Here’s how Nasa would defog a windshield!
If you own a car, then you are certainly are familiar with cold-weather issues. One of the most significant is arguably the fogged-up windshield. Basically, the “fog” on the windows and windshield is nothing but moisture, so it’s kinda easy to fix the issue — once you know how!
Some cars have a single button that can get rid of the fog. However, many models have several buttons, and it’s difficult to determine the optimal combination for quick defogging. Some argue you should turn the heat up right away. Others suggest you should draw outside air so the humidity level drops faster. Everybody seems to have it’s own special trick. That being said, Mark Rober, a former NASA Engineer, is here to explain the four easy steps to optimally defog your vehicle’s windshield twice as fast as usual.
After testing out all different combinations under a consistent environment, he found the right combination of settings.
Step 1. Turn on the heater on full-blast
The first step is to turn on the heater of your car on full-blast. This is because hot air can absorb more moisture than cold air.
Step 2. Turn the AC on
By turning on the AC, the system will pull the moisture out from the air coming out of the vents.
Step 3. Turn off inside air circulation
Cold air from outside doesn’t hold much moisture. Once it enters the car, it will be heated up, thus increasing its absorption capacity.
Step 4. Slightly open the windows of your car
Cracking open the windows even for a few seconds helps by exchanging the humid cabin air with dry outside air.
That’s it! Kinda disappointing right? Yeah, I also assumed there might have been an even better way of doing this. But apparently, it’s all about bringing the humidity level inside the car as low as possible and then shoot hot and dry air into the windshield.
That being said, here’s a real trick. If you really want to prevent fog from building up inside your windshield, you can always just buy an anti-fog window treatment. And if you really are on a budget, you can even just rub the inside of your windows with shaving cream and wipe it off. It will provides similar results as the anti-fog and will also save you some money.
Source: Mark Rober YouTube Channel
