AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 96

P&E

OWNERSHIP
windshield. This is just to prevent water
spots. OK, you're set to go fly again, most
of the time.
MR. CLEAN

SOME PILOTS use furniture polish on their

windshields. Check to confirm it's safe for
plastic.

dust off airplane windshields is not practical, however.
The only truly safe way to remove
the dust and dirt is to find a hose and use
plenty of running water. I stand on a ladder and run the water gently from the top
of the windshield to wash away the loose
dirt, and then I just let the water keep
running. My goal is to rehydrate all those
crusty bug carcasses that are stuck to the
windshield. Keep the water running and
then use your hand or a clean, soft cotton
cloth to wipe the surface gently. A cotton
T-shirt is good for this, or an old cotton
dish towel. All my old kitchen towels and
T-shirts go straight to my clean cloth bin
in my hangar. Never use a rag with any
spot of oil on it.
At first, you're not using your hand so
much for cleaning the surface as to feel
how clean it's becoming. A great percentage of the bugs and dirt will wash away
with only the action of the running water.
After a couple minutes, you'll find very
few insect parts left. I then use my hand,
while continuing the water flow, to pick
away at these stubborn remains. It's just
another joy of airplane ownership, picking dead bugs from the windshield with
your thumbnail. Once your hand detects
no more bits o' bug, the windshield is
clean. Finally, I use a soft, clean cotton
cloth-usually an old bath towel-to dry the
96 | AOPA PILOT February 2020

Often, this is the end of my cleaning regimen, but after a number of flying hours,
an oily film from the engine also coats the
windshield, and that doesn't come off with
just water. Now, you have to use a commercial cleaning product.
Most aircraft windows are acrylic plastic, and acrylic scratches readily. So, you
must use a cleaner that is approved for this
material. However, not all aircraft windows
are made of the same plastic, so learn about
yours in particular.
Household cleaners, such as Windex
or other generic glass cleaners, are deadly
to this type of plastic. Remember, it's not
glass you're cleaning, it's plastic. Do not use
gasoline, alcohol, benzene, acetone, deicing
fluids, lacquer thinners, or any other type
of solvent that's laying around the hangar.
All these will damage plastics. You have
to look through this windshield on every
flight, so don't be cheap about cleaning it,
either in time or money.
CLEAN AND/OR POLISH

The majority of spray plastic cleaners
on the market also include "polish,"
which means wax. For my new windshield, I prefer to just clean it and not
use any product with polish. The one
I use is Clear View Plastic and Glass
Cleaner from Aviation Labs Inc. It foams
when applied, removes the oily residue,
and dries streak free. Before using any
spray-on product, double check that the
surface is clean of any dirt or dust, and
spray it liberally so there's a considerable liquid film on the surface. Wipe off
the cleaner gently, reapply, and wipe
again until the surface is clean and dry.
You'll want to clean the interior side of
the windshield too.
After a few years, your windshield can't
help but develop very tiny scratches from
the airflow of dust, bugs, and exhaust to the
point of being noticeable. This is the time
to start using products with polish. They
fill the tiniest scratches and will improve
the view.

When I was a studio photographer,
we used large sheets of Plexiglas for product photography, and on those we used
Brillianize, another product specifically
made for cleaning plastics. This is one of
those "clean and polish" combination products, and it works quite well.
I've heard of pilots using furniture polish to clean and polish their windshields.
I'll repeat, use a product specifically made
to clean (and polish) plastics. You're going
to be looking through the results of your
efforts on every flight.
WATER REPELLENTS

Some pilots wax their windshields to help
the rain bead up and flow away. If you want
to use something like this, at least use a
product that's safe for plastics, such as Rain
X Plastic Water Repellant.
AIRCRAFT COVERS

Aircraft covers are great for protecting
your airplane's interior and avionics from
the sun and heat, but make sure they have
a soft cloth surface against the windows.
Also, they need to be washed often and the
covers must be tightly attached. Otherwise
the wind will flap the covers and grind any
dirt into the windshield for you. The same
goes for the heat shields some pilots use
on the interior of their airplane's windows.
These shields can be stiff enough, and collect enough dirt, to scratch the plastic
windows from the inside.
DO IT RIGHT OR NOT AT ALL

At my home airport, here in the chilly
Northeast, I can't run the hose on these
winter days unless I want to become a
human popsicle. Did I mention how I wish
our airport managers would install running water in our hangars? I don't fly as
much in the winter and there are fewer
bugs to kill, so my windshield is not quite
as dirty as during the prime summer flying
season. But still, it gets dirty to the point
when I'm tempted to clean it, which I
absolutely won't unless I can do it right.
I'd rather have it dirty than permanently
scratched.
AOPA
DENNIS K. JOHNSON is a freelance writer and

pilot living in New York City.



AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020

Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Intro
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Cover1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 4
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 6
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 7
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 8
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 9
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 16
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 112
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Cover4
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