Eyeglasses and AR coatings
 

How many of you lens wearers get the anti reflective coatings? I just got a new pair and had AR put on it for the first time. I'm finding them to be a complete pain in the ass to clean. Whenever I clean them I just get nothing but smearing. I'm tempted to send them back and have them redone with no coating at all.

Am I doing something wrong or is this normal for anti reflective coatings?

The other thing I keep hearing is that AR requires a liquid for cleaning rather than dry cleaning them like I usually do. This smearing is even worse when I use a lens cleaner solution from the eye doctors office.

Two part answer.

Part 1 - I always used the uber expensive LensCrafters fluid and never had a significant smearing issue with it. Very minor to not at all. As lens cleaning towels have changed, I have minimal smearing from time to time. No smearing at all to my AR lenses with the LensCrafters moist towlettes.

Part 2 - about 2 years ago the AR coatings on my 3 pairs of glasses all started to bubble up and peel at the edges. They look horrible around the edges. They are old as my eyesight has not changed in years. Are they peeling just due to age? Are they peeling because Lenscrafters changed their fluid formula. I dont know.

I will say the material used for cleaning cloths matters greatly. 20 years ago I got these amazing glass cleaning cloths that never streaked anything, they were so absorbent. Since all glass cleaning cloths I have bought recently streak to some extent, I use the super cloths for a final streak free finish wipe and buff. I had 20 of these and I am down to my last 3 after losing most of them and I guard them with my life. I would kill to identify what material these cloths are made of.

Bob Dole always washes his in dishwater before washing the dishes.

Interesting topic. I just paid a small fortune a few months ago to replace my lenses and get some with AR and anti-scratch coatings.

I'm very confused about these things. I recalled having a bad experience with AR coatings several years ago where they would scratch easily, so I always turned it down. I've got a couple of pairs of older glasses from LensCrafters that I use for running, and they're like transparent steel. Easy to clean and haven't gotten scratched from years of use. I was thinking that they had anti-scratch but not anti-reflection.

I bought a new dressy pair from a small boutique place a couple of years ago, and they only sold AR and anti-scratch as a package. I said no, and it was the wrong decision. They lasted maybe two years and the lenses were getting scratched up. Also, it seemed like they were really hard to clean, always smearing up. I eventually got a huge scratch right across the middle, and went back to the store. I ended up getting new lenses with the package to my trepidation, but I apparently need the anti-scratch.

I've had the new lenses for a few months now, and no scratches yet, but they're still very hard to clean and I can't figure it out. My LensCrafter glasses are great if I just rinse them and wipe the water off, but with these newer glasses I have to really baby the lenses or they're just cloudy with smears. I really can't figure out what's different.

that is the EXACT problem I am having.

The coating really sucks. Get the glasses with the anti-reflective layer inside the glass. Went for that with my last glasses, and it's freakin awesome. No issues with fogging up, and the coating doesn't chip off over time.

It really disturbs me. I can't figure out if this small boutique is doing the coating differently or if something fundamental has changed. Whatever LensCrafters does is the way to go, but I don't know what it is, and my boutique place isn't doing it.

while I like what the AR accomplishes, I'm slightly anal about keeping my lens clean, and this smearing is really annoying. With regular lenses I just wipe them with a dry microfiber cloth and I'm on my way. With AR I scrub and scrub and the film never disappears.

It's a trade off.

Anti Reflection = Harder to clean

Completely normal experience.

I didn't mind the reflection. It kept the CIA from reading my mind through my eyes. But the eyeglass place wouldn't let me have anti-scratch unless I also took anti-reflection. I'm pretty sure that's being done now because of the CIA.

The AR coating is definitely a pain in the ass to clean. Even the tiniest bit of leftover skin oil will smudge; I use Lenscrafters lens cleaning fluid and Kimwipes, and I still have to clean them three times because every time I get near the nose pads I pick up the tiniest bit of something and smear it all over.

However, it's worth the pain in the ass because, without the AR coatings, trying to drive at night is a ****ing nightmare due to headlights and streetlights having more flare than a J.J. Abrams movie.

I have it on mine and have never had a problem. I use microfiber cloths or just my T-shirt.

I had this problem. Use a white tee shirt or other undergarment to dry them. Works great with no smears.

I've told you guys before, just PM me your address and I will send you some stuff to wipe your glasses with. No charge.

I got microscopic bubbles in mine. **** those things.