To think pouring water on your icy car is just selfish?

[7hup]

Just fell on my face outside a neighbour who must have done this early morning.

So a stream of ice running across the pavement to the road which I didn't see

I fell hard. Am OK but if I were elderly or more fragile I could have bad injuries.

At least salt the pavement after!

@CarolDanvers Very well said. It's possible to say someone is BU without being rude and unpleasant about it.

You wouldn't last a day in Chicago, OP.

It's winter ... and there's gonna ice on the ground regardless of whether or not someone pours water over their windshield. Watch where you're walking next time and get over yourself.

2 of my oldest friends live in Chicago. They would be horrified at the very thought of doing something as deliberately inconsiderate as pouring water on a pavement when icy.

There are even social norms about not stealing someone's parking space once they have cleared it of snow.

Well you learn something new every day - we’ve only ever had Fords so didn’t know the quick clear windscreen was unique to them. It’s a godsend and I love my car just a little bit more now!

Just googled and it’s not only Fords that have heated windscreens now so that’s something to look out for when buying a new car I’d say! You won’t regret it and it’s better than putting pedestrians at risk!

Agreed NannyOgg. I love my Focus, the windscreen defrosts in about 15 seconds. No de-icing, no scraping. Fabulous.

yayhamlet suggest you acquaint yourself with Chicago's sidewalk snow and ice clearing regulations.

www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/cdot/supp_info/sidewalk_snow_removal.html

They would be horrified at the very thought of doing something as deliberately inconsiderate as pouring water on a pavement when icy.

They'd be 'horrified at the thought' of adding another layer of ice to an already icy ground? Somehow I doubt that, cause that'd be ridiculous. (And for what it's worth, I've never poured water over my windshield, but my point still stands. The OP should have watched where she was walking.)

They'd be 'horrified at the thought' of adding another layer of ice to an already icy ground?

Doesn't quite work like that... layers of snow don't form like sheet ice, but pouring water does. The water will melt the snow as it lands and form a pool, which will then turn to ice.

It's similar to how they polish an ice rink... they melt a thin layer so that it's in liquid form, that will self level and ice with a smooth finish.

yayhamlet I suggest you acquaint yourself with Chicago's sidewalk snow and ice clearing regulations.

And I suggest that you acknowledge the fact that not everybody follows those regulations, not to mention the fact that people can't remove snow and ice from the sidewalk in front of their house while they're not home.

I get the hose pipe out usually and it ensures my doors and bonnet etc are defrosted

Doesn't quite work like that...

Explain the large patch of black ice on my driveway then? (And no, I haven't poured any water on it.)

A windscreen cover would be nicked the first night round here 😂

Explain the large patch of black ice on my driveway then? (And no, I haven't poured any water on it.)

Because settled water will have frozen, or snow melted, then frozen again.

Go get the slippery ice, it has to be settled water that freezes in place. That's why pouring water on your car encourages the formation of ice sheet ice on the floor.

*To get

We have a gravel drive about 300m from the road but even so I prefer to use the scraper. No chance of it re-freezing if for some reason I get delayed actually leaving the house after de-icing

Many people are always running late or cutting time, and even with the weather forecast, would not have got up any earlier. So something that is a quick fix for them is no surprise.

Poor you OP, I'm lucky in that everyone local to me has large no. of kids to get to school & Temple daily, so they salt their bit of path & pavement as soon as snow starts. I do too after a nasty fall on ice last year.

Why is the water on the PAVEMENT though?

Why is the water on the PAVEMENT though?

Not sure where in the world you are, but in the UK it's quite common for people to park half on the pavement, or kerbside, so if they pour warm water over the windows, or down the side of the door to melt it, the water will pour into the floor / pavement, within a few minutes (after they've driven off) the pooled water turns to ice.

Obviously, much depends on how much water they pour, but a good poor over a windscreen will run down underneath the car (by design) - all the water they poured went somewhere right? it didn't just melt the ice and magically evaporate... so the water that remains on the floor = all that was poured + all that was melted.

Spam if it's anything like where I live it's because all the drive slope down to the pavement and then the dropped kerbs slope down to the road. So the water flows down the drive, and across the pavement, leaving a thin layer which turns to ice as it refreezes.

I have rubber grip studs for my shoes, but even outdoor boots don't solve a black ice problem. Sure, I will be careful, but people should also be considerate. Lots of the pavements get gritted here, but if the salt has been washed away after the 4am grit by a large quantity of hot water then it can't do much good!

I'm obviously doing something wrong or my cars faulty. I have a 16 plate focus and even with the quick clear on takes well over 5 minutes ( usually nearer 10 ) to clear.
Any advice from fellow ford users as it's also started freezing on the inside of my windscreen now. ........ TIA

Yet another reason to live in the country. No pesky passers by to fall on my ice!

So where was the car parked? In their drive?
if parked on a road it wouldn't get to the pavement.
If on a drive I can see how people wouldn't really think about it being a problem,