Advice from frequent snow drivers sought....

That was a advantage with the old air operated wipers, you could bump them a couple of times and break off the ice.

 

Put your sun visors down to trap the heat from the defroster on the windshield.

 

I have bought heavy/duty winter wiper blades from Napa that are thicker and had a much deeper blades that made the wiper arms stand out away from windshield and just threw the ice and snow off of them and l have gotten them to last a much longer time than regular blades!

 

Hope for more global warming

 

Trap the heat at the top of the windshield. I've never found that advice helpful except when it is snowing hard, with wet heavy flakes that freeze on the windshield as they hit. As for keeping the wipers even a tiny bit less frozen, I don't think it works at all.

I imagine a double pane windshield where defrost heat is trapped between the outer windshield and some sort of Plexiglas interior layer of windshield would be very effective.

 

Heated windshields with heating elements embedded in the glass have been around for decades.

Supposedly, Ford holds the patent and that's why it isn't widespread, but the technology has been out there for a while.

 

I just use slightly shorter winter wiper blades that have the rubber covering most of the it. I also use winter windshield washer and add just abit more rubbing alcohol in it. Also getting the clutter off the dashboard and having the defrosters on blast helps when it starts building up.

 

Those cost more. Each glass supplier already supplies rear windows with thin heating elements. The same elements could heat windshields. It probably is due to cost, no consumer demand, or govt regulations.