Your glasses are freshly cleaned and look spotless at first glance. Yet, when you wear them, your vision still doesn't feel quite clear. You blink more often, adjust your glasses, or unconsciously change your head posture. At night, headlights have a halo, and in direct sunlight, your vision appears milky.
So you clean them again. Often, it doesn't get any better.
The reason: Residues can remain on the lens during cleaning and merely spread across the surface. Even small amounts of skin oil or other residues can affect the optical properties of the surface. Studies show that even a single fingerprint can measurably alter the light transmission of a spectacle lens.
Dry wiping spreads grease instead of dissolving it
Throughout the day, skin oil, fingerprints, sunscreen, and residues from cosmetic products get onto your spectacle lenses. These contaminations adhere to the surface. A dry cloth can absorb some of it, but it doesn't completely remove the greasy film. Instead, some of the residues spread across the lens.
For a moment, the glasses appear clearer. As soon as light hits the lens from the side, remaining streaks become visible.
The cleaning cloth itself also plays a role. A cloth left open in its case or pocket for an extended period can pick up dust and other particles and loses its cleaning effectiveness over time. The article Why you shouldn't clean your glasses with your T-shirt explains why a T-shirt is not a good alternative.
Household cleaners are not suitable for spectacle lenses
Glass cleaner, dish soap, and disinfectants are readily available. They were developed for other surfaces and materials, not specifically for modern spectacle lenses with their various coatings.
Depending on their composition, aggressive or unsuitable cleaning agents can affect certain coatings. With frequent or improper use, changes to the surface may appear. These include, for example, stained or iridescent spots that cannot simply be wiped away. The article Coated spectacle lenses: what cleaning does to the surface describes what can happen to the surface when using unsuitable cleaning agents.
Additionally, there may be residues from the cleaning agent. If the surface is not completely rinsed, components can remain on the lens when it dries. The glasses then appear dull or streaky, even though they have just been cleaned.
More pressure does not solve the problem
If streaks remain, people often rub harder. This changes little as long as the greasy film is still on the lens.
Rubbing harder is also not a better solution for the surface. Modern spectacle lenses consist of several layers, which, depending on the lens, include anti-reflective or hard coatings. If dust or fine particles are present between the cloth and the lens, high pressure can put more strain on the surface with frequent cleaning. A single cleaning process usually makes no visible difference. However, over a longer period, improper cleaning can still leave marks.
Three questions help to find the cause faster:
- Is the cloth clean and dry?
- Was the greasy film dissolved before drying?
- Were water or cleaning agent residues left on the lens?
How Eyeshaker fits into your cleaning routine
Eyeshaker separates the individual steps of glasses cleaning, which often merge when quickly dry wiping.
In the shaker, water and cleaning tabs dissolve residues. The glasses are then rinsed with water, including the frame and nose pads. Only after that is THE GLOVE used: The dark side absorbs moisture, and the light side is for polishing.
The cleaning cloth thus takes care of the last step. Grease, dissolved residues, and water are removed from the surface beforehand.
Clear vision is a matter of the right sequence
Thorough glasses cleaning consists of several steps: dissolving residues, rinsing, absorbing moisture, and polishing. If only dry wiping is done, grease, water, or other residues are more likely to remain on the surface. The result is streaks and vision that doesn't seem truly clear despite clean glasses.
The complete basic routine is explained in the article How to clean glasses properly: a simple routine for clear vision.
The individual steps take only a short time. The crucial thing is that each step fulfills the purpose for which it is intended.
Products for complete glasses cleaning
THE GLOVE for drying and polishing.
EYESHAKER Set for the complete cleaning routine.
EYESHAKER Cleaning Tabs to dissolve residues.
