As temperatures drop, we are all starting to notice more frost appear on our cars during the mornings of December, but there's a simple method you can use to prevent your windscreen from freezing. The AA (Automobile Association) has urged drivers to try and park in a certain area to aid the problem during the winter months.
Little you may know, when it comes to avoiding ice and frost, where you park matters, so you may want to listen to the simple piece of advice. There's nothing more tedious or time consuming during the morning than scraping all the ice off your car windscreen and windows, so it's always good to learn hacks to try and swerve the issue completely.
It's not the first piece of advice on the topic to be shared recently either. Just a week ago, motorists were also warned not to warm their engines up during the frosty mornings.
According to the AA website, you can actually stop frost from developing if you plan ahead. You can aid the matter by paying attention to where you park your car.
The website states: "You can stop a windscreen freezing in the first place with a little forward planning. If you have a garage, use it in winter because it'll stop your car from getting iced-up."
However, this isn't the only place you can park, so don't worry if you haven't got a garage. The website adds: "If you don't have a garage, park your car on your driveway as close as possible to your home. The heat from your home can help to stop ice forming."
Previously, the topic actually came up on Reddit when a social media user wrote: "Do you park in your garage? Saves scraping the ice off!
"Most houses near me have garages, but I can't remember the last time I saw anyone driving into or out of them. I'm in a flat, so I use a windscreen cover, which dramatically reduces my need for de-icing."
Since the post was shared, people were quick to admit they go to all sorts of lengths to protect their cars from ice. One person replied: "I keep one car in the garage.
"The other sits on the driveway, but is so close to the house and boiler flue that it kind of gets a pre de-ice courtesy of the central heating and natural weather break."
Another wrote: "I'm weird, I not only store cars in my garage but also rent a space in a friend's garage where I store a car."
Obviously, parking your car in a garage will help to prevent frost and ice developing, as it protects the vehicle from the elements, especially moisture in the air. By shielding the car, a garage helps to stop condensation from forming on the windows and other surfaces, which leads to causing frost.
However, little you may know, parking closer to your home can also help to prevent the problem too. This is because the house offers shelter and emits a small amount of radiant heat that helps keep the nearby area slightly warmer than an open space.
As well as acting as a barrier against the wind, buildings actually radiate some heat outwards, which the side of the car nearest to the wall can absorb. This aids in preventing its surface temperature from dropping as low as the freezing point of water.
On clear nights, objects also radiate heat directly into the super cold upper atmosphere. A solid structure such as a house or even a tree can partially block this process, which will help the vehicle to retain more heat.
If it's possible, you should also park your car in a way so the windscreen faces east. The rising sun in the morning should help to naturally melt the frost, which can lead to speeding up de-icing or eliminating the task completely.
However, if this isn't possible, you could also use a screen cover to protect your windscreen too. A lot of people use this method if all else fails.
