Is it smart to wash a car after it snows, while there’s still salt everywhere, or should you wait? We used to wonder, too: After it snows, how long should I wait to wash my car?
If you live where it snows, you’ve seen the “brine lines” your municipality’s trucks spread on the roadways to get a jump on lowering the freezing point of the snow as it falls and that gives the plows a fighting chance of making the road safer.
Absent significant melting or rain afterward, that brine (salt water) has pooled in the asphalt and splashes your car’s frame until it doesn’t.
Either way, your car’s steel frame is caked in salt. Should you wash it off or wait until there’s no salt out on the roads?
What’s in this article?
Should I Wait To Wash My Car After It Snows? Or Wash It Right Away?
Yes.
Car parts are made of largely un-coated steel. Steel doesn’t love road salt. Gaskets and seals, I’m also sure don’t love it either.
After it snows, it’s best to both wash it now and then wash it again after the salt on the roads is gone.
It’s not the end of the world if you wait a few weeks, but in an inadvertent experiment I’m apparently running, the salt bags I bought for my snow removal empire that I stowed in my dump truck and pick-up truck have (1) started devouring the steel and (2) have devoured the steel.
Best Snow Shovel
The best shovel I’ve ever found for managing snow, my back and my sanity is a grain scoop.
Equally good slogging out chunks of heavy snow as it is for pushing it along the ground.
Get the plastic scoop.
Types of “Salt”
If you want to destroy any concrete like a walk or sidewalk, use “rock salt.” Rock salt is table salt: sodium chloride. Sodium chloride is a miracle of civilization, but not to your sidewalk.
Other types you’ll find at big box and hardware stores might be blends or a different chemical. They’ll also have lower melting temps than rock salt. And higher price tags along with pet-friendliness claims.
There are tons of brands of salts. Check the formula on the back of the bag.
Calcium Chloride
Calcium chloride has a very low melting temp. However, it’s the consistency of cat litter so you have to spread lots of it to cover. It is the among the most expensive.
Magnesium/Sodium Chloride
A magnesium/sodium chloride blend will cost a bit more per bag. It is way easier on concrete but not easy enough to get a pet-friendly moniker. It has a lower melt temp than rock salt. Bigger/longer melt granules. It’s white so it can be hard to see if you missed spots.
Calcium Magnesium Acetate
SnowJoe Ice Melt-2-Go says their chemical blend is called CMA, calcium magnesium acetate. I don’t know what that means, but I love that it is green. That means I can see it when I spread it. It has a low melt temp. The price tag says it is expensive–twice the cost of the blend above.
I also stumbled into my favorite ice melt, Frost Bite from Mineral International. I bought it at The Home Depot. The stuff is a great. Low melt temp. Green and granulated. $25 for 50-pound bag. Pet-friendly. The blend is proprietary.
Why Are Car Washes Important?
Look, it’s winter. There’s salt on the roads. It’s on there after the storm and sometimes long after the storm. Check out car washes–-mine offers monthly subscriptions with unlimited washes–-as maintenance like changing your oil.
The car’s degradation is super slow mo, but it is happening and easy to slow it down with regular washing.
