Problems with freezing....

[Clay]

When I put on my All-Pro winch bumper I realized that the pump and fluid reservoir for the windshield washer hangs down under the bumper and is all exposed to the elements. I didn't really think that much of it untill this trip to Colorado and now the thing is so frozen it will take a month to defrost. Has anyone else had this problem, and how did you fix it?

Also another problem I'm having is snow blowing up into the engine compartment. Is this a concern?

 

[flyingwil]

I have seen people convert their washer reservoirs to a custom stainless steel units, and use the fluid designed not to freeze after they had similar issues after their reservoir cracked due to the freeze.

As for snow in the engine bay I would not be to concerned unless you have done the deck-plate mod. (Keep it closed if you have done it.) If it were me, I'd mount something to prevent the snow from blowing in the engine bay that could later be removed in the spring.

 

[Clay]

Forgot to mention, it's Peak washer fluid good to -20 degrees and it's frozen solid :jump:

I'm going to take a look at just moving the whole thing up into the engine compartment tomorrow, but working in the dark at 5 degrees and horizontal snow doesnt seem all that appealing right now.

 

[IggyB]

I use windshield washer fluid good to -45 °C. If it freezes, I have bigger problems :coffeedrink:

 

[mountainpete]

I use windshield washer fluid good to -45 °C. If it freezes, I have bigger problems :coffeedrink:

I do the same as Iggy... -45C stuff has never frozen on me.

 

[Lost Canadian]

X3. I use rain-x plus de-icer washer fluid, works great and has never frozen on me.

 

[Clay]

I think that the problem is more that it's exposed on the front of the truck.

Using this wind chill calculator here If I am going 80 mph and it is 5 degrees outside then it's -27 degrees hitting that washer fluid. I can see why it's frozen now.

I went over to the truck stop in the town we are stuck at and all they had was stuff good down to -20 as well.

I'm going to tear it apart later today, so i'll let you know what I find out about moving it I guess.

 

[Lost Canadian]

Wind chill only applies to humans, it does not have any effect on inanimate objects. Wind chill is a measure of how fast the heat that is produced by and surrounds our bodies is removed. When the heat we give off is removed by wind it feels colder then it really is. That bubble of heat we produce in effect keeps the temp near our bodies warmer, remove that and we feel colder. So if I go outside and it's minus 10 with no wind it will feel like minus 10. If it's minus 10 and windy it may feel like its minus 20 because that bubble of heat has been removed, but it's not, it's still only minus 10. That's wind chill, the actual temp does not change only our perception of it does.

 

[Clay]

So did I get ripped off then? Because the -20 fluid was very frozen and the thermometer said 5 when I checked it but was hovering around 15 most of the trip.

I'm off to go figure it out now that I'm in Denver and it's a warm 30 degrees out.....

 

[bigreen505]

Hi Clay,

The standard trick is to dump a bottle of alcohol in the washer reservoir with the -25 or -45 solution. I understand why wind chill should not affect inanimate objects, but when it is cold, nearly any washer fluid will freeze when it hits your windshield on cold days at speed.

 

[Lost Canadian]

I've had cheap washer fluid that claimed to be good down to -45 but in reality it was no where close to that. You just have to find one that actually works. If all else fails the alcohol trick works but it does kill the life of rubber wipers.

 

[Clay]

Now my pump is broke. Argghhh. I got it all taken apart, and I think I found a good place for it, but I have to get another before I can mount it up.

 

[devinsixtyseven]

im using the rain-x stuff myself, it's extremely exposed to the point i actually have ice hanging off the pump, reservoir and transfer lines, and it was working fine at 5* the weekend before last in breck, when it was cold enough to shatter the rear window on my canback.

the peak stuff was the last bottle i used...i used it up quicker than necessary, so i could throw the rain-x in there.

-sean