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Medical Forum / General / Vision / May 2007Keeping Eyeglasses Clean
I started wearing eyeglasses about 8 months ago. When I asked the fitter about cleaning and mentioned kleenex, he reacted as though I had suggested a daily rubdown with sandpaper. Then I googled eyeglass care and cleaning pages and they were in near unanimous agreement with his advice: use only dish soap and warm water--or eyeglass cleaning solution--and always the right cloth, preferably a microfiber cloth that's been protected from collecting dust. Dire warnings about kleenex and paper towels, especially, but also any plausible cloth you might realistically have on hand--shirt tails, etc. After following the guidelines for 8 months, I have pristine, scratch free lenses, but at the expense of long hours of peering through horribly annoying, filthy lenses until I can get back to dish soap or cleaning solution and an appropriate cloth, or when I remember, having to inconveniently carry a cleaning kit along with me wherever I go. How overblown is the advice? Why can't I use a shirt tail and breath fog to clean my glasses when cleaning my windshield with a dobie has no ill effect? How come I see people all over the place with clean, unscratched glasses without bulky cleaning kits spilling out of their pockets? What's your secret? Before experimenting with a pricey pair of specs, I'd like feedback from those who have been there: what's a practical, hassle free way to keep your glasses clean and in reasonably good condition in the REAL world? > I started wearing eyeglasses about 8 months ago. When I asked the > fitter about cleaning and mentioned kleenex, he reacted as though I [quoted text clipped - 24 lines] > keep your glasses clean and in reasonably good condition in the REAL > world? new antireflective coatings (crizal alize to name one) only require a microfiber cleaning cloth (usually supplied by your optician). You almost never need water/soap or other solutions to get them sparkling clean. they work very well. > > I started wearing eyeglasses about 8 months ago. When I asked the > > fitter about cleaning and mentioned kleenex, he reacted as though I [quoted text clipped - 29 lines] > You almost never need water/soap or other solutions to get them > sparkling clean. they work very well. Not if you have oily skin. Dirt is one thing, oil film is another. On the portion of the eyeglass frame touching under my eyes and on my nose, and the inside of the lense surface from my eyebrows, the accumulation of oil, and then trapped dust, is incredible. I have to wash the glasses 2 - 3 times per day. I have Crizal Alize on my PALs (1.67 Hi-Index). It is a fantastic product compared to the old stuff that was available. I use warm water from the faucet to rinse as much as possible off of the glasses, then gently apply a lather from a drop of plain mild dish soap and more water. Rinse well, and then gently blot dry with a clean lint free tissue. I don't get scratches or lint, and it is has been two years on this pair of glasses. I can't afford fine microfibre cloths to throw away after few uses when they start trapping dirt. I can't carry around a box of lint free cotton cloths everywhere I go, but I can usually find good tissues almost anywhere. That is just my experience of 40 years of daily wear @ 18 hours per day. Dennis R Folks, you don't need those expensive microfiber cloths. Old worn T stirts do the job just fine and we all have em. Just cut them into little cloths and you're set. > Folks, you don't need those expensive microfiber cloths. Old worn T > stirts do the job just fine and we all have em. > Just cut them into little cloths and you're set. I breathe on the lenses (cr39, no coatings) and use the tail of my current t-shirt to finish them off. If I get something filthy on them, or a bug splat or something, I use water and dish soap, drying with a paper towel and ultimately the aforementioned t-shirt tail. The only scratches I get are from dropping or stepping on them. Some of us are clumsier than others.  SignatureCheers, Bev ===================================================== It's 95% of the lawyers making the other 5% look bad. > I breathe on the lenses (cr39, no coatings) and use the tail of my current > t-shirt to finish them off. If I get something filthy on them, or a bug > splat or something, I use water and dish soap, drying with a paper towel > and ultimately the aforementioned t-shirt tail. The only scratches I get > are from dropping or stepping on them. Some of us are clumsier than > others. Bravo. If a coating is too soft for good facial tissue or toilet paper, then it's too effing soft. -MT > > Folks, you don't need those expensive microfiber cloths. Old worn T > > stirts do the job just fine and we all have em. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > ===================================================== > It's 95% of the lawyers making the other 5% look bad. Same here. > I started wearing eyeglasses about 8 months ago. When I asked the > fitter about cleaning and mentioned kleenex, he reacted as though I > had suggested a daily rubdown with sandpaper. My opinion: http://www.obase.net/clens.htm the microfiber cloths that are so popular are great on the day you get them. after that, they get progressively more damaging as they pick up fine sand and dust particles (which converts them into the sandpaper your fitter is so afraid of) ever see a piece of dust/sand under a microscope. sharp little suckers, and HARD. w.stacy, o.d. >I started wearing eyeglasses about 8 months ago. When I asked the >fitter about cleaning and mentioned kleenex, he reacted as though I >had suggested a daily rubdown with sandpaper. Cellulose, in the short term, will not damage optical lenses or AR coatings, although I've read that they will leave some very slight hazing when used long term on coated optics like camera lenses. However, it's not likely that you'll keep your eyeglass lenses more than five or ten years so I wouldn't sweat it. Keep in mind that you shouldn't clean with tissues, use only for drying the lens after soap and water. The tissue should contain no lotion or oils, same for the soap. When cleaning lenses, it's generally not the material that's going to scratch the lens, instead it's the particulate matter that gets trapped between the lens and the cloth/tissue. Make sure that you thoroughly rinse the lenses under running water, clean with soap, rinse, and then wipe dry. Store the wiping material away from dirt and dust. Shake before using just in case. The best microfiber cloth I've found is made by Toraysee called Luminex. I recommend using these cloths for drying the lenses and to remove smears and smudges when away from home. http://www.toraysee.jp/e/index.html http://www.rue.com/cleaning.html Robert Martellaro ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Optician/Owner Roberts Optical Wauwatosa, Wi. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Science is a way of trying not to fool yourself." - Richard Feynman |
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