The Science

So, why does a car mist up? Moisture that has built up inside the car condenses into tiny water droplets on the glass surface. Misting up is a bigger problem in the autumn and winter months when water from wet clothes and rain is trapped inside the car. During the day, the air inside the car is warmer and holds some of this water as vapour, but at night, as it cools down, it can no longer hold this water which condenses on the coldest surfaces – the windows.

There are several ways to tackle a misted screen. Directing warm air from the heater onto the screen helps the droplets evaporate and warms the air and glass preventing further condensation. Air conditioning also helps by dehumidifying the air. If it is not raining outside, opening windows will help replace the humid air inside the car with dry cold air from outside.

The less water you have in the car, the less misting up you will get. Desiccant dehumidifiers provide a proactive approach, constantly removing moisture from the car until they are saturated. Standard dehumidifiers though have several drawbacks. They are normally not securely mounted in the car and so cannot be deployed while driving and the user cannot observe the adsorption process. Xorbit overcomes these problems with the added benefit of an air freshener in an environmentally friendly and stylish design.