I have seen many cars parked with the Wipers folded up. Is there any advantage of this practice ( other than during washing). Will it help in any way to improve the life of wiper blades.
It is followed all over the world especially in dry areas.
As wipers are not used for sometime, dust settles where the wiper is resting on glass. This dust hardens up and may not be cleared with general cleaning. Later, when it is used, it may scratch the glass. To avoid this, the wipers are folded up.
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In apartment parking complexes there usually is atleast one car that has not been used for a real long time and may also have its wipers down.
Try to get the wiper up, you will find that its slightly stuck to the glass.
Senior — BHPian
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see the right explanation for the same is that when its a hot day the rubber portion of the wiper when in contact with the glass would be over heated.a couple of such ocassions would be enough to harden the rubber of the wiper.more over ,in the case of cars idle for a longtime,the dust accumulates on the wiper.this will also add to the deterioration of the life of the blade.
its always better to fold the wiper when not in use for a couple of days.
RAM
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I think both reason’s are correct, my car waser keeps them folded upwards during washing and i have to unfold them before driving.
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The folding of wipers is a good practice even during the monsoon season. This would free flow of water from the wind shield as well as it would abstain prolonged exposure of the wiper blade with water which can bring down its life.
A soft dry wiper blade gives optimum cleaning hence it is good to fold the vipers.
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Původně odeslal ram_hyundai
see the right explanation for the same is that when its a hot day the rubber portion of the wiper when in contact with the glass would be over heated.a couple of such ocassions would be enough to harden the rubber of the wiper.more over ,in the case of cars idle for a longtime,the dust accumulates on the wiper.this will also add to the deterioration of the life of the blade.
its always better to fold the wiper when not in use for a couple of days.
RAM
i second that.
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Come on all of you! There’s no technical reason for leaving the blades up.
It only symbolises that your car has been cleaned! This way you can tell even from 10th floor that it has been cleaned for the day by the cleaner. Many car cleaners even fold your side view morriors out along with wipers to depict that the car has been cleaned.
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Maybe the increased air resisitance with the blades folded up helps keep the vehicle stationary, working as an alternative braking system.
On a serious note, the others have already mentioned the reasons.
Senior — BHPian
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Keeping the wipers UP can also be dangerous!
I have known of many instants when the wiper has snapped back to position and Cracked the windscreen on the modern cars where the spring tension is high! So beware. and dont allow the cleaner to put it up while cleaning. he should just lift the wiper arm with one hand and clean the glass below the wiper with the other, and let the wiper rest back in position.
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Well the rubber will harden even in upright position guys !!
If the wipers melted and stuck to the glass — we would have many wind screen changes Dust can accumulate but lifting the wiper and blwoing the dust is a solution. Also wipe the blades with a wet cloth before getting them back in position. That should be fine.
Actually its dangerous to keep wipers in upright position as Scooby has rightly said and there is a real danger of people walking past just tap the wiper and make it fall on the windscreen.
typically you should change the wipers just before monsoon every year.
Southeast Asia is a ‘melting pot of cultures’, they say.
What people don’t tell you is that you’ll probably break multiple sweats by just standing outside. Yes, not only is this region a proverbial melting pot of diverse people and customs, it’s also the physical embodiment of a perpetual (hot and steamy) sauna session.
That’s what you get when your country is situated on (or near) the equator, of course. Nothing you can do about it. But this also means that the things we use everyday (like our cars) have to be purpose-built to withstand our tropical-equatorial climate. And speaking of cars, some Southeast Asian ‘hacks’ we come across make you question if they’re really necessary or not.
Nahoru nebo dolů?
Browsing through Reddit, I came across a peculiar question posed by an Australian tourist in the r/Malaysia subreddit: Why do some cars have their windscreen wipers up like this (pictured below) in Malaysia?
IMAGE: u/sarebot18 / Reddit
«On holidays from Melbourne, Australia and we noticed some cars have their wipers up but most don’t,» the Reddit user states. «My 11-year-old wanted to know if there was a reason for this?»
Firstly, I think we can all appreciate an inquisitive kid.
Secondly, prior to doing my research for this story, I too had no damn clue why some drivers do this. At one point in my life, I probably did this as well, out of societal pressure (or from know-it-all self-proclaimed ‘car-guy’ uncles).
According to the vast majority of responses in the comments section, some drivers in Malaysia put up their windscreen wipers to prolong their lifespan and ‘prevent’ them from warping due to the intense equatorial heat and sunshine the cars are exposed to when parked outside.
I can almost feel the heat radiating from this photo. IMAGE: Jeremy Bezanger / Unsplash
«Někteří Most believe the equatorial sun heats up the windscreen. Thus, may slow bake and reduce the lifespan of the rubber component of a pair of wipers,» shared Redditor u/joebabana, adding that it’s «another way to tell [that] the car will be parked there more than four hours».
Sure, this makes a lot of sense to the layman, I suppose. But after diving deeper into the topic, it’s not as black-and-white as it seems – alluding to why most people don’t (and probably shouldn’t) bother putting their windscreen wipers up at all.
Putting your wipers up dělá help ‘slow’ the natural warping process in tropical climates. But there are better ways to deal with it.
You see, while you think you may be doing your wipers a favor by keeping them up while your car is parked, the difference it makes is actually negligible.
And surprise, surprise, your windscreen wipers will warp even when you’re driving – unless you’re neustále driving at such great (basically illegal) speeds that the wind is enough to cool them down. But we know that’s virtually impossible.
IMAGE: u/dennison / Reddit
Some proponents of the upright-wiper habit say this ‘preventative’ measure also stops dust and other small debris from collecting on your windshield, but this is simply untrue. Even while your wipers are up, they can just as well collect tiny particles in the air that eventually build up over time, potentially causing a scratched-up windscreen upon use.
So how do you actually preserve the longevity of your wipers? Well, if you’re lazy, you’re not gonna like this. But if you care about saving money on a replacement pair of wipers, a little effort goes a long way:
1. Clean your wipers regularly, not just when you get your car washed.
2. Clean your windscreen regularly, also not just when you get your car washed. You can easily do this the next time you fuel up at the gas station.
3. Parkujte ve stínu, kdykoli je to možné.
If you do come across a friend, colleague, or loved one who insists on putting their windscreen wipers up when their car is parked, just use the arguments I laid out in this story – don’t make them feel stupid of course, unless they deserve it.
