How to make heated mirrors with your own hands
Mirror heating is a very useful option that you will need not only in winter, but also in wet weather, when moisture settles on the mirrors. Limited visibility in the rear-view mirrors can lead to the most unforeseen circumstances, not only in the parking lot, when you reverse and do not see what is happening behind you, but also in heavy traffic - you will not be able to see the signals of other drivers who want to change lanes or go for a ride.
We have already talked about how to change lanes in heavy traffic on our autoportal for drivers Vodi.su, and in this article I would like to talk about installing mirror heating on my own.
First of all, it must be said that mirror heating can be of several types:
- with wire heaters;
- with conductive heaters applied to the board;
- with lamp heaters;
- with film heaters.
The essence remains the same everywhere - you disassemble the glass case and install a heating element inside it.
Heated mirrors with light bulbs
This method began to be used before all the others. As you know, any incandescent light bulb is nothing more than a heating device, because 90 percent of electricity is converted into heat, and only 10 percent is converted into light radiation.
The best option would be two low-power bulbs of 10 watts or one 2-filament 21 + 5 watts (each spiral can be turned on separately).
In terms of size, they should fit comfortably in the mirror housing, while they must be installed so that they do not touch either the back of the mirror or the front wall of the housing.
You will have to remove the mirror housing, for this you will need to carefully disassemble the door trim and get to the racks that hold the mirrors. The next step is to disassemble the case itself. This must be done carefully so as not to damage the plastic.
The front wall must be protected with heat-resistant material - paronite, electrical cardboard, textolite. Foil is glued over the thermal insulation, which will reflect heat from the front wall and direct it to the mirror.
The light bulb needs to be fixed; to connect it to the wires, you can use a cartridge or heat-resistant clamps. If there is very little space inside the case, then the wires are soldered to the lamp contacts and they are well insulated so that there is no short circuit. The wires must be routed freely, not stretched or kinked, so that you can then adjust the mirrors.
If everything is done correctly, then the thermal energy of two 10-watt light bulbs is enough to heat the mirror and get rid of frost in 2-5 minutes. It is not necessary to keep them turned on for a very long time, because this can lead to melting of the plastic and deformation of the mirrors.
PCB heaters
The easiest way. In any car market you will find such heating elements, which are two layers of polymer material, between which there are printed conductors. Such elements are produced either for a specific model, or you can find boards of standard sizes, that is, you need to know the dimensions of the mirror sheet of your car.
To install printed conductors, you again need to disassemble the case and get to the mirror. Its inner side must be well degreased and the board glued with Moment glue.
The heating elements have two terminals on the side, to which the wires are connected. They need to be soldered and insulated. Then the wires are connected to the car wiring, and a button is displayed on the panel to control the heating.
The heating efficiency will increase if, as in the case of lamp heaters, the internal cavity of the mirror body is covered with heat-insulating material and foil.
Film heaters
Film resistive elements are the most reliable at the moment. Installation is done in much the same way as printed circuit boards. The film is glued to the reverse side of the mirror element using double-sided tape.
Such heaters are sold immediately with outgoing wiring, they need to be connected to the car wiring and the button should be displayed on the control panel.
Wire heaters
Some craftsmen can independently make mirror heating. To do this, they will need tungsten filaments, which are laid between two layers of insulating material, forming a spiral. Two outputs are made for plus and minus. And then everything goes according to the same scheme.
If you choose this heating method, then you need to be well versed in electrical engineering and materials, for example, tungsten heats up very much, which can lead to plastic melting. In addition, the spiral must be well insulated, and there must be no gaps between the two layers of insulating material, otherwise the efficiency will be significantly reduced.
Safety and Precautions
Since the mirrors are on the outside, moisture may eventually seep into the inside of the mirror element housing. This may cause a short circuit. Therefore, carefully seal the mirrors after installing the heating element. For this purpose, use a sealant or silicone adhesive.
It is also desirable that the heating elements are connected to the car network through a fuse that will protect the heaters from short circuits and overheating.
Check the heating elements before connecting them to the car's mains. Before assembling the rear-view mirror housing, dry it thoroughly with a hair dryer, because moisture that has got inside can lead to undesirable consequences.
Video of the process of self-installation of heating on the rear side mirrors. The whole process from start to finish.
Another way to heat mirrors for only 100 rubles!
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