Windshield wiper blades

[IAmTodd]

Bosch Icons. Best so far. Have had them for more than 8 months so I can't say too much about longitivity.

 

[gijoecam]

Silblades look promising; however I have heard one bad thing about them, and I don't know if it is true or not. It was said that silicone blades leave a residue on the windshield surface, and over time this reduces the effectiveness of the blades. Is this just a net rumor or is there something to it?

In my personal experience (almost 4-1/2 years on the F-150, 4 on the Explorer) it's a net rumor. The silicone blades can sometimes build up a grime residue on the wiping edge, especially in teh wintertime when there's a lot more road grime being kicked up, but a simple wipe of the edge of the blade with a piece of paper towel solves it immediately. The blades don't lose their effectiveness, they just get a gunk build-up on them, kind of like when you're washing a dirty car with a sponge... You need to wash the grit off the sponge occasionally, that's all.

-Joe

 

[Rhett]

The blades don't lose their effectiveness, they just get a gunk build-up on them,

Couldn't the same thing happen to a regular wiper blade?

 

[gijoecam]

Couldn't the same thing happen to a regular wiper blade?

Absolutely. However, a natural rubber blade will also dry-rot, oxidize, crack, split, and peel. Silicone blades don't. That's why they last so long.

 

['97 V8]

I have yet to find decent blades. I had dupont and had to replace them after 6 months. The Bosh blades have been on for a year, but 4 months of those they have sucked. They smear and make things very glarey at night. Now im on the cheap $6 blades from autozone. Im now using rain-x as well.

 

[gijoecam]

[QUOTE='97 V8]I have yet to find decent blades. I had dupont and had to replace them after 6 months. The Bosh blades have been on for a year, but 4 months of those they have sucked. They smear and make things very glarey at night. Now im on the cheap $6 blades from autozone. Im now using rain-x as well.[/QUOTE]

Try this. I've heard it works.

http://kalecoauto.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=23



Which Bosch blades are they? If they're the rubber ones, then yes, they last longer than most, but still nowhere near as long as the Silicone blades. If they are the Bosch Silicones, then try a couple of things.

(These are my window-cleaning secrets. Some may scoff at the use of newspaper, but believe me, it works. You must use the black and white section, not the color pages... I don't know why, but the colored ink leaves streaks, while the black and white doesn't)

First, take some windex and a piece of coarse paper towel (even a brown paper bag works, but I usually use the brown paper towels at the gas pumps) and gently scrub the edges of the blades. You'll get a layer of crud that builds up there that plain ol' car wash soap doesn't take off. Even a little bit of alcohol will work.

Second, scrub the glass with dawn dish soap and water to remove any oily film that may have been sprayed on teh window. Diesel fuel, oil, and antifreeze can work their way from the road to the window during the rain, and WOW what a mess they make. Scrub the window down with a fairly stiff sponge and the soapy water, towel dry, then use windex and plain black and white newspaper to windex the glass. Spray the glass, scrub it with the newspaper (which should be a little bit soggy itself, leaving the glass streaky) then use a dry piece of crumpled newspaper to buff it dry. (Repeat to the inside of the glass)

Finally, once it's sparkling clean, apply some rain-x to the exterior surface. Refill the washer fluid with Rain-X solvent (summer or winter formula as necessary) and you can literally go YEARS without reapplying the rain-x to the windshield! (I haven't done the Explorer in 4 years, just to see how long I can go!)

-Joe

 

[woody81480]

i Have the Trico innavision blades, they're like teflon or something. They work awesome, but ive only had them for about a month. They completely squegee (sp?) the windshield, no streaks or water left on it