If you're planning to drive during the Canadian wildfire smoke, below are our ten driving safety tips during wildfire smoke:
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- Limit your driving
- Combine your trips
- Engage your headlights
- Slow down
- Increase the distance
- Consider the recirculate mode
- Close the windows and vents
- Plan your trips
- Consider wearing a special mask
- Protect your vehicle with maintenance
So we are now hearing in the news about the Canadian wildfire smoke impacting many states around the United States, especially Illinois and Milwaukee. If you're living in one of those states, you might have heard from automotive experts that you should reduce your driving as much as possible because of the deteriorated air quality.
If you're in an area impacted by the Canadian wildfire smoke, you might need to drive for certain trips you can't avoid. If that's the case, automotive experts have some safety tips and recommendations to help you go through your trip with the least possible impact by the wildfire smoke.
This article highlights ten important driving safety tips during wildfire smoke. These should help you in certain areas, but if their quality is extremely deteriorated, you should always follow the experts' recommendations in your area.
Ten driving safety tips during wildfire smoke.
Although we know that driving during the deteriorated air quality is not recommended, there are some necessary trips that we have to make either to the grocery store to get some food or for other emergencies like going to the emergency room.
If you're dealing with such a situation, you want to ensure that you're driving as safely as possible and avoid dealing with any potential negative consequences of this wildfire smoke.
The following list provides you with 10 driving safety tips during wildfire smoke:
1. Limit your driving
Although it's pretty obvious, one of the most important safety tips during wildfire smoke is limiting your driving as much as possible. For example, if you have an unnecessary trip to visit a family member or a friend that can wait until air quality improves, you should consider rescheduling it.
This idea of limiting your driving might not be possible for everybody, but if it's something you can do as much as possible, you should do so. This also depends on your type of work and the commute you experience.
2. Combine your trips
Another important driving safety tip during wildfire smoke is to combine your trips. Say that you cannot avoid driving twice or three times every day towards multiple errands; you can combine these trips and have them at one time so you don't have to deal with the deteriorated air quality until things are cleared out and are better.
Again, it's always important to mention that this applies to some people, not everybody; eliminating driving as much as possible would be a better solution, and less exposure to deteriorated air quality.
3. Engage your headlights
One of the biggest challenges driving in an area impacted by wildfire smoke is visibility. Most people cannot see before them like usual, so you must engage all potential safety features in your vehicle that help you see as clearly as possible.
For example, if you did not already, engage your headlights and ensure that you can see in front of you to the point where he can drive. Otherwise, if visibility worsens, it might be better to eliminate driving now.
4. Slow down
Some experts mentioned that slowing down can play a significant role in protecting you during any situation where driving is not safe. For example, if the visibility is limited, being slow helps you maintain your actions and respond quickly to anything that could happen around you.
As you're driving during the wildfire smoke season, you need to understand that not everybody is paying attention and implementing these driving safety tips during wildfire smoke and wildfire season. Therefore, you have to be careful about how you drive, and slowing down can be a big help.
5. Increase the distance
In addition to slowing down, you must maintain the right distance between you and the driver in front of you. This helps you react quickly, especially when the driver stops suddenly, and it will help you avoid dealing with major car crashes that could worsen things.
It would be best to remember that all these drivers driving around you are not implementing the safety tips mentioned during wildfire smoke. This helps you become more responsible about the situation and plan to avoid any potential negative consequences.
6. Consider the recirculate mode
Since the air quality will significantly deteriorate because of the wildfire smoke, you must use the recirculate mode in your car. This helps maintain cleaner air in your vehicle and is as good as possible to help you maintain the trip and get towards your distance without any issues in our equality.
7. Close the windows and vents
It's recommended that you close the windows and vents, especially when the air quality is not good in your area. This prevents exposure to contaminated air and protects your vehicle interior components that might be very sensitive to these contaminations.
By closing the windows and vents, you also protect your car's interior. Although it might not sound very severe that this interior might be impacted by air quality, the long term can be clear evidence that your vehicle's interior can deteriorate because of the accumulated contaminations.
8. Plan your trips
Even if you couldn't cancel any of your trips and didn't have the chance to combine the trips, planning your trip helps you reduce exposure to contaminated air. For example, if you can find the safest route to help you avoid staying within the deteriorated air quality as much as possible, this could be a better and better idea.
9. Consider wearing a special mask
Depending on where you live and how bad the air quality in your area is, experts recommend wearing face masks that clean and filter the air as one of the most important driving safety tips during wildfire smoke. Some experts even recommend putting those masks when you're walking or waiting for a car because this prevents inhaling these contaminants during this short time which might have a long-term impact.
10. Protect your vehicle with maintenance
Finally, maintaining your vehicle is one of the most important driving safety tips during wildfire smoke. This is because if the car has major problems, it might impact how long you stay in the world and deal with sudden major breakdowns that need immediate assistance where it might not be available, which means that you will stay in the world for a longer time.
Therefore, you must check your vehicle owner's manual and ensure you don't leave any important maintenance. For example, if your car is due for an oil change, go ahead and do it, and if tires need some rotation, you must implement them, especially in evacuation cases.
Driving safety tips during wildfire smoke: Final Thoughts
Wildfire smoke impacted many of our lives, especially in areas impacted by the wildfire. It's always recommended that you avoid driving in areas where air quality is not that good, but unfortunately, there are situations we cannot avoid, and we have to make these trips.
This article highlighted ten important driving safety tips during wildfire smoke. These tips should be good recommendations for those who have necessary trips. Still, we always like to remind you that you should follow the recommendations by health experts in your area about whether you can drive at all.
If you think your car is not in good shape to survive these situations, it might be perfect timing to sell it and buy another one. Are you looking for someone to buy your car immediately without you wasting your time in areas that are impacted by the wildfire? Call Cash Cars Buyer today at 773-791-4363.