Is It OK to Use a Gas Station Squeegee on My Car’s Windshield?
Why filling stations have complimentary cleaners and why they’re actually bad for your vehicle
You can do a lot more than fill up your car’s gas tank at a gas station. You can inflate a low tire, run it through the automatic car wash, and vacuum it out. You can even wash your car’s windshield using that fluid-soaked squeegee — for free! But is it a good idea to use a complimentary gas station squeegee to wash the windows, or could that damage the car?
Just Purchase a New Car? Make sure you service it properly by following this guide
The reason gas stations have a squeegee at every pump
Back in the early 20th century, when you couldn’t legally pump your own gas, an attendant would come to your car and pump the gas for you. They would also check the car over to make sure it was good to continue driving — the fluids were filled, the battery was sufficiently charged, and the tires were inflated. They also kept a squeegee at their side to clean the windshield, which was important then because of how dusty the many unpaved roads were. Plus, earlier cars didn’t have the have washer fluid dispensers.
Once people were allowed to pump gas themselves, those extra maintenance checks stopped too. The attendant ‘s duties now were in the hands of the customer to perform — and that included wiping the windows. So, self-serve stations left a convenient cleaning tool next to the gas pump for patrons to use: the squeegee. To this day, nearly all gas stations still have this device.
What Kind of Headlights Does Your Car Have? Find out here so you can maintain them properly
Is it safe to use a communal squeegee to rinse dirt off?
The blue solution in the reservoir is an alcohol-based glass cleaner probably diluted with some water. After multiple people have wiped bugs, mud, oil, and gasoline off their vehicle using the squeegee and dunked it back into the tub, that fluid is more filth than detergent.
When the basin is nearly empty, a gas station attendant will (sometimes) pour more cleaner into trough, which will mix with whatever soiled gunk has accumulated at the bottom. Those basins are basically never washed out, so any debris that falls into them — bits of gravel, tiny twigs, metal particles — stays there until it attaches to the sponge on the cleaning wand.
That means, wiping a baton soaked in dirt and tiny abrasives across your car can cause many micro-scratches that tear into the glass — and the clear coat, if you use it on the rest of the body. Plus, all that dirt will dry and leave streaks that can make the surface dirtier than before.
If you have to wash off the windows or exterior mirrors to see when driving, a better alternative is to spend a couple of bucks buying a car-safe window cleaner from the convenience store. If absolutely don’t want to spend any money, grab some paper towels from the restroom and soak them in water from the faucet. It’s far better for your car than using that caustic squeegee.
Aaron is unashamed to be a native Clevelander and the proud driver of a Hyundai Veloster Turbo (which recently replaced his 1995 Saturn SC-2). He gleefully utilizes his background in theater, literature, and communication to dramatically recite his own articles to nearby youth. Mr. Widmar happily resides in Dayton, Ohio with his magnificent wife, Vicki, but is often on the road with her exploring new destinations. Aaron has high aspirations for his writing career but often gets distracted pondering the profound nature of the human condition and forgets what he was writing… See more articles by Aaron.