How to Protect and Maintain Safety Glasses

1. You get a nice new pair and the visual clarity is perfect. Two weeks later, you find a whopping great scratch on one of the lenses that gets in the way of the view. In a few months, you can barely see out of them because there are more scratched bits than un-scratched bits.
   
   
2. The eyewear is fine when everything is at a pleasant temperature and humidity but as soon as you begin manual labour or put on a mask, the eyewear fogs and you can’t see a thing.
   
   
3. Seemingly well-fitting eyewear slides down your nose as soon as you sweat or put sunscreen on.

How to Prevent Scratching

• The best and most obvious way to prevent glasses and goggles from scratching is to use a case or pouch when you take them off, rather than throwing them on your dashboard with pens, screws and other sharp objects. Most Bollé Safety products come with a microfiber pouch and you can buy them separately.
  
  
• Buy eyewear with an anti-scratch coating, noting that not all coatings are created equal. Bollé Safety has two levels of anti-scratch coating: Platinum, and Platinum Lite. More on this shortly.
  
  
• Clean your eyewear properly. Rather than using whatever rag or old jumper you have lying around, use a proper glasses cloth, clean microfibre or wipes to clean your glasses. Cold or warm (not hot) soapy water will do the job of getting dirt and dust off the eyewear, but the best option is a proper cleaning solution, such as the Bollé Safety B-Clean range. These are alcohol and silicone-free and can help maintain the protective or specialised coatings (such as mirrored lenses) on eyewear

How to prevent Fogging

1. Spit. The idea behind this is that particularly goobie spit acts as a ‘surfactant’. That means it stops water particles from joining up to form the dreaded fog. This is true, but the spit has to be pretty gnarly, and most people don’t want that near their eyeball. Not recommended.
   
   
2. Toothpaste. This actually acts on the idea that eyewear comes with a film on it that is more likely to fog. The toothpaste works as it does on teeth: like gentle sandpaper to work the coating off without leaving big scratches on the lens. THIS IS NOT ADVISABLE. Not only does toothpaste remove protective coatings, it scratches the lens, and has its own minty vapour that will make your eyes water.
   
   
3. Hair conditioner. This works a bit like spit, but is far more hygienic. It creates a thin layer that doesn’t allow the water droplets to congregate into a fog. However, it needs applying quite often and needs to be washed off properly so that you don’t get conditioner in your eye or a very blurry view through the lens which is certainly not safe. The hassle and risk involved in this one make it an unlikely choice for a workplace.

The list goes on, from the unrealistic ‘don’t touch the lens….ever’ and ‘don’t let your face get hot’ to the outlandish rubbing of a cut potato over the lens (apparently works...but only on glass) and naked flame (gets rid of the notorious ‘foggy film’). However, none of these solutions is as convenient or works as well as buying eyewear that has an anti-fog coating built into it and using cleaning solutions to keep that coating maintained.

Bollé Safety Solutions

• Platinum: In order to improve the longevity of wear of their eyewear, Bollé Safety has developed an exclusive range of permanent anti-fog & anti-scratch coatings. Applied to both sides of the lenses, PLATINUM & PLATINUM Lite are coatings with hydrophilic properties on which a homogeneous, colourless film of water is created that repels further droplets. This film, thanks to its water-repellent action, gives PLATINUM very effective and long-lasting anti-fog properties. Platinum is a premium coating, designed for extreme environments and exceeds the expectations of rigorous international standards.
  
  
• Platinum Lite: Platinum Lite is a more economical version of our exclusive coating, and provides optimised anti-fogging and anti-scratch performance for standard working environments, where the risk of fogging is limited.
  
  
• B-Clean: B-Clean by Bollé Safety is a complete and efficient cleaning solutions range. Alcohol and silicone free, its water-based formula guarantees perfect cleaning and protection for your glasses and goggles.
  

How to stop glasses from slipping

This one is all about fit and frame material. If you’re likely to be doing work in a humid environment, are likely to be wearing sunscreen or get sweaty, look for safety glasses with special features like a non-slip nose bridge and tip-grip temples. These tend to be made out of softer rubber that clings better to their position without causing uncomfortable pressure. Also, making sure the eyewear fits properly will help to prevent slipping: Bollé Safety has several products that have adjustable nose bridges, flex 160 temples and even come in a smaller size to ensure a cosier fit. If all else fails, the use of an adjustable strap will prevent glasses from slipping.

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