Keeping partially to the subject, are normal 'window' cleaners like the ones mentioned here equally good on tinted windows? How does the film react to the cleaner? I've asked people that tint windows here but I did not get meaningful answers ..

Warm mild soapy water in a spray bottle. A microfibre to move it in a circular motion and another to dry it.

8 hours ago, leolito said:

Keeping partially to the subject, are normal 'window' cleaners like the ones mentioned here equally good on tinted windows? How does the film react to the cleaner? I've asked people that tint windows here but I did not get meaningful answers ..

Anything like AG Fast Glass, TurtleWax Dash&Glass, etc will be fine - the latter is designed to be used on everything in the interior, and the AG stuff is pretty much normal window cleaner.

That said, I'd personally use mildly soapy water as @numskull suggested. Glass cleaners are only used, really, for two purposes - to make it quick/easy and to remove greases, etc. There shouldn't be anything significant on the inside of the windows (nothing like road film etc etc) that soapy water can't fix. Sure, it might take a little longer if it's sunny or whatever, but I'm sure it's worth the effort.

I would suggest mildly soapy water in a spray bottle, rub it a little with a damp cloth, then squeegee it off. Buff with a clean, dry cloth if needed. I'd make sure it's warmish, rather than warm or hot, and also only put a dab of soap in - remember that dish soap is anti grease, etc, which won't play well with the film if it's got an edge sticking up, etc.

The tint film is on the inside so anything cleaning the outside of the glass getting external grime off won't touch it anyway. Dedicated glass cleaner products will be fine for inside and out. It'll only be tar remover solvents that will attack the bonding for any sort of film be it PPF or window tint).

Types:

Glass-cleaner products are largely sorted into 3 categories (forget No.3):

1. Surfactants: Acid-based products that works to break the bonds of the contaminant from the surface and then surround/encapsulate the contaminant to be wiped away.

2. Solvents: Alcohol-based that work as a solvent dissolving greases and oils into them. Some glass cleaners are very similar to IPAs/Panel Wipes (Carpro Clarify and Eraser smell suspiciously similar)

3. (The rest: Anything with Limonene in is alkali and that won't be as effective on oils and greases. It'll leave the glass feeling slicker though so put these in the snake oil drawer for the most part).

Action:

Acids will be dissolved in a solvent carrier. Spread the cleaner out on the glass, give it a mo to work and then remove before the solvent flashes off. @OccyVRS that's why you're left with streaks and smudges on a hot day. Think of it that you're wiping off the product.

Alcohol-based products you can wipe over the surface - the more you move it around the more it will dissolve the oil and grease.

Dilution:

For both of these types, the active product can only clean so much; how well it cleans is determined by how diluted it is (hint: the cheaper the product, the more diluted it is). If you clean and still have streaks and smudges, its down to one of two things:

1. There was more contaminant than the product could remove and you simply need more. You'll need to use more and have more passes using cheaper products.

2. The cloth is dirty. Microfibre cloths are made of two different plastic fibres - Polyester (really good at capturing water) and Polyamide (really good at capturing oils) - once they're full of stuff, they're full. That's why most products talk about using a clean cloth at the end; to capture the last remnants of oil/water/product.

The point about Limonene:

Limonene is exceptionally commonplace. Its an alkali degreaser that is extracted from the peel of citrus fruit (or D-Limonene which is a cheaper manufactured version). It forms the basis of Citrus Pre-Washes but is also in a million household cleaning products. I also spotted it in toothpaste the other day. Its good, but alkalis are chosen as much for their slick quality acting as a natural lubricant on fragile clearcoat. This also gives a bit of shine to give that psychological effect of looking and feeling clean. Test it on your black-glass induction hob and you'll see what I mean. Looks ok until the light catches it then its smear-central.

Cleaners including ceramics:

These are starting to become more common but, imho, they're a bit of a fallacy. The glass needs to be clean to use these; they're not a cleaner as such, a bit of cleaning power but moreso a way of giving the glass a hydrophobic effect. I've used a couple with largely disappointing results. Effectively, get the glass clean using a proper product, then use one of these for a final effect if desired.

Only difficulty comes when I'm trying to clean the inside of the windscreen in the summer heat. I usually just do 1/3 at a time and that's worked okay. I just try and avoid grubby fingers, and then I don't need to clean it!

I used to do some part time work in detailing - the hardest cars were the supercars with super low, slanted windscreens. It was a nightmare to clean the very bottom, as a squeegee wouldn't fit!

1 hour ago, OccyVRS said:

I usually just do 1/3 at a time and that's worked okay

Vertically or horizontally?
serious window washers need to know.....

Oh yes, front windscreens are as difficult to clean as satisfying to have clean! That or saloon cars with a sloped rear - need a thin wedge to put the microfibre cloth on to get down to the parcel shelf!

When cleaning inside, wipe left to right (matches the old heated rear screen element); when cleaning outside, wipe up and down. When you see streaks or marks, you know instantly which side of the glass its on.

1 hour ago, chills said:

Vertically or horizontally?
serious window washers need to know.....

Horizontally makes more sense, I can then just change seat, rather than trying lean across everything ;)

When cleaning inside, wipe left to right (matches the old heated rear screen element); when cleaning outside, wipe up and down. When you see streaks or marks, you know instantly which side of the glass its on.

This is so frikin brilliant in its simplicity, I wonder how I never heard of it ... glorious!

Cleaners including ceramics:

These are starting to become more common but, imho, they're a bit of a fallacy. The glass needs to be clean to use these; they're not a cleaner as such, a bit of cleaning power but moreso a way of giving the glass a hydrophobic effect. I've used a couple with largely disappointing results. Effectively, get the glass clean using a proper product, then use one of these for a final effect if desired.

My detailing guy has some German product, which looks like a tablet for the dishwasher, that breaks up and leaves some "ceramic film" or so it is, is hard to translate, which makes the water literally "wash away" ... much more safe for use in winter, rain simply flies off, and minimizes wiper usage.

Edited 24 March, 20251 yr by leolito
typo corrected

7 minutes ago, leolito said:

When cleaning inside, wipe left to right (matches the old heated rear screen element); when cleaning outside, wipe up and down. When you see streaks or marks, you know instantly which side of the glass its on.

This is so frikin brilliant in its simplicity, I wonder how I never heard of it ... glorious!

Cleaners including ceramics:

These are starting to become more common but, imho, they're a bit of a fallacy. The glass needs to be clean to use these; they're not a cleaner as such, a bit of cleaning power but moreso a way of giving the glass a hydrophobic effect. I've used a couple with largely disappointing results. Effectively, get the glass clean using a proper product, then use one of these for a final effect if desired.

My detailing guy has some German product, which looks like a tablet for the dishwasher, that breaks up and leaves some "ceramic film" or so it is, ghard to translate, which makes the water literally "wash away" ... much more safe for use in winter, rain simply flies off, and minimizes wiper usage.

Having a ceramic element on the glass is useful for sure; Soft99 Glaco do some products that get good feedback also. Even where I use Hydro2 it leaves a decent effect.

But that’s not my point - it’s where there are glass cleaners which also leave the ceramic on the glass. Like a 2-in-1…but it doesn’t really do a good enough job of cleaning the glass.

Yeah, I got you ... is just that you remind me of the mentioning 'ceramic', also because before fitting this product, the glass must be superclean and degreased, the entire application takes couple hours is not just "open and apply".

I would recommend such type of products to everyone, I've fitted them to all my stuff.

I had a rubbish experience with ceramic coating on the outside of the windscreen a few years ago - every time it rained and the wipers were used, the smearing was horrendous! In hindsight though, the windscreen maybe wasn't cleaned enough.

On a side note, while I now don't bother with the front or rear window, I do use a spray sealant (drying aid, technically) on the bodywork, and apply it liberally to the windows and mirror glass. It's not quite the same, but it does a good job of allowing the water to bead off in the rain, and also makes future cleaning much easier.

Not sure any lack of cleanliness would cause smearing unless you mean the ceramic only bonded in a patchy way maybe. Otherwise, the only downside is it locks in the dirty so you can't clean it unless you remove the coating.

Yep I use Carpro Hydro2 which is touchless (after cleaning, mist on, jetwash off) which I do everywhere. I think the only products for this are Hydro2 and Gyeon Wetcoat.

For me the longevity isn't anywhere near what it should be all over the car (although that's sometimes the trend with the marketing spiel) but it does do some decent beading on the screens until it gives in to the wipers. The side glass and non-swept areas last much better though. Drying aids and quick detailers are pretty useful for this sort of thing. G-Techniq Ceramic Sealant worked well. Carpro Reload not so much.

The best window cleaner i have found is from Duel Autocare ( www.duelautocare.co.uk) Very easy to use and leaves a very clear finish, so much so, that I use it on my windows in the house and the shower screen. The wife has also commented how good it is.

Service and delivery from Duel is excellent and have used many products from them, all excellent.

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