Have you ever been on a snowmobile and noticed that your helmet visor started to fog up? To a point that you can’t see clearly and it’s really getting wild and dangerous? Well, we’ve been there. This is a problem for many reasons and especially because it inhibits your ability to see.
Look, in season, snowmobile helmets enjoy a unique one-to-one relationship with your face and it’s up to you as the snowmobiler to keep the helmet clean and usable. However, as winter months are cold, the visor of your helmet will inevitably start to fog up due to several reasons.
This could be due to rain, snow, moisture from your breath, or just naturally from being out in the cold. So how exactly can you prevent a snowmobile helmet visor from fogging?
Well, keeping your visor clear while snowmobiling in winter can be a constant battle, as the fogging can cause frustration and compromise safety. In fact, the snowmobile industry has gone through numerous changes over the past few years to help ensure riders stay fog-free.
It is a bit of a nuisance but there’re some simple tips you can use to ensure your snowmobile helmet visor doesn’t fog up. And we’ll show you some of those tips. We’ll also take a look at the root cause of the fogging problem, and what you can do about it. Read on!
Table of Contents
Initial Thoughts
It is important to make sure you can see clearly when riding a snowmobile. Aside from having a great experience riding, you’ll also be much safer when you’re able to see things coming your way. Otherwise, if your vision is compromised, your safety will be compromised as well. That is why a foggy visor can be such a risky thing in your endeavor.
It’s best to understand the main causes of the fogging problem before diving into how you can prevent it from occurring. As you may already know, things can be quite unpredictable when it comes to snowmobiling and this definitely includes the visor. One moment, your visor is clean and clear, then the next thing it’s all shrouded in fog that you can’t even see anything.
Here are the main reasons why snowmobile helmets tend to fog up:
Snowmobile Helmet Visor Fogging: What Are The Causes?
The main reason why snowmobile helmets tend to fog up is that there’s too much moisture within and around your head. After condensation, this moisture creates water droplets that stick to the helmet visor, thereby obstructing your vision.
So, where does this moisture come from? You ask. Well, do you remember how amazed you were as a child the first time you breathed out on a chilly winter day?
It looked like a blast of smoke or fog coming straight from your mouth. And then you would pretend that you’re smoking a cigar, blowing smoke right out of your little mouth. Another relatable thing is when you breathed on a window or a glass, and it fogged up.
This happens because when warm air leaves your body and gets in contact with a cold surface, such as a window or a glass, or even the outside air, it condenses. And that explains it all.
Your breath is warm, and therefore will condense when it hits the cold visor. In other words, the fogging mist on your snowmobile helmet visor comes from your breath, straight out of your mouth and nose. It will most likely occur when you’re riding hard and building up perspiration, or if the helmet you’re using doesn’t have enough ventilation for heat to escape.
But whatever the case, you’ll have to try and resolve the issue as soon as you can. Fortunately, this is not something new, and as mentioned snowmobile helmet manufacturers have already come up with approaches to combat these helmet visor fogging problems. It’s also important to note that fogging can affects goggles and prescription glasses, not just helmet visors.
How To Prevent Your Helmet Visor From Forging
There’re many ways you can use to combat or prevent fogging issues on your helmet visor. Below, we’ve discussed some of the most effective ones to help handle the situation in case it arises while you’re riding.
Consider Using a Heated Helmet
A heated helmet can be a great idea if you don’t want to see your snowmobile helmet visor fogging. These helmets utilize battery-powered heat to lower the chances of your fogging up.
The best part about heated helmets is that they’re essentially designed to provide all the much-needed safety, without falling short on comfort features associated with standard helmets. And now when you throw in the heating element, it serves as a defroster to reduce moisture from accumulating inside the helmet. Just keep in mind that these helmets are the priciest on the market.
Getting Anti-Fog Lenses
The point here is simple; the helmet visor should be treated with anti-fogging solutions. This is a special kind of coating that helps moisture wick away and avoids fogging.
It is a common feature in snowmobile helmets and you won’t have to spend more money on it. However, you might want to check if the visor comes with anti-fog lenses, especially if you’re buying from a less-known brand.
Consider Using a Dual Pane Visor
This is yet another excellent method to keep your visor from fogging. As the name suggests, a dual-pane helmet features two visors piled on one another. With this design, the dual-pane helmet prevents fogging by lowering condensation, and it works just like the Pinlock Anti-Fog visor stated below.
A dual-pane visor helmet can be quite expensive than a regular helmet. However, they are less expensive compared to heated options and provide an extra layer of safety against fogging. In other words, a dual-pane visor will be even more effective at reducing the chance of fog.
Pinlock Anti-Fog Visor
Similar to the dual-pane visor, a helmet visor pinlock seals the air between the pinlock and the visor. The pinlock helps to maintain a warmer temperature than the primary visor, minimizing the chances of fogging.
One thing to note, however, is that the pinlock can only be used on a visor that’s designed as “Pinlock ready.” That means the visor should have two holes already drilled to accommodate this feature.
But in case your helmet visor doesn’t have the stated holes, there are some pinlock options out there that can be fitted to just about any helmet whether pinlock ready or not.
Get a Well-Ventilated Snowmobile Helmet
Ventilation is one of the most neglected features when it comes to choosing a new helmet. You’ll often hear the salesperson stressing how well-ventilated a certain helmet is and you’ll probably question why he made such a big deal out of it.
The reason is that proper ventilation is a crucial component for preventing fogging and the air vents should be well-set at the front and rear of the helmet to ensure adequate airflow to draw cold air in from the front and exhaust warm air out of the back vents. Otherwise, heat and moisture will accumulate within a helmet if it is not vented or when there’s nowhere to escape, leading to condensation, which, in turn, leads to a foggy helmet visor.
So when shopping, go for helmets with proper ventilation features to help combat the issue of fogging. These features could include breath deflectors, which let your breath escape through a tube rather than hitting the visor, or built-in airflow vents.
That said, good ventilation might not be enough for someone who runs hot or has a lot of body heat, but of course, it’s an effective strategy to reduce the likelihood of having a foggy visor.
The same case applies to goggles if you choose to go with an open-face helmet. Although manufacturers understand the need for proper airflow in keeping the goggles clear, the goggles should be worn in a way that allows the vents to exhaust through the helmet.
Using Anti-Fog Products
You can also use anti-fog items on your visor to lessen the likelihood of fogging. They are often available as a spray or a gel that you wipe over both sides of the visor, and they serve by averting the accumulation of moisture.
You may also use anti-fog sprays. They don’t have a good reputation overall, but users claim that some of them are effective at keeping a helmet visor from fogging up. Sprays and wipes are readily available, but will most likely act as just a quick solution.
Use Breath Deflectors
Nowadays, snowmobile helmet brands are designing their models with built-in breath deflectors. Although this doesn’t work for everyone for a variety of reasons such as inappropriate helmet size or a wrong-shaped face it can be a considerable option for some people.
Pay Attention To The Size Of Your Helmet
Another effective measure in your quest for a fog-free helmet visor is to make sure you’re using the right size for your helmet. A good-fitting helmet shouldn’t have any pressure points anywhere on your head.
If the helmet is causing you pain or discomfort, then chances are it’s too small to fit. Meanwhile, if the helmet is constantly wobbling around, there’s a good chance that it’s too big.
Your helmet may be too small if you experience any pain or discomfort while wearing it. On the other side, if your helmet bobs and weaves a lot, it probably is too big.
But how does this help with visor fogging? Well, snowmobiles nowadays are designed with a breath box to help prevent fogging, and if the helmet is not fitting well, then the overall functionality of the breath box will be compromised.
Note that for the breath box to work as expected, and efficiently deflect and exhaust your warm breath from the helmet, it has to fit snuggly and form a nice seal around your lips and against the checks. So if your helmet is the wrong size, the breath deflector will remain ineffective.
Modular Snowmobile Helmets
Proponents of modular helmets claim that a heated shield on these types of helmets is a waste of money. They claim that all it takes is a small amount of lid cracking to get enough airflow to prevent visor fog.
Some of the well-known helmet manufacturers, however, offer heated shields in both full-face and modular helmets. Perhaps it all depends on how chilly it gets where you live.
Some of the best options in this category are the Ski-Doo Modular models. This is because they feature a proprietary mask system that allows air to leave through two tubes which can help to prevent fog.
Final Thoughts
There’s no fun in riding with a foggy visor. But as you can see, you’ve got options. Some might be a bit expensive, others not so.
Whatever method you choose, keep your needs and local conditions in consideration. You might want to speak to other snowmobilers nearby to see what methods they use.
Ask them why they choose to use whatever they use rather than something else. You need a valid reason, not just a simple “because.” Remember that there are also free built-in choices available; you just need to figure out when, and how that works best for you.
For instance, you can keep the ventilation open for proper airflow. The vents are there for a reason. Do the same for the open visor. This is a hack that truly works by simply balancing the temperature inside and outside. For example, if the outside temperature is far below zero, you generally wouldn’t want to keep the visor open for an extended amount of time, but if you can keep your shield partially open rather than completely open, it might help clear visor fogging.
Thus far, there’s no doubt that a foggy visor is a significant safety issue. Check through the suggestion provided above to see which one suits you best. You might need to experiment with each before you find something that works, but one of them will undoubtedly work for a clear vision while snowmobiling. Hopefully, you’ll be able to keep your visor fog-free this season.
