STEVE POLLARD Posted July 8 Share Posted July 8 Just curious what people are using to get their windshields streak-free / water spot free ? I've been using Windex with a microfiber cloth...it cleans it, but you can still see the outlines of the water spots in the sun light. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laughing Coyote Posted July 8 Share Posted July 8 Try a automotive clay bar and detail spray first to remove the water spots. Zep streak free glass spray works great. I have been using Sprayway foaming glass spray, but does leave some streaks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JACK M Posted July 8 Share Posted July 8 (edited) I would like to know that answer to this myself. Someone once suggested steel wool. I tried on a small area and it didn't take the water spots, it also did not dull or scratch the glass. When I was in my teens cleaning up used cart at a dealership, they had something that applied to the glass like a wax. I would apply that to all of the glass before getting out the buffer, then it would wash off with water. But I don't recall if it worked on water spots or not. I should probably consider chasing down one of those detail supply trucks that I see parked at the detail shops on occasion. Edited July 8 by JACK M (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted July 8 Share Posted July 8 I use Rainex windshield cleaner and wadded up news print paper. Works best for me. Those real estate papers and senior health care flyers at the entrance to grocery and convenient stores keep me supplied. Windex seems to have lost something a decades or so ago. Old used car lot trick. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Schramm Posted July 8 Share Posted July 8 Try BonAmi. It used to be a GM part with number and all. It will not scratch and cleans windshields well. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted July 8 Share Posted July 8 As Bernie does, I use newsprint. It absorbs and dries better than anything I have used. Bon-Ami, as per Larry. Good combo. Been 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyJim Posted July 8 Share Posted July 8 Another vote for Bon-Ami 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KURTRUK Posted July 9 Share Posted July 9 (edited) Yes, you can use 0000 steel wool on glass (and brightwork) and not scratch it. In the autoglass trade (30+years), we use Bio-Clean, made in Sacramento, Ca.? Checking on-line, I see it's available at ACE Hardware. Check the spelling--there's also a Bio Kleen, I know nothing about. A bottle will last you a lifetime. Edited July 9 by KURTRUK (see edit history) 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted July 10 Share Posted July 10 On 7/8/2024 at 2:52 PM, Ben Bruce aka First Born said: As Bernie does, I use newsprint. It absorbs and dries better than anything I have used. My wife keeps me supplied with clean newsprint removed from Amazon boxes. No ink on those, so hands stay clean! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocketraider Posted July 10 Share Posted July 10 I'd always heard the newsprint ink was what did the cleaning and polishing, but that was decades ago. Google found two versions of Bio-Clean glass/surface cleaner. One based in Sacramento and another in a blue bottle made by a different company. Glass Wax always worked good for me especially on interior side of windows, but I don't think it's made anymore. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pont35cpe Posted July 10 Share Posted July 10 All that may work on headlight lens too, they are always water spotted/stained. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JACK M Posted July 10 Share Posted July 10 found this. Hadn't seen anything like it since the 60s. I wonder if it's the same stuff I used back then. https://www.amazon.com/J-WHEATON-CO-Polishes-Protects/dp/B07J9JPSM9/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=289E1PKPIO3X5&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.UHQ8W7mYR-FVbB8lUhD6nZCeNcnkkZcj0VmPdCDE3v3fylJRiW7bQGhBcxz-3d3KXw-PDGgc1ojjDxWf4c_1YTYfcwbdBwbyLZBkFwFFk9mgAh6kb89yrCO4AXUfsmrK-vEIGn0x5-_Vnio_7XaDuaCBXG-U9xJc-VwjF7EA7WjA5VhPmJQ3ejlklo2hpEo0DoZ4S85uo4XWS7n6TynYgANJWkuLde4aiezf1es3vtdJOLo-XCTlRSGLhI79N-Tx23mAxckGL2pf38bYwJzHN1UB8TJH5mmVvTNX1Db1q9k.jHtmV2e1ILC7wV7NW4EAALsE83DoplVgGmN7o2S4iq4&dib_tag=se&keywords=glass+wax+window+cleaner&qid=1720631797&sprefix=glass+wax%2Caps%2C156&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocketraider Posted July 10 Share Posted July 10 It says it applies dark pink and dries chalky white. Sure sounds like the Glass Wax that came in the pink metal can. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c49er Posted July 10 Share Posted July 10 I have never been able to find anything that totally removes water spots...almost like the glass has been acid etched around each spot. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cutlasguy Posted July 10 Share Posted July 10 I use a good coating of Rainex! I apply it with a soft cloth and wipe it off when dry! Under no circumstances use Windex to clean your windshield after that! You'll have a mess! Spritz it with water only and wipe with a clean Bounty Towel! As far as plastic headlights, I just wax them with Mcguires Gold Class Carnuba Wax, just the same as I use on the car! They never become cloudy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted July 10 Share Posted July 10 This topic brings back some memories from when I was 12 or 13 years old and just beginning to listen to the stories the old men told. On topic would be the old guy who said the best windshield cleaning at a gas station was a bucket of vinegar with a corn cob soaking in it. Just take out the cob and get all the grit scrubbed right out. Once I got to thinking about it I figured that he never worked in the gas station or cleaned a windshield. he probably sat in the counter room on an inverted 5 gallon bucket with his own special padding and never got up much. And I really think one of the previous bucket sitter had told him about the cob and vinegar. Looking back I'd be willing to bet neither one of them ever cleaned a windshield that way and they had heard it from some out of state interloper who was passing on stories he had heard. There are some similar stories that surface from different sources that have made me question who really did what. Like the guy who was working the night shift in the apple processing plant and had a bearing on the fork truck go bad. He dropped the oil pan, sounded out the bad rod, and pulled the cap. No parts available so he cut the excess end off his leather belt, wrapped it around the crank, and she's still going today. If you are near orchard country you probably heard that one already. Those old men inspired me to get my mother to help finance a full set of five McGraw-Hill mechanics books in 1959. I studied them well and had a few of my suspicions confirmed. I also got stigmatized as being one of those "book learnin'" types. And that stuck with me the rest of my life. Well, the hurricane warnings for western New York have been downgraded. So I'm going out to see if I can find a corn cob and try it out. Got plenty of vinegar. I drink a tablespoon of that in a glass of water every morning. I read in a doctoring book that it will reduce visceral fat from growing around the internal organs. Now I am reminded of Nelson, my Grandfather called him Nelly. He filled the bucket with steaming hot water before he sat on it. My formative years. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted July 11 Share Posted July 11 9 hours ago, rocketraider said: I'd always heard the newsprint ink was what did the cleaning and polishing, but that was decades ago. The newsprint is good because it is strong (to survive the high-speed presses) and doesn't generate lint. All the ink does is turn your fingers black... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KURTRUK Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 On 7/10/2024 at 7:32 AM, rocketraider said: I'd always heard the newsprint ink was what did the cleaning and polishing, but that was decades ago. Google found two versions of Bio-Clean glass/surface cleaner. One based in Sacramento and another in a blue bottle made by a different company. Glass Wax always worked good for me especially on interior side of windows, but I don't think it's made anymore. If the blue bottle you're talking about is labelled by C.R.Laurence, that's the same product. CRL is the largest commercial glass supply company around. They're just re-selling it with their brand on it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swear57 Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 I use Vinger and newsprint. I have also used 3/4 Windex 1/4 ammonia with newsprint. Not perfect but it works for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarNucopia Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 If you want to avoid the ink from newspaper, you can buy this: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Strathmore-9-x-12-Tape-Bound-Newsprint-Pad/38377450?from=/search . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 I got some bugs off the windshield of my '60 Electra yesterday. I couldn't find the Rainex cleaner that I had just used (what's new) so I torn half a newsprint paper off and squirted on Sprayway. I drove up to the other end of town this morning for coffee and didn't even think of the cleaning until I read this. I guess it did a pretty good job. I didn't even pay attention to how clean it was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary_Ash Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 The magic ingredient in things like Glass Wax was powdered chalk. It is a very mild abrasive, won’t scratch glass. We used to use it to clean glass for high-tech optics, followed by washing with Liquinox or Alconox detergent, and rinse with deionized water. Never a spot! You can buy chalk powder on line. But, a can of Bon Ami and some Dawn liquid dish detergent is probably just fine. The critical thing is to dry with a soft cotton towel immediately after rinsing. Water droplets attract dust from the air which wants to stick to that carefully cleaned glass surface. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocketraider Posted July 12 Share Posted July 12 Gary, how would one mix the BonAmi and Dawn? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary_Ash Posted July 13 Share Posted July 13 No, not mixing chalk and Dawn. Sprinkle a little chalk on the glass, then use a soft, damp cloth to rub it around. Rinse off the chalk with plain water, then immediately wash the glass with a soft cloth and a squirt of Dawn in a bucket of clean water, rinse, and dry. Old 100% cotton Tee shirts make good rags but not polyester/cotton blends. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jubilee Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 Aerosol shaving cream/lather Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 "Down at the garage Goober sprinkles on oregano. He says it's good on spaghetti, too." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty Roth Posted July 14 Share Posted July 14 Grandma used Distilled White Vinegar and Newsprint back in the 1940s. It still works for me. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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