Lens Cleaning

[Mikey D]

Hey just a quick question, is there a way or cleaner to use when cleaning your hoods lenses? Somebody said Windex would work? Any thoughts or ideas? besides damages to the lens i mean, i know that a lens can crack or get a lot of spatter on it in which case you need to replace it, but I'm talking more about like dust and dirt from welding rods, smudges, etc.

[lewray]

I dont know about others, but I keep a jug of Simple Green by my layout table. Use a folded up paper towel and some generous drops and give my lenses a quick rub. It actually seems to work well.

[Mikey D]

Originally Posted by lewray

I dont know about others, but I keep a jug of Simple Green by my layout table. Use a folded up paper towel and some generous drops and give my lenses a quick rub. It actually seems to work well.

Now do you rub ALL the lenses or only like the protective clear plate? I have a Fibre-Metal flip up lens, so I got a protective lens and a clear lens

[Kangi]

I usually just clean my filter plate with soap and water and just replace the protective clear lens, seems like if I try to clean the clear they just get scratched up.

[Mikey D]

Yeah, I know what you mean i just tried cleaning it with a cloth and no water to get like dust off and it seemed to get almost scratchy

[lewray]

Originally Posted by Mikey D

Now do you rub ALL the lenses or only like the protective clear plate? I have a Fibre-Metal flip up lens, so I got a protective lens and a clear lens

I clean moslty the clear. I did just replace the clear two days ago. It does scratch up some, but it sure beats the soot.

Im the biggest cheapscape, and will go for the longest time until a change one.

If there is alot of alcohol in the cleaner it can blurr.

And I clean the glass filter made only not the other plastic type filters. (good ole goldy lenses) Thats just me anyway

[Billdacat]

Plastic lenses are one of my pet peeves. Why can't they make a safety lenses out of glass? My polycarbonate eyeglasses also get scratched after a few months of use....
How about a tear-off lens like they use on race helmets or stock cars?

[weldrwomn]

I gave up trying to clean the stupid clear lenses. I just replace when needed - about once a month. As for the actual autodark filter, I very carefully clean with windex and a clean paper towel.

[Mikey D]

Cool good stuff to know, I will take care of the filtered lens when the time comes, but that damn clear plate really does get scratched and scuffed so easily, even if you try to clean it.

[Tractapac]

On the "plastic" lenses, I try to wash dust off with water and I've learnt from experience not to wipe them dry, as that's when most of the scratching starts. I've tried a Uvex lens cleaning station The spray lquid is designed to work with their lens coatings and that's quite good but you need to be careful with the tissues as they will scratch with any residual dirt on the lens. A with "plastic" headlight lenses, they can tend to go hazy and there is a 3M product that must polish the surface or fill in the haze lines and they stay clear for a while. I haven't tried this on my welding helmet yet, but I don't see why it wouldn't work.

My theory is that it's the cleaning action that does about half the damage. The lens is always better to see through after cleaning and now I pay a bit of attention to how I clean it and I'm getting longer life from some of the lenses.

Float the muck off with soap or Simple Green but be careful on the drying. Sort of "roll" a soft cloth or lens wipe over it instead of wiping dry. The lens tissues are supposed to be much softer than hand wipe tissues and sometimes household tissues have oils and scents in them that smear things up a bit.

My eyes look through contact lenses, reading glasses and then through the various elements of the welding helmet, probably five levels of lens, no wonder I can't see the weld!

Just my thoughts.

[downest]

I pop the outer clear off mine and clean it with soap and water in the sink with a piece of cheesecloth, I've done it for years with sunglasses and it works fine. I think the bigger issue on the plastic lenses (at least on my Satellite) is the warping from heat.

[Supe]

Do you get the lenses with the scratch-resistant coating? Night and day difference in regards to fine swirl marks, etc. UVEX makes a spray solution and very fine wipes that work well for lens cleaning.

[downest]

I don't know what lenses my helmet uses, it came with a bunch and I haven't had it long enough to go through them all. I do use it for grinding as well, since it's a grinding and welding helmet, but most of the welding I do is TIG so there's no spatter or anything on it generally.

[Mikey D]

Good ideas all around, I was a user of the 'wash and wipe' technique but I will look into that UVEX solution you were talking about Supe

[TozziWelding]

White vinegar and a coffee filter.

[dhillis]

I use windex to clean off the dust and grit... usually that scratches the protective lens, which I then use Blue Magic Headlight Lens restorer... the stuff for making auto headlights clear again. It works great on the protective lens and give it new life.

Take care,

[yardbird]

what I have used for years is Pledge with lemon. Shake it up and spray on and wipe dry with soft cloth. It also makes it smell real good from the lemon. It seems to make small scratches disappear.

[paweldor]

They do, or did, make cover lenses from glass. They suck. Spatter instantly clings to them and become unusable in a short period of time.

The plastic lenses with coating are nice. They are meant to protect and save the more expensive filter lens. I simply wipe mine (cover lenses) with a soft cloth, when scratches begin to appear, toss them. When my gold plated filter lens gets dusty, I gently clean with a very soft cloth to prevent ANY scratches in the gold.

To each their own. I buy the plastic cover lenses by the dozen or two.

[lugweld]

The glass ones are really a thing of the past I suppose. I guess my age is starting to show.

The spatter would stick so bad that in a short time, you could really have your vision blocked. The only thing nice about them was that the filters themselves are made from glass and usually offered superior clarity than the acrylic or plastic filters you buy on the cheap now.

[Knotbored]

Paper towels have a fine abrasive and shouldn't be used on plastic lenses. Mater of fact they work well as a final steel-wooling for finishing wood projects.
I don't use a shield enough to face the problem but wonder if using my wifes plastic wrap over the outside and just tearing it away when it gets dusty-stuff is clear and sticks like a decal to flat surfaces.

[Mikey D]

I have found that if you use a brand new sock that's never been worn, it works really well to wipe, it doesn't leave any scratches whatsoever.

[pierre71]

Microfiber cloths work well. Doesn't scratch, and doesn't need any spray.

[Magnetic Mechanic]

Before using a new lense - treat it with rainex

worx good on bifocals too

[mrandrei]

Water + soap, sometimes I put vinegar. I also use microfiber cloth for lens cleaning. It's great in brushing off any dirt or dust particles.

[Nitesky]

Originally Posted by Billdacat

Plastic lenses are one of my pet peeves. Why can't they make a safety lenses out of glass? My polycarbonate eyeglasses also get scratched after a few months of use....
How about a tear-off lens like they use on race helmets or stock cars?

Probably for two reasons that I can think of.

Glass is not very resistant to impact.

Plastic is prone to scratching but glass is prone to spatter. I wear pop-bottles and have been aware of this for many years. My eye doctor explained it to me.