L. Trotter Posted November 26, 2018 Report Share Posted November 26, 2018 So, the cold weather is upon us and even though you may not have TKS panels and FIKI capability, you may find frost, snow or even ice on your plane that needs to be managed prior to any flight. The days of "polishing" frost smooth prior to flight were officially deemed unacceptable by the FAA Feb 2010. I've seen guys scrape surfaces with an ice remover, credit card or just a gloved finger. If you don't have access to a heated hanger here is a cheap, quick and effective alternative. I used an empty spray bottle with 91% isopropyl alcohol and a little TKS fluid (mixed 75/25). I sprayed a portion of the wing the night prior and the frost literally just wiped off while untreated areas were rather adherent. Spraying adherent frost/ice the morning of was also painless but took a little extra time and perhaps a little more fluid. I used about 1 qt. for the entire plane. Cost was under $3.00. The best part.....essentially no elbow grease and no damage to paint. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marauder Posted November 26, 2018 Report Share Posted November 26, 2018 IMG_1859.mov So, the cold weather is upon us and even though you may not have TKS panels and FIKI capability, you may find frost, snow or even ice on your plane that needs to be managed prior to any flight. The days of "polishing" frost smooth prior to flight were officially deemed unacceptable by the FAA Feb 2010. I've seen guys scrape surfaces with an ice remover, credit card or just a gloved finger. If you don't have access to a heated hanger here is a cheap, quick and effective alternative. I used an empty spray bottle with 91% isopropyl alcohol and a little TKS fluid (mixed 75/25). I sprayed a portion of the wing the night prior and the frost literally just wiped off while untreated areas were rather adherent. Spraying adherent frost/ice the morning of was also painless but took a little extra time and perhaps a little more fluid. I used about 1 qt. for the entire plane. Cost was under $3.00. The best part.....essentially no elbow grease and no damage to paint. Sorry-I don't know how to add video (there are 2 of them)IMG_1859.mov IMG_1860.mov You have a YouTube account? Easy to upload them and share the link.Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carusoam Posted November 27, 2018 Report Share Posted November 27, 2018 I watched them easily on an iPad... LT must have updated the link? An interesting MS style controlled experiment... Showing how to melt some snow and ice, and make it easier to remove on freezes the following day... Better than the RV water tank anti-freeze I have seen used on rental/school planes... Best regards, -a- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GLJA Posted November 27, 2018 Report Share Posted November 27, 2018 Well, where the hell were you two days ago??? LOL. Found myself at a dark airport, with my plane in the Visitor area, after watching the Grey Cup in Edmonton. Walked up to an aircraft entirely covered in frost. The extra clothes, mitts, towels, etc all came out to brush off the frost. Got it started up, did an extended run up to get oil temps up, and flew off. This might have saved me 20 minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yetti Posted November 27, 2018 Report Share Posted November 27, 2018 so for us southerners who don't have TKS fluid laying around, Here is the TKS MSDS https://www.tksfluid.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/TKS-MSDS.pdf Here is the MSDS for RV anti freeze http://www.chemicalspec.com/Winter_Care_4060_RV_Antifreeze.pdf So etholene glycol or propolyne glycol with alkeehol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yetti Posted November 27, 2018 Report Share Posted November 27, 2018 has anyone tested WD-40? Can someone run a battery of tests and let us know the best off the walmart shelf solution? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LANCECASPER Posted November 27, 2018 Report Share Posted November 27, 2018 1 hour ago, Yetti said: has anyone tested WD-40? Can someone run a battery of tests and let us know the best off the walmart shelf solution? @Piloto Jose is the guru of WD-40 He is also working on an STC for running 98.6 degree urine along the leading edge in icing conditions. The anti-icing version is for single pilot operations. For FIKI you need one hydrated pilot and at least one fully hydrated passenger. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Trotter Posted November 27, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2018 50 minutes ago, CDNflyby said: Well, where the hell were you two days ago??? LOL. Riverton, WYO (KRIW). Landed at 5pm. Temp was 7ºF. Had frost on wings within 20 min. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danb Posted November 27, 2018 Report Share Posted November 27, 2018 Going skiing Lee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GLJA Posted November 27, 2018 Report Share Posted November 27, 2018 4 hours ago, L. Trotter said: Riverton, WYO (KRIW). Landed at 5pm. Temp was 7ºF. Had frost on wings within 20 min. It was below freezing the entire time up here. 20F to probably around 7F when we got back to the plane. Humidity is typically non existent where I'm at, so didn't even think about it. Unfortunate part, airport was on the West end of the Lake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertGary1 Posted November 30, 2018 Report Share Posted November 30, 2018 I just spray it with a hose. comes off immediately. -Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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