Making Your Own Inexpensive Windshield Cleaner Fluid

People who have cars or pickups normally find that one of the fluid levels that need to be checked periodically is the windshield wiper reservoir. Having the windshield covered with dust, pollen, road grime, and bugs can make driving difficult and dangerous. Letting the reservoir get down to the dregs is even worse because when you need the fluid to clean the glass, there may only be enough to smear everything and not enough to clean it. Thankfully, it is quite easy to make your own windshield fluid that is inexpensive, easy, and quick.

It should be recognized that plain water can be used and it is better than nothing, but water will only remove the surface debris like dust. It does a poor job of actually cleaning the windshield.

People can also buy commercial windshield wiper fluid, however, this tends to be expensive and quite environmentally unfriendly. This is because commercial windshield wiper fluid often contains methanol, also known as wood alcohol, which is toxic to plant and animal life, including humans.

Mind you, the homemade product shouldn’t be consumed and you should avoid getting any in your eyes or mouth, but it is much less toxic than most commercial blends.

Making your own

The mixture is simply a combination of water, rubbing alcohol, also known as isopropyl alcohol, and a small amount of dish soap. To make it, pour the following into an empty, clean plastic container, such as an empty milk container or gallon vinegar container. The container needs to have a tight-fitting screw-on cap, to avoid having fluid all over the place if the bottle tips over.

Into the empty jug, pour:

1 pint or 2 cups isopropyl alcohol (the least expensive rubbing alcohol available)

Fill the jug the rest of the way with water, leaving a two-inch head-space at the top

Add 1 teaspoon of dish soap

Add several drops of blue food coloring

Tightly cap the container, then turn it upside down, right side up, upside down, right side up, and do this a few times to mix the ingredients together. The jug shouldn’t be shaken as that can cause suds, making it harder to pour. Once mixed, the fluid can be poured into the windshield wiper reservoir. What is left over in the jug can be put in trunk or boot of the vehicle, with the cap screwed on securely.

How it works

The dish soap has the function of cutting through oily road film. Dish soap primarily works by breaking up the surface tension of water, while binding with oils so they can be removed easily. The water provides the rinsing action and is the bulk of the fluid. This is true of commercial products as well. The alcohol aids in cleaning and since it evaporates easily, it normally doesn’t stay in the environment long enough to cause a problem, though it mixes easily in water. The alcohol also acts as an antifreeze because isopropyl alcohol has a much lower freezing point than water. In cold climates or winter driving conditions, this means that it also helps keep the fluid from freezing.

The food coloring doesn’t actually help in the cleaning and can be omitted. However, it also turns the fluid pale blue so a person will hopefully think twice before trying to drink any of it. As mentioned, this mixture should not be consumed. The plastic container should also be clearly labeled so everyone will know that it is windshield wiper fluid.

Some people also add some household ammonia or some vinegar for additional cleaning power. However, both ammonia and vinegar can be harmful to painted surfaces and car wax, so neither should be used if this is a concern.

Savings of homemade windshield wiper fluid

As an example of the potential savings of making your own windshield wiper fluid, locally here in Montana, a gallon of commercial windshield wiper fluid costs $3.49 or more. It is much more expensive at a gas station. In the homemade version, the only true expense is the rubbing alcohol, which can be purchased for $0.97. Thus, the savings would be $2.52 per gallon, at least. Put in another way, I can make three and a half gallons of windshield wiper fluid for the price of one gallon of the commercial fluid, and still save money, all for a product that is environmentally safer.

Making it even nicer is the fact that it takes me less than a minute to mix up a gallon. Since the windshield cleaner fluid isn’t something that most people routinely check when they look at the fluid levels in their cars, this means that it takes me much less time to mix up a gallon than it does to drive to a store (in a car with a dirty windshield) to buy a gallon.

As a final tip, although this fluid shouldn’t be consumed, it is also great as an emergency hand cleaner. The soap and alcohol clean oil and dirt from hands just as it does from the glass of the windshield.