Best washer fluid for insect splats?

I dont know of any that are really effective. Warm water with a decent car wash soap will get it, if you give it time to soak and are patient.

I have always suspected that an enzyme based compound might make it go a little quicker, but havent experimented with it.

Dried bugs are somewhat like dried nasal mucous. Warm water and time will do it.

snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com wrote in news:1176676505.439279.304780 @q75g2000hsh.googlegroups.com:

Insects leave a gummy residue. You need to dissolve that residue before the bugs will wash off easily.

Soak some paper towels in a mix of dish detergent and water. Lay them flat over top of the bugs, then wait an hour or so. Remove and attempt to wash the bugs off. If they're still stubbornly stuck, give it another hour.

This should take care of most of the gunk.

If you're speaking of the windshield washer fluid in the car, I think I've seen some auto stores carry a formula made for cleaning bugs. I've never tried it but it's worth checking out.

-Dave

I have tried it... Works similarly to water ;>)

yes, there's gas stations along your route, and they all have the solution: windshield wash/wipe squeegees. if you look at the foam pad on those things, it's covered in a white net. /that/ is something like a ballistic nylon which is a very effective scraper. simply rub, and the goop disappears.

Best thing to do is clean the windshield with Bon-Ami or similar product, then apply Rain-X (the clear watery stuff, not the windshield washer fluid, which is pink). Rain-X is basically a glass wax; it fills in the microscopic pores in the glass. This is why the water just beads up & rolls off. It also prevents bugs from sticking. You will not end up with a 100% bug-free windshield, just fewer of them, and those that do stick will come off easier. Rain-X also makes it easier to scrape ice off when that time gets here. Tip - don't use it on clear plastic headlights; they will no longer be crystal clear. It's for glass only.

The down-side with Rain-X is that it needs to be reapplied every few months. It doesn't do away with the need for wipers. Maybe the Rain-X washer fluid, used after the glass is treated with the regular Rain-X, is the way to go.

wrote in news:tSyUh.16963$ snipped-for-privacy@newssvr12.news.prodigy.net:

Bugwash is shit. A total waste of money.

Even worse, it's so low in alcohol that it'll freeze up the first time temps get below 30, so you can't use it past early fall.

Cola is extremely useful for the hand scrub, usually executed in the driveway. I've never found an in-car washer fluid that washes well, so I tend to focus on the ice melting abilities in the winter and run whatever's cheap in the summer.

I have often wondered what is in that windshield cleaner fluid at the gas stations.If you have space under the hood in front of the radiator,you can make a wood frame and attatch some wire window screen (or fabric/plastic window screen) to the frame and put that in front of the radiator.It will catch the bugs before they hit the radiator.I made one for my 1978 Dodge van and my 1971 Chevrolet van,it works great. cuhulin

Using your cars windshield washer & windshield wipers is NOT the way to remove dried bug splatter from a windshield. It only will work on fresh hits and small insects, but not large splatters or something that's been dried up for three hours. Your wiper blades will ride right over the splatter and smear it.

Purple Power (brand) Bug Wash & Wax is available (in a see thru green bottle) in a trigger spray bottle and can be used on the grille, hood, bumper & glass and works well when you use one of those net wrapped yellow Bug Sponges.

Keep in mind you have to rinse the stuff of with water. I carry a gallon of water in the trunk in the summer.

I've use Bug Wash since 2005 and it has worked fine on long road trips. It works good combined with the squeegee at the gas stations. But remember alot of gas stations fill their windshield washer containers with straight water in the summer to save $$$ on not having to use washer fluid. And using just straight water doesn't always work the first time, you got to go over the winshield twice, or three times.

I didn't notice much difference in how the bugs stuck to the windshield when I had applied Rain -X to the glass.

Really stubborn bug residue can also be removed from the windshield using your ice scraper or a razor blade.

good luck,

harryface