Duster Rear-Defroster/Defogger?

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i know this post is old....

but couldnt you put a single dc heating element in that steel box controlled by a variable resistor to instantly heat the air going to the rear defroster...like a soldering iron of sorts except run by dc....or a coiled wire from a heat gun stuffed in a small pipe the size of a bic pen made from ceramic or metal

anyone got any ideas on what element to use.....how hot it needs to get to effectively heat the air...how many amps it needs to draw

or make the flexible hose that runs to the plastic duct out of metal and put the element in there


i would like to know how to make my front heater turn faster so my windshield actually gets enough force to be defrosted......more fins? faster motor?...more electricity to the motor?....and then run smaller hoses to the sides of my darts dash to defrost the side windows.....this really is an issue for me. i dont know how they drove these cars back then...you cant see out of them in cold weather

A small 12V cigarette lighter style heater could be added, I suppose. But they draw absurd amounts of power and could potentially burn the car to the ground (seen it happen before)

My '74 has the Rear Defroster (Vent & Blower Motor. factory option) and my '72 Demon has the Rear Defogger (in the glass. factory option). I've never even used the Defroster on my Duster, it's not like you can actually see anything through the rear window to begin with :D Add a bit of a Rake to the way the car sits, and a spoiler, the rear window instantly becomes a "for appearance only" type item :D

The Rear Defogger style Glass is still available, I called a glass place about it after I bought my Demon, thinking it'd be nice to swap my '74 Duster over to the Defogger instead of the original Defroster... Brace yourself...

$1,100 for the Rear Glass (tinted) with the Defogger built in :wack:

As far as the front defrosters go, if you speed the motor up or try to push more air, chances are it'll make it worse, since the increased speed will just make it blow cooler air. You could always add a Defogger strip to the bottom of the windshield (like on the 1996 and newer Caravans). I believe JC Whitney sells those kits to add the Defogger to the glass.
 
the front air is warm enough...it just doesnt have any power.....it like low and medium speed....a cigar lighter could work if the element was engaged all the time (pressed down) and as log as it was contained it should be ok. it wouldnt be on for more than ten minutes....is there another way to get a cigarette lighter to do this...or something safer

ive seen a defogger that fits my car....it just doesnt look clean for a 69 dart
 
the front air is warm enough...it just doesnt have any power.....it like low and medium speed....a cigar lighter could work if the element was engaged all the time (pressed down) and as log as it was contained it should be ok. it wouldnt be on for more than ten minutes....is there another way to get a cigarette lighter to do this...or something safer

ive seen a defogger that fits my car....it just doesnt look clean for a 69 dart

Not an actual Cigar Lighter, one of the "Accessory" style heaters that plugs into your cigarette lighter (like an Ipod Adapter does, or a portable Trouble Light).

The reason I mentioned the dangers of using one, My grandfather once lit the dash on fire in his old work truck when the wiring couldn't handle the amount of power the portable heater was drawing.
 
i do belive the switch remained in the same location until the end of the a-bodies in 1976. the switch changed in looks somewhat around 73? to a chrome benzel. prior to this it was black with white lettering. this pcture is from a 1973 brochure showing the switch (red arrow) and the electric rear window defroster embedded or placed on the glass. hope this helps some...

yup, this is exactly how it looks on my 73
 
I went with a "Frost Fighter" system which can be found on the web.
Andrew
 

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im thinking of a heating element that gets hot like a soldering iron and heats the air....i want it to look somewhat factory and be pretty small.

i would mount it inside a metal piece of pipe in between the blower and the rear defroster duct

now i need to find something that gets hot enough to make a difference and use dc power....about as much power as a grid defroster.....maybe a resistor would work...

2ohm 100watt resistor ...
running at 13.5volts ....dissipation would be 91watts....amps would be 7.....
wire to run it would be #14 or 12.
i think that could create enough heat to make the air warm....then with a variable switch i could raise and lower the voltage....a 75 watt bulb seems to make lots of heat and in a contained metal pipe it should be ok.

http://sunelectricheater.com/ .........and then there is this thing below....rated at 4 amps....its really small 1/8"....and can use any voltage it gets too hot though....1400°F
 

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My 74 Duster 360 parts car has the modern grid type in the rear window. I'm putting that in my 1970 as well as the fold down rear seat. I want a clear view of the **** I just left in the dust :twisted:
 
I've got the grid thingie on the back window of my 73 Duster... well I had the ... one day I came into the garage and that thing came unstuck from the glass somehow and several of the wires broke so its useless now
 
I have seen them. I think it was an aftermarket option, but i'm not positive on that. For whatever reason, it is a great idea since I know that the factory defrost capabilities are pretty lacking! When I picked up my 71 Demon I had to drive it home 65 miles in a heavy rain... I couldn't keep the fog off of the windows! I also learned about leaking firewall seals that night... as the water kept dripping onto my right foot!

I was given a rear window glass from someone cleaning out their garage... it has the electric defrost grids built into it. I had never seen that until the day I got one. The only thing is that I have no idea as to where it gets plugged in to!
Look up Frost Fighters the sell a complete package n repair parts
 
I never got around to it, but I thought about a DIY grid-type defogger that would be more like the factory type than the aftermarket stick-on types. I'd mask the interior of the glass (inside-up on a suitable workbench), draw the lines and bus bars on the mask and cut them out very carefully to make a neat job of it with consistent line width, etc. Then I'd apply glass etchant and let it work, wash away the etchant and let the glass dry, apply however many coats the conductive paint that makes up the actual defogger lines, probably with a brayer/rubber roller for consistent thickness, let it dry, remove the masking, and apply terminals with suitable conductive epoxy.

The control circuit would be easy from whatever OE parts bin I cared to raid: momentary-contact switch to trip a 10-minute timer relay. Or if I didn't like any of the OE options, Amperite makes a variety of timer relays that could be put to use.

Back to the question at hand: when I search [1976 Plymouth Duster] [Glass, Back] [2dr, heated] on www.car-part.com , I get some hits including some "New OE" ones in New Jersey. Search results on www.hollanderparts.com might show up, too.
 
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