Monsoon Car Care: How To Use A Defogger To Demist Your Car's Windshield

Driving in the monsoon can be a challenge, especially from a visibility standpoint. The wet roads need a lot more attention to navigate through while the rain can ensure there is zero visibility at times. This is further hampered by a fogged-up windshield due to the change in the temperature levels outside and inside the cabin. This obstructs your vision and it is dangerous to drive without proper visibility. Thankfully, manufacturers already have a solution in place in the form of a defogger. The feature is a part of all new and old cars but not every driver may know about it. Don't worry though, here's how you need to use the defogger correctly to demist your car's windshield.

Premium cars also have a ‘Max’ defogger option to quickly demist the windshield

1. Look for the defogger button

Once your car's windshield begins to form mist, it's time to look for a button that shows three squiggly arrows.

2. Turn on the air conditioning system

Switch on the air conditioning unit in the car in order to remove moisture from the air. Ideally, keeping the HVAC unit turned on helps the car regulate the cabin temperature with ease preventing fogging in the first place. Do remember, the lesser the moisture, the lesser the chance of fogging.  

Set the HVAC temperature to the lowest setting for faster results

3. Set the AC temperature

In case the outside temperature is cold, you will have to lower the AC temperature to match the same. Alternately, if the outside temperature is too low, you will have to switch to the heater to match the outside temperature levels. Do remember, balance is the key here that keeps the fog away.

4. Demist the windshield at the press of a button

Press the defogger button to activate the demist function with the air blowing towards the windshield. The process takes about a minute or two to completely clear the mist. In more premium cars, you will find two defogger buttons with the second reading 'Max,'  which essentially fastens the process. Don't forget to defog the rear windshield of the car. Newer cars have a dedicated button to defog the same. 

Once the windshield is clear, turn off the defogger and revert to your regular HVAC temperature

5. Turn off the defogger

Once your car's windshield is clear of the mist, you need to turn off the defogger button and revert to the general AC settings.

How to demist your car's windshield when the AC is not working?

While air conditioning is a basic feature in today's cars, there might be chances of the same not working or broken in older cars. The plausibility is more common than you think and it will leave you stranded if you cannot demist your windshield without the AC working.

Don't worry, demisting your windshield can still happen with the HVAC unit. All you need to do is roll down the windows. The idea is to even let the warm and moist air escape the cabin. However, rolling down the windows is a problem when it's raining heavily. If the air conditioning repair is turning out to be expensive, a more affordable fix would be to get window deflectors instead. They cost under Rs. 1,000 and are easily available at auto accessories shops or online.