Top tips for looking after your sunglasses & eyewear

19th July 2024

Cleaning

Don’t use a handkerchief or corner of a shirt/blouse. These can contain particles of dust and dirt which can scratch your lenses when you start rubbing. Paper towels and napkins are just as bad. They’re essentially pulped wood and surprisingly abrasive whilst also leaving particles of dust on the lens.

Use a liquid for best results – condensation from your breath isn’t enough, even if you’re using a microfibre cloth. The simplest way is to rinse your sunglasses in warm (not hot) water. This is especially important if they’re covered in sand and salt from the beach. Run a bowl of water and add a couple of drops of mild washing up liquid to it. Then simply give the sunglasses a good dunking to remove all the dirt, gently rub them with your fingers in the water and then dry with a clean, lint-free microfibre cloth. However, don’t apply washing up liquids – particularly citric ones – directly onto lenses as they can be abrasive, some containing salt.

Don’t forget to clean the frame too. When you wear your sunglasses, the areas most likely to be contaminated with grease, dirt and grime are the nose pads, temples and the frame surrounding the lenses.

Avoid household glass cleaners: general purpose household glass cleaners can contain vinegar, ammonia or even bleach – making these cleaners too ‘aggressive’ as they can strip away mirror or anti-reflective lens coatings. Use an eyewear lens cleaner – we have several options available in our accessories section.

Many sunglass models are supplied with a microfibre soft pouch: a good tip is before you take the eyewear out of the pouch use the inside of the pouch to clean the lenses (not the outside of the pouch as it might contain small particles of dust/dirt).

Avoiding scratches

Almost all lenses made today are non-glass: the most common materials in use being plastic, CR39, polycarbonate, Triacetate (TAC) or Trivex. All these materials, even with anti-scratch or hard lens coatings can scratch – mirror lens coatings are especially prone to scratching. The best way to avoid this happening is to keep your eyewear in a soft pouch (supplied with most sunglasses) and preferably a hard case when not in use.