My glasses are always dirty! What should I do?
She loves them but they were driving her crazy, she couldn’t keep them clean, her glasses were always dirty. She had a beautiful designer frame on her beautifully made up face, but the lenses were really smudgy.
She didn’t know why. This prompted me to write a little piece about it as it is something I hear in practice on a regular basis.
So why are my glasses getting so dirty?
Most glasses are now being dispensed with reflection free lenses in order to reduce glare from screens at home, in the office or when mobile. They reduce glare when driving at night and cosmetically they are superior, allowing your eyes to be seen rather than glassy reflections. (They are also known as anti-glare lenses).
There is a myriad of these lenses on the market from various laboratories and each optometry practice has their lab preference. The thing is that some anti-glare lenses are more prone to smudging than others. Also as the lenses age, some will degrade more than others and make it even harder to keep clean. A good reflection free lens will be smudge resistant, water repellant, protect against uv, dust repellant, anti-static and anti-scratch — which to you and me means less cleaning of lenses and the best possible vision.
Glasses also get dirty if you have a tendency to have oily skin, dry flaky skin, if you wear make-up, or if you use moisturiser on your face or hands.You wouldn’t believe how often we touch our face, hair and glasses over the course of the day. Dust can build up on your glasses overnight. Monitor it, you will be surprised. Some of this natural daily debris is going to appear on your glasses.
If you are blessed with naturally long eyelashes, they can rub off the lenses when you blink, adding to the accumulation of dirt and/or grease on your lenses. This is a tricky one because it actually comes down to being correctly and professionally measured and fitted for your spectacles by your trusted optician/optometrist. Depending on your facial structure, some frames will sit closer to your eyes than others. Some prescriptions are also thicker than others and the thicker ones may sit closer to the eyes too.
And what do I need to do?
It is important that you include the care of your spectacles in to your daily routine. I would recommend that you clean your glasses every day at mealtimes! Its easy to do and its so worth it! Create a habit of caring for your spectacles, keeping them looking great and you will see better. No brainer!
Lukewarm water and dish-soap is still a good way to clean your glasses, however if you have reflection-free or anti- glare lenses I advise you to do this with a degree of caution.
Reflection free lenses ideally should be cleaned with a lens cleaning solution and micro-fibre cloth suitable for those lenses.
When travelling I use individually wrapped, pre-moistened, disposable cleaning wipes which are excellent for cleaning my glasses (and they are great for cleaning smart phone screens, tablets and computer screens!)
In house we have a professional cleaning service using an ultrasonic bath which cleans the lenses, frames and nose-pad arms, restoring your glasses to 'as-good-as-new'. This is a great service for people who work in dusty or dirty environments.
Make sure you replace your micro fibre cloth regularly, they also become dirty over time.
And one final tip: always store your glasses in their case when you are not using them, especially at night.
So, getting back the the lovely seminar lady with the smudgy glasses! I offered to clean her glasses for her with our special branded microfibre cloth and in-house formula lens cleaning spray. She was delighted! I wish I had my camera to capture her reaction when she put her glasses back on, her face just lit up in wonder. Priceless!
It struck me that many people are not aware of how to care for their spectacles, of the products available to them to do so, and that we can help! We are always happy to clean your glasses for you, pop in anytime.
