Windshield washer fluid

[DoobieNewbie]

Hi guys,

I just took home my first car and it is a used Honda Jazz Mark 2 (without the paddle shifters). Upon checking under the hood, I noticed that the window washer fluid reservoir is empty. As I am an absolute noob, I always thought it was onky filled with water. Am I correct in that assumption or is there a specific fluid that I can use. And if so, what concentration should it be. I am based in the UK so any thoughts as where to get it is greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for reading this.

[geoffchats]

Hi...you can buy screen washer fluid, already diluted, at any supermarket or car accessory outlet. You can also buy the concentrated variety...just follow the directions on the bottle for seasonal variations. Good luck...

Sent from my H3113 using Tapatalk

[madasafish]

For winter I buy Halfords Concentrate for down to -20C.. We have seen -15C in the past decade and frozen washers are a pia.. The wind chill factor when driving will make -5C feel like -15C. 
I use the same in summer but if it runs out in Spring, buy a cheaper mix as frost protection not needed. (used for 3 cars so we use a lot ).

[John Ratsey]

Water is better than nothing but washer fluid contains additives to help remove the muck and reduce the risk of smeary windscreens as well as something (not normal anti-freeze) to reduce the risk of freezing. I vary the strength according to the season - pre-diluted goes in the tank in the spring and summer and with autumn approaching I'll be topping up with a stronger mixture so, by the time winter arrives what's in the tank shouldn't easily freeze.

[DoobieNewbie]

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the input. I'll head out later to look at some washers. I might get the pre mixed one to minimize the hassle. 

[Jocko]

I use a neat concentrate in the winter. Come the spring I start adding water to the washer bottle, then in the autumn I start adding neat concentrate again.

[culzean]

There is a difference between winter and summer screenwash that is more than just that winter has antifreeze in it.  When kamikaze insects appear in spring and hurl themselves at the screen the winter screenwash just tends to smear them across the screen and not dissolve them, summer screenwash has different additives to deal with the insect innards and probably tree sap as well.   In the past I have added a glug of meths to washer bottle (winter or summer),  even Fairy liquid in summer is better than plain water - but you really need to use proper winter stuff in the colder weather as trying to get salt and road muck off the screen with frozen washers just does not work (and is probably illegal not to use anti-freeze wash in winter ** ).   I have found that the 'all season' screenwashes are not as good either in winter or summer as the proper seasonal ones,  although places like to sell them as it reduces the amount of stock they have to hold and change over during the year. 

** you can get a nice fine if you drive with an empty screenwash reservoir,  if a traffic plod sees your screen is dirty they may well stop you and check if everything is working as it should,  https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/728841/300-fine-woman-failed-fill-up-screen-wash

Get a decent winter one that protects below -20C (some go down to -30) as the wind chill on washer nozzles can make them colder than ambient. If you get a decent one you can use it to defrost screen as well.

[John A]

Interesting comments about windchill, which this article contradicts:

https://www.quora.com/Do-vehicles-feel-wind-chill
 

[peteo48]

I use a neat concentrate in the winter. Come the spring I start adding water to the washer bottle, then in the autumn I start adding neat concentrate again.

Blimey - so not just me then! The low mileage I do makes this work for me. I top up at the start of each month and don't put much in.

[Jocko]

Interesting comments about windchill, which this article contradicts:

https://www.quora.com/Do-vehicles-feel-wind-chill

Interesting article.

[Jocko]

The low mileage I do makes this work for me. I top up at the start of each month and don't put much in.

As I seldom do high mileages I hardly ever use my washers. If it is raining, I don't need them, and as I am seldom on busy roads, with heavy traffic, my windscreen tends not to get too mucky. I use them more for flies and such, in the summer, and never have any trouble washing them off with what fluid in in my system. I do wash and polish my windscreen, meticulously, summer and winter, so perhaps this makes a difference. In winter, I wash my front and rear screens every couple of days, as well as every time I return from a long journey.

[culzean]

Interesting comments about windchill, which this article contradicts:

https://www.quora.com/Do-vehicles-feel-wind-chill

Screenwash is not just moisture (water), there are volatile things in screenwash that the extra wind will evaporate more quickly and cool the nozzles below ambient - it only needs a few degrees,  also as the chemicals evaporate the screenwash will lose a lot of its anti-freeze properties.  Most antifreezes, including Ethylene glycol (which they do not use in screenwash as it strips paint) are basically alcohol, which evaporates quickly - if you drove around with radiator cap open the glycol would evaporate out and deplete the 'anti-freeze'.  Wind chill was just a handy term to describe the effect of wind in making things that are prone to evaporation leave their home and disappear into the atmosphere more quickly than in still air.. 

An old tip to help in winter was to put a good dose of methylated spirits (ethanol) into screewash reservoir.

[Jocko]

I used to have access to large quantities of methanol, so I would add about 25% to my washer bottle, every top up.

[peteo48]

The low mileage I do makes this work for me. I top up at the start of each month and don't put much in.

As I seldom do high mileages I hardly ever use my washers. If it is raining, I don't need them, and as I am seldom on busy roads, with heavy traffic, my windscreen tends not to get too mucky. I use them more for flies and such, in the summer, and never have any trouble washing them off with what fluid in in my system. I do wash and polish my windscreen, meticulously, summer and winter, so perhaps this makes a difference. In winter, I wash my front and rear screens every couple of days, as well as every time I return from a long journey.

Actually that's one thing I've let slip. If the windscreen is a bit mucky I tend to use the wipers and the screen wash. You then get a build up of crud at the sides and it can't be that good for the wipers or the glass scraping all that grit across the screen even with the lubrication of the screen wash.

Good practice to do the windscreen properly every now and then.

[culzean]

Good practice to do the windscreen properly every now and then.

Clean wiper blades as well,  all sorts of stuff sticks to them.

When I drive my wifes Jazz I always find I need to get some screenwash on the screen and use wipers - I hate driving with a less than very clean screen.  I don't know if she ever uses the 'squirt' function of wiper stalk to put any screenwash on the screen though - I top up reservoir every couple of weeks normally and only need to add a couple of egg-cups of liquid,  and that is probably what I use when I drive.  She does about 5,000 miles a year and hardly uses any screenwash,  amazing....  She has commented in the past about the screenwash smelling funny,  even though it smelled of lemon or whatever when it went in - I have told her that because it stays in reservoir so long it is probably fermenting and if she used more it would stay fresh - like talking to a brick wall though.  Womans logic = oxymoron.