Prescription glasses are expensive, they can be a touch delicate and those of us that wear them need them to perform even some of life’s simplest tasks – we absolutely, positively can’t afford to destroy them or mess them up in any way by not cleaning them properly.
There’s more to caring for your prescription glasses than just wiping them on your pants when they get dirty, you have to take some special precautions when cleaning your glasses if you want them to remain in good condition for as long as they can.
Don’t Dry Clean
Never, under any circumstances, attempt to clean your prescription glasses without using an appropriate liquid, like warm soapy water, to help wash away the grit and grime that may be present on the lenses. Wiping your prescription glasses with any kind of dry cloth, whether it be a paper towel, a tissue or just a soft handkerchief could do much more harm than good. If there is any dirt present on your prescription lenses when you wipe them with a dry cloth you run a serious risk of scratching the lenses – some scratches may or may not have a big or direct affect on your vision while wearing your glasses, but depending on the severity and the location of the scratch that you create by cleaning your glasses improperly – you may be rendering your very expensive prescription glasses all but useless.
A much better way to effectively clean your prescription glasses is to run them under a gentle stream of water from the tap in your sink and gently soap the dirty lenses with your hands. Rinse all of the soap away and pat the lenses dry. Even though you just finished cleaning your lenses and are certain that there is no dirt present, you must pat them dry instead of rubbing them dry because the cloth or towel you use to dry them may have something in or on it that could scratch your lenses.
Dirty Frames
At times it can be more than just the lenses of your prescription glasses that get dirty, the frames can often get soiled as well which may not necessarily affect your vision, but you should know how to take care of it properly if it becomes a problem.
Since you’ll be cleaning around your prescription lenses it’s very important to take the same care you use when cleaning your frames as you do when cleaning your lenses. It’s a good idea to use the same procedure highlighted above when cleaning your frames – warm water, hand wash with mild soap and pat dry – that way you’ll be sure that your lenses don’t accidentally get scratched while you are in the process of cleaning your frames.
If your frames get particularly dirty or if they haven’t been cleaned in a while and you don’t know if a simple hand washing will suffice, you can take them to the optician’s office for a cleaning. Many opticians’ offices have machines that they can put your frames in to clean them quickly, safely and effectively. This machine will work on just about every type of prescription glasses frames, but may not necessarily be advisable for frames that are ornately decorated with gold and jewels because the machine’s action may dislodge some of the frames décor.
You wear your glasses all day, every day – they are bound to get dirty. If you never cleaned them after a week or so you wouldn’t be able to see, so you must learn how to clean your glasses with doing any damage. If you follow the very simple instructions above, you should have no problems keeping your glasses clean without having to worry about doing any unintentional damage in the process.
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