As of September 2026. Prices are from the price list of Kraken Detailing, ul. Powstańców 20, Kraków.
On a frosty morning the glass is as cold as the air. Hot water heats the outer surface in a fraction of a second while the inner layer and the frame stay cold. The glass expands unevenly and cracks. The crack usually starts at a small stone chip and runs across half the windscreen, and then the glass has to be replaced.
Lukewarm tap water causes a different problem. It runs onto the door seals, under the wiper blades and into the locks, and a few minutes later it freezes there in a thicker layer than the one you removed.
Plastic is softer than glass, but sand is harder. The scratches come from grit trapped under the scraper.
Never scrape tinted windows from the inside, or the rear window with its heating lines. Let the blower clear frost on the inside.
Renting or car sharing? Check that the car has a scraper and brush before you set off on a frosty morning. Clearing snow and ice before driving is the driver's job, and a covered number plate is a 500 zł fine. Details: snow on car fine in Poland.
De-icer dissolves thin ice and softens thick ice. Spray the whole windscreen, wait a minute, then lift the ice with a scraper or a soft squeegee. Repeat on thick ice.
Spray the wiper blades and the edges of the door seals too. Do not switch the wipers on over ice: the rubber scrapes against it and frays quickly.
The night before a frost you can cover the windscreen with a frost cover. In the morning it comes off with the snow and frost on it.
Do not pull a frozen blade off the glass by hand. The rubber tears along the edge, and a worn blade then drags grit across the glass and any coating on it. Free the blade with de-icer or wait until the blower warms the windscreen from inside.
In the evening, before you switch off the engine, turn off the wipers and auto-wipe. The wiper motor then will not try to drag frozen blades the next morning.
A door usually freezes at the seal. Meltwater gets between the rubber and the body and freezes overnight.
Before winter, clean the seals and treat them with a silicone rubber care product, so water clings to them less. Do not use oil or grease: they collect dirt that then rubs the paint every time you open the door.
On older cars with a key lock, lock de-icer with a thin nozzle works. Keep it at home or in your jacket pocket; locked in the glovebox, it is no use. Do not heat the key with a lighter: most keys contain remote and immobiliser electronics.
Many rentals and newer cars are keyless. On these the seal or the handle freezes, and the door method above works. Most key fobs also hide a mechanical emergency key, which you need if the fob battery dies in the cold. Find it before the first frost.
Plenty of drivers skip washing in frost because they expect the doors to freeze shut. After a self-service wash in sub-zero weather, water stays in the locks, under the seals and in panel gaps, and freezes overnight.
We wash cars all winter, below zero too, in a heated bay. Before handover we blow the car dry: locks, seals, mirrors and gaps. No water is left there, so doors and locks do not freeze after our wash. What road salt does to the body and how often to wash in winter: winter car wash and road salt. Prices: car wash and detailing.
In a Polish built-up area you may not leave the engine running while parked, and "parked" means standing still for more than a minute. That is art. 60(2)(3) of the Road Traffic Act, and the fine (line 206 of the fines table) is 100 zł. Scrape and brush first, then drive off and let the heater finish the job on the move.
Ice grips a windscreen with a hydrophobic coating more weakly and comes off more easily, so the scraper needs less pressure. How the coating works and why worn wipers wear it off: rain-repellent glass coating.
| Service | Price | What it does in winter |
|---|---|---|
| Glass coating Window+ | from 349 zł | ice comes off more easily, declared durability up to 2 years |
| STANDARD wash | from 300 zł | clean glass before coating, locks and seals blown dry |
We apply the coating to washed and degreased glass, and the car stays with us for at least one working day. The best time is before the first frost.
Ice on the inside of the windscreen means there is too much moisture in the cabin. Scraping it does not help; it comes back the next night. Where the water comes from and how to dry the car out: car windows fogging and damp interior. The full winter checklist is in prepare your car for winter in Poland.
No. Hot water can crack the glass, especially if it has a chip, and lukewarm water refreezes on the seals and wiper blades.
Spray de-icer, wait a minute and lift the ice with a plastic scraper. Brush the roof and lights while you wait.
Grit under the scraper or a chipped edge does. Brush the snow off first, scrape only ice and replace a damaged scraper.
Do not yank the handle. Press the door firmly along its edge a few times to crack the ice on the seal, or use another door.
Not after ours: before handover we blow the car dry, including locks, seals, mirrors and gaps.
Yes, ice grips it more weakly and comes off more easily. Glass coating (Window+) costs from 349 zł.
Kraken Detailing is at ul. Powstańców 20, Kraków (Prądnik Czerwony), open Mon–Sat 9:00–19:00, phone +48 510 510 082. We speak English. We look at the glass, check for chips and scratches, and quote the Window+ coating for your car. Coating details: ceramic coating; winter wash with locks blown dry: car wash and detailing.
