Help - my windscreen mists up heavily as soon as I get in my car

TheVoice

TheVoice

TheVoice

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Hopefully this isn't a stupid 'problem'. Now that it's getting colder and damper in the early mornings/late evenings, I'm having horrendous problems with condensation in my car. I get in, start it, and within 10 seconds the windscreen is heavily misted. I put the blower on, open the window a bit, use a demister pad and that'll help (although it's still not clearing it completely, bizzarely), but 30 seconds later it's back and I'm having to use the demister pad again (whilst trying to see where I'm going). The blower is useless until the engine has warmed up, by which point I'm halfway to work. :mad:

Incidentally, the last few winters I've had problems with the inside of the windscreen icing up. I tried some moisture absorber packs which helped slightly, but I still can't quite fathom why I'm having these sorts of problems with moisture in the car. Does it mean there's water/moisture getting in somewhere, or could it mean the inside of the car is just damp? Would opening or closing all the vents help?
 
stop breathing? or turn the a.c. on.

check the foot wells and boot if they are wet then you have a leak
 
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Pick up some de-humidity things for the cabin, you can get them online and they should help take any moisture out of the air, and use the ac if you have it.
 
Get one of those demister 'mitts' to try, I used one when I ran my mini through winter weather. All you have to do is wipe with one side and buff off with the other. Much better than just a cloth. :)
 
Could it be a damp pollen filter if its misting up shortly after starting the car rather than getting misted up overnight which would normally happen due to a bad seal somewhere?
 
Turn the ac off 2 minutes before you turn the car off, and keep the blower on fresh outside air. This will dry out the evaporator core so it doesn't redeposit accumulated moisture into the car when you next go to turn it on.
 
I'd also go with replacing the Pollen Filter as a first port of call, if its damp it will just be blowing moist air in to the car, hence your steaming up. Runnin with the AC on as mentioned will help clear it quicker too.
 
Air con will demist the car pretty quickly if you have it. Don't open the window with the a.c. on as it will slow down the demisting.

My brother had the same problem in his non a.c. car until he realised he'd had the air recirculation turned on for about six months :D I'm quite certain he's more of a numpty than you though :p
 
You obviously have a lot of moisture built up within the car, check the carpets (esp. front footwells) to see if they are damp. It could also be a soaked pollen filter, though if you are getting a reasonable amount of air through the vents this is less likely.

Tom_ed1987 said:
Turn the ac off 2 minutes before you turn the car off, and keep the blower on fresh outside air. This will dry out the evaporator core so it doesn't redeposit accumulated moisture into the car when you next go to turn it on.
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Any moisture from the evaporator should drain outside the car. If it doesn't the drains are blocked.
 
It's an '02 Astra 1.6. Pretty sure the pollen filter was replaced on its last service, but I'll double-check that. I do have AC but only tend to use it during summer as it impacts performance, but I'll give that a go and see if it does the trick. Think it's probably worth giving my windows a good clean too, maybe that'll help.
 
Dogbreath said:
Any moisture from the evaporator should drain outside the car. If it doesn't the drains are blocked.
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The majority does, but a huge amount still sits in the coils, just like condensation sits on old single pane window glass but also runs down and pools on the window sill.
 
Man this reminds me of the old 106 and its flippin leaky sunroof. Such thick ice on the inside of the windscreen. Glad that rust bucket is gone :D
 
A few things to do:

*Leave your A/C on permanently (if you barely use it, it's probably ****** anyway)
*Do not have air recycle turned on
*Clean your windows properly on the inside
 
Phil W said:
I'd also go with replacing the Pollen Filter as a first port of call, if its damp
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Why is it damp though?


I reckon there's a leak somewhere letting water in. I know Corsas of that vintage can let water in from the scuttle panel or the door seals, but I don't know about Astras.
 
What exactly happens when you use AC with heat? Never really tried it, does the compressor still come on etc? Wouldn't this just make everything cold? :p
 
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