How to clean your car headlights at home? Debris from the road and UV rays from the sun are hard not to yellow and fog your car headlights. Environmental oxidation is also the main cause of fogging of the headlights, and an opaque white or yellow haze builds upon it. Usually, these processes are as follows:
- The outer layer of the lampshade reacts with oxygen in the atmosphere to form a layer of opaque material that fogs the headlamp.
- Operating at high temperatures can cause the headlamp housing to react with various atmospheric media, causing it to fog up.
- Headlights have a useful life, after which the material undergoes autolytic changes and becomes cloudy.
- If the seals in the headlamp assembly break, water and dust can enter the headlamp, causing it to fog up from the inside.
Over time, the plastic lenses of your headlights can become dull, scratched, and yellow. We've rounded up the best way to restore headlights at home if you don't want to use a dedicated cleaning kit and other equipment to remove surface grime from your car headlight lenses. Repair your car headlight lenses in half an hour for less than $15, saving you at least $100.
How to clean car headlights with toothpaste?
The best way to clean headlights at home is to use toothpaste, but only on lightly affected headlights.
Other related questions also apply to this method:
- how to clean yellow headlights at home
- how to clean foggy headlights at home
what you need:
- Baking soda or toothpaste
- A gentle rag or towel
- plastic or latex gloves
- mild cleanser
- fine sand car wax
- masking tape
Steps:
1. Mix some soap or shampoo into water and put it in a spray bottle. Spray the headlamp with soapy water and gently wipe off any dirt, particles, dead bugs. And sticky matter that may have accumulated on the surface.
2. Thoroughly clean the headlight lenses with a regular cleaner. After cleaning, let them air dry for a few minutes and wipe the surface with a dry towel or rag until it is free of moisture.
3. Cover the area around the headlight with masking tape. This will protect your vehicle's paint and plastic parts from mildly abrasive drying toothpaste.
4. Wearing disposable gloves, apply a generous amount of toothpaste to a clean cloth and rub it into the headlights. Rub it in circles, covering every part of the headlight.
5. Wipe down each headlight vigorously, spending 5 to 10 minutes per headlight. And continuously add toothpaste and a small amount of water in wiping to ensure the cleaning effect.
6. Rinse each headlight with clean water. Let air dry before wiping any remaining water spots from the lenses with a clean rag or towel. You should see the yellow or fog on the lenses disappear.
7. Finally, apply a thin layer of car wax to the headlights. This makes them look sharper and prevents future fogging.
This completes your clean headlights at home and immediately notices brighter, whiter headlights!
How to clean headlights at home with soapy water?
Because soapy water is a weak alkaline substance, it is not corrosive. Its mild nature and high cleaning power make it also suitable for headlight cleaning.
Materials:
soap, basin, nanosponge, water.
Steps:
1. First, soak a basin of soapy water with a higher concentration in the basin.
2. Pour the dripping soapy water evenly on the surface of the car headlights for about 10 minutes.
3. Repeatedly wipe with the prepared nanosponge magic wipe, so you can altogether remove the dirt, and it also has a particular polishing effect.
Even if you wash your car every week and use only the best car cleaners and products, the headlights can still fog up over time. You can't stop this from happening unless your car is under 24/7 cover or garage protection. But you can use these best ways to clean headlights at home and reduce damage to them from foreign objects.