With it now being fall in Oklahoma it's time to start thinking about winter and getting your car or truck ready for the cold. While most know they need to service the coolant and check the tires, not as many know they need to winterize their windshield. The best part is the cost to winterize your windshield is usually much less than other auto services. Here is a list of things you should do to get your windshield and auto glass ready for ice and snow.

Check The Windshield For Chips. Most cracked windshields started with a small chip (star). Turning on the defroster in the cold with a chipped windshield can cause a crack to quickly run across your windshield. Here are some examples of windshield damage that needs to be repaired.

Check Your Windshield Wiper Blades. Wiper blades that have gone through the heat of summer can be damaged. Inspect each wiper blade for cracks, tears or bent and broken frames. Don't forget to check the rear wiper blade if your vehicle is so equipped. If they appear in good condition check the wiper performance by turning them on and using the windshield washer. If they don't sweep the glass clean after a couple of sweeps or are damaged replace them. Most auto repair shops or auto part stores can help with this job. Naturally if your windshield washers don't work you should also get them repaired.

Treat Your Windshield. A dry fall day is a great time to treat your windshield. Products like Aquapel or RainX can help when your windshield has ice stuck to it. Likewise it can improve visibility in bad weather.

STOP: Never treat a windshield that has a chip. If the treatment gets into the chip, the damage may no longer be able to be repaired.

Fill Your Windshield Washer Fluid Reservoir. If over summer you added water to the reservoir you should empty the reservoir before adding  new fluid. If you can't easily remove the reservoir to dump the old fluid try siphoning it out. CAUTION: Never let washer fluid get in your mouth or swallow any it is a deadly poison. Use a washer fluid that won't freeze, many of these products will show the freeze point.

We don't like washer fluid that has a windshield treatment mixed with it. The reason is that if you get a chip and use the windshield washers to clean your windshield, the fluid with the treatment can get into the chip and render it unrepairable.

Finally make sure you have an ice scraper. We always get tons of calls about repairing windshields or auto glass that is badly scratched from using something besides an ice scraper to remove ice. Never use anything metal or glass to remove ice. Another words shovels, knives and screw drivers are a no-nos to remove ice. And never use hot water to remove ice.