Glasses Lenses

Ganluan

I recently got a new pair of glasses, and got anti-reflective coating placed on them, which I didn't have before. I really like how they look (since they allow me to wear glasses in pictures and such), and they do seem to help when working on the computer (which I do all day).

However, I've had them a couple weeks and they're already scratched on both lenses. I made the mistake of thinking I could clean them using my shirt like my old glasses, but this coating seems to be much more sensitive to smearing and scratching. Is that the case for all anti-reflective coatings?

I had my previous glasses for years and even had them drop on concrete a few times, with no scratches/gouges in them. Is getting the anti-reflective coating a mistake, or do I just need to be really careful to clean them? What do you guys recommend for cleaning glasses that I can have with me at all times?

blincoln

Are you sure it's the coating and not the lenses themselves? Like maybe they are plastic instead of glass?

Newton

You have to be careful with the coatings as it is very easy to scratch. Your optometrist should have mentioned that when you got your glasses. To clean glasses with a coating, you should get them wet first. Run them under some water to rinse off the dirt and dust, and then use a lens cleaning or other soft lint free cloth on them.

Bionic Monkey

You actually shouldn't clean your glasses (coating or not) on your shirts. It's a plant fiber, so even if it feels soft to the touch, it's an abrasive on the microscopic level, and will cause microscopic scratches that add up over time. That goes double for kleenex, since it's paper, so it'll scratch even quicker. Go to a camera store and buy some microfiber cloths, along with some solution. That's the best thing for glass lenses.

Ganluan

blincoln wrote: »

Are you sure it's the coating and not the lenses themselves? Like maybe they are plastic instead of glass?

I'm not 100% sure, but since my previous glasses without the coating never scratched, I'm guessing it is. The lenses themselves are polycarbonate, which is supposed to be fairly resistant to scratching.

Bionic Monkey

stryker116 wrote: »

blincoln wrote: »

Are you sure it's the coating and not the lenses themselves? Like maybe they are plastic instead of glass?

I'm not 100% sure, but since my previous glasses without the coating never scratched, I'm guessing it is. The lenses themselves are polycarbonate, which is supposed to be fairly resistant to scratching.

Polycarbonate is just a high quality plastic, which is still a soft material. Glass lenses are about three times more scratch resistant, but more prone to shattering should you drop them on a hard surface.

DrFrylock

I had a pair of glasses that got all messed up like this and it turns out the coating was defective, so maybe swing by the optometrist and check on that. Of course, these coatings are also a real pain to keep from scratching, so it could just be you're hosed.