those heated kits.