Why do glasses get so dirty quickly?

holnrew

My optician told me to wear my glasses more so I am, but they seem to get dirty and smudgy seconds after I clean them. Is it just me and my oily forehead? Or do others struggle? 

I'm just glad I don;t have to wear them out because they're ugly walter white style ones.

JezWynd

Try a metal frame. They sit proud of the face and stay clean longer ime.

bingefeller

I think it's just grease and dirt from your eyelashes making them dirty on the inside and just dirt in the atmosphere making them dirty on the outside.  Boots opticians sell their own make spray cleaner quite cheap which I find good.

holnrew

If I wore them constantly I'd be cleaning them every five minutes. 

Related question... Do people with poor eyesight notice the smudges?

SRich

I have the same issue with metal frames.............life is a dirty job but someone's got to clean it up.

stickyfiddle

It's just ineviatble dust and shite off your eyelashes and eyebrows. 

I wear glasses all the time and I only notice when they're *really* bad. MrsF wears hers only about 40% of the time and gets annoyed by the slighest smudge, so I think it's a question of getting used to it.

Rocker

Meths is the best cleaner of glasses IMHO. Fold a paper towel in half, drop of meths and clean both sides of the glass at the same time. Dry off and a quick polish and job done. Twenty seconds at most...

thermionic

Opticians would shudder at using paper towels - they're full of wood fibres and scratch plastic lenses. Glass is harder of course but you could destroy an antireflective coating (if the lenses have them).

Jalapeno

Boots cleaner is good and cheap. Eyelashes and eyebrows are the culprits I find

Skipped

It is amazing how dirty they are a couple of days after cleaning.
My tip is get a big cheap bottle of lens cleaner and then dilute it with 50% tap water or more. And get a good microfiber cloth.

https://beautyproducts.healthybe.uk/images/product/34c/three-pentax-supaclean-micro-fibre-cleaning-cloth-from-hilco-pale-blue.jpeg

octatonic

You aren't alone Russ- it is the constant bane of my life.

I clean my glasses probably 10 times a day- smudges and smears drive me to distraction.

My eyes aren't bad enough to not notice them, I think.
One frustrating thing is in dim light I see the reflection of what is behind me in the glasses- took me ages to work out what was happening as it looks like a smudge but you can't clean it off.
Moving the glasses up and down keeps the 'smudge' in the same place so it has to be a reflection.
I mention this in case this is happening to you- I almost replaced a pair of glasses because I thought I had scratched them but it turned out it was just the reflection of a wall light behind my usual seat in the living room.
Totally maddening.

I buy small pump packs of lens cleaner (I think they are 30 ml each) and microfibre cloths from Amazon- they are scattered about the house and I pretty much always have a cloth in my pocket.

I've learned my lesson with using t-shirts or other cloths to clean the lenses- microfibre or nothing.

My wooden frame glasses are much more susceptible to oils than polycarbonate or metal ones (as well a being more fragile), so the wooden ones are for best and I wear the polycarbonate and metal ones day to day.

Sporky

I use Zeiss lens wipes, probably one a week or so is enough for me. I can not notice smudges for ages, then they hit a tipping point and it's like I'm looking through frosted glass.

scrumhalf

Cleaning specs is a great way to but time when you need 30 seconds to think in a tight spot.

I tend to use really soft cotton handkerchiefs, that have been washed many, many times.

jellyroll

I clean mine a zillion times a day too. Soap and water or hankie in my pocket (which really just rearranges the grease rather than removes it). 

Gagaryn

Yup - microfiber cloths for a quick polish and fairy liquid or shampoo for a better clean. I never buy any fancy cleaners. I wear glasses all the time and have done pretty much my whole life -the slightest smudge still annoys me!

bingefeller

Rocker said:

Meths is the best cleaner of glasses IMHO. Fold a paper towel in half, drop of meths and clean both sides of the glass at the same time. Dry off and a quick polish and job done. Twenty seconds at most...

If you have anti-glare coating I imagine that meth would gradually strip that off over time.  Also, I would be reluctant to clean something with meth and then be wearing it close to my eyes. 

speshul91

I'm long sighted mine have to be absolutely longing before I notice 

Maynehead

Looking at too many dirty things! 

KKJale

I'm a fan of the W5 disposable glasses wipes from Lidl.

Better than the Opticlear ones, and much cheaper. 

DiscoStu

We use meths and facial tissues to clean lenses in the lab, sometimes isopropanol for plastic frames as meths can take the sheen off some of them.

WezV

When I first got mine I think I spent more time cleaning than wearing them.

now, I might do it twice a day and they are always filthy.

i really notice it in the cinema though, especially if there are 3D specs over the top