Picture this; you are sitting in a coffee shop with your incredibly tasty chai latte, your laptop set up, your Lucyd’s on, pen and notepad at the ready for a big video call. This has become an all too common scenario in the world of flexible working now that we are free to work and rein outside the office.
What is equally as common, is what happens next. You connect to your Zoom or Team's call, get into your flow, take a sip of your latte, and your glasses fog over just as you’re about to refer to your notes to answer a key question. Awkward.
We’ve all experienced our lenses fogging over, here we explore why glasses fog over and what you can do to avoid it happening again.
Why Do Glasses Fog Over?
Glasses tend to fog up when there is a sudden change in the temperature of the environment. You’ve probably noticed how when you step inside after being in chilly weather, your glasses almost immediately fog up. The same happens when you’re spending a humid summer's day outdoors and then you walk into a crisp, air-conditioned room. This phenomenon is known as condensation and is the usual culprit when it comes to foggy glasses.
How To Defog Your Glasses?
Simply waiting for our glasses to clear up isn’t a practical solution. Not only can the experience be aggravating, but it can also be dangerous when you’re driving in traffic, cooking over high heat, or going for a run.
When we’re finding solutions to the problem of misty glasses, we’re also looking for an antifog method that isn’t a temporary solution. We need an anti-mist solution that can last an extended period of time.
Likewise, we also need a solution that isn’t going to be toxic, nor one that is going to damage the surface of your lenses.
Defogging wipes are a handy, reliable means of keeping your lenses fog-free. These nifty little wipes are stored in little sachets, so they’re easy to keep in your glasses case, handbag or wallet.
Unlike most lens sprays, defogging wipes are specifically designed for glasses. Once the wipe has been applied to the surface of the lens, the chemical liquid creates a surface that makes it harder for water droplets to attach to your lenses. This makes it much less likely that condensation will create large droplets that obstruct your view.
Don’t let the idea of the wipes containing a chemical put you off; the chemical agents are completely safe and can be used when wearing masks. They can be applied before you head into the office, embark on an outdoor adventure, or before situations that require wearing a mask.
If you’re at home and experience foggy glasses, you’ll be delighted to know that your common household friend, soap, can reduce the surface tension on your lenses. This trick can also be used before you apply defogging wipes.
Start by wetting your glasses and then lathering them up with soap. Give them a good wash, ensuring that you get within the corners and that the entire surface has been cleaned. Rinse off the soap and dry them off with a lens cloth or clean towel.
Top tip: Only use soap to clean your glasses. Household tricks like toothpaste, bicarbonate of soda, vinegar, and saliva can scratch the surface of the glasses or cause hygiene problems.
Proper lens care can prevent a layer of dust from building up on your lens. When condensation occurs, water droplets can attach to dust particles and create hazy vision. This further runs the risk of damaging the protective coating on your eyewear.
Lens cleaning fluid can be a quick solution when you’re on the move and you’ve noticed that your glasses have taken a bit of a beating due to outdoor conditions with dust and sand. The fluid can also be an excellent way to remove grease - grease is your worst nightmare when it comes to foggy glasses because it prevents you from wiping fog efficiently off your specs.
It can be tempting to clean your lenses as often as possible, but if you’re constantly cleaning your lenses, you run the risk of damaging them further.
3 Ways To Protect Your Glasses
If you wear corrective lenses, it's important to find a way to keep them from fogging up, as well as keep them protected from scratches, so you can see properly.
As we’ve noted, it’s important that we aren’t cleaning our lenses too often as it could result in unnecessary micro scratches. Not only that, but cleaning glasses too often removes the protective layer from antifogging wipes which combat condensation. A microfiber slipcase acts as a cleaner and a protector against scratches, which removes the need for excessive cleaning.
Anti-Fog wipes are a great way to protect your glasses from fogging over when you experience a climate change and the impacts of condensation. We stock the Optiplus Anti Fog Lens Wipes here on lucyd.co, a 10 pack should support you for a reasonable period of time.
It's a fact of life that accidents happen. But with a glasses case, you can rest easy knowing your specs are safe and sound. The tough exterior protects your glasses from scratches and dust, while the soft interior keeps them free from damage. This also means that the protective layer on your lens produced by defogging wipes and lens cleaners remains intact and doesn’t wear off easily.
