What is the situation when the mask fogs? When you are underwater, your eyes are blurred, and you may not be able to see anything clearly. This not only affects your vision, prevents you from watching fish or coral, and hinders communication with your partners, but also requires frequent mask drainage, resulting in forgetting to observe the surrounding environment all the time, and even causing some danger. This is a very bad experience for the whole diving journey.
Why does the mask fog?
Generally, during the manufacturing process of the mask, the lens of the mask will be coated with a layer of fine silicone resin to form a protective film, to protect the lens and prevent the lens from being scratched, during manufactured, packaged, storage and transported process.
When we are in the water, the water temperature outside the mask is relatively low, and the air inside the mask is relatively high because it is close to the skin, and the hot air condenses into droplets when it is cold. These small water droplets are very easy to adhere to this layer of protective film, fog is formed. So this layer of protective film is not cleaned, no amount of defogger is useless.
If the mask is used for a second time, why does it fog during use? One is that the temperature difference between the inside and outside of the mask is too large. The other is that before use, the fingers touch the inside of the mask, the grease on the finger skin is stained on the lens, and the molecules in the gas are adsorbed on the lens.
The new mask
For new masks, we recommend these two common and appropriate treatment methods.
- Combustion demisting method
Firstly, remove protective film with combustion. Generally, the protective film attached to the lens is not resistant to high temperature. What we need to do is to burn inside the lens with the tip of the flame until the lens turns black. The high temperature of the flame can melt the silicone resin film attached to the lens. After the lens cools, wipe the ashes with a soft cloth. Repeat this process two or three times until the glass is difficult to darken, that is success.
Of course, this burning method is only applicable to the lens of the mask, which is made of glass. If the lens of your new mask is made of plastic, you must not use this method, because it will be directly discarded.
Lighters or cone candles are recommended in this process. Be careful not to overheat the glass when burning, and do not burn it at the same position for too long, otherwise the lens may be damaged. Be sure to keep the flame away from the soft silicone skirt of the mask, because it may melt with little heat.
- Toothpaste demisting method
The other is the toothpaste demisting method. Of course, before that, the first thing you need to do is wash your hands. Because the skin of human hands contains grease, which is the culprit of mask fogging. If your hands are not clean enough, the defogging effect will be greatly reduced.
Then spray the toothpaste on the inside of the lens and wipe it with your fingers or a soft cloth. Why the inside? Because the outer lens will not fog, there is no need to waste energy. When applying toothpaste to the inside of the mask, you can put a little more to ensure the demisting effect. If you polish the surface more and more smoothly, it means that you are getting closer and closer to success. The touch of your fingers will tell you that when you feel completely smooth, you can go to the next step.
Finally, rinse. Wash the mask with clean fresh water. Because the toothpaste is not easily soluble in water, it needs to be flushed for a while to ensure that there is no toothpaste residue.
It should be reminded that the simpler the toothpaste you choose here, the better. So try to find a toothpaste that does not contain bleach and fine particles. Avoid using highly abrasive toothpaste or rough cloth, because they will scratch the inside of the lens. It may be helpful to leave the toothpaste overnight or repeatedly wipe the mask several times to make the chemical react. To be honest, this technique is also effective, but it may not be as effective as the burning mask.
Used mask
Use demister to treat face masks before each dive (even if you have scrubbed them with flame or toothpaste). If the treatment with demister cannot prevent the mask from fogging, it may be that some residues are left during the manufacturing process. Try the combustion or toothpaste demisting method mentioned above.
Any reagent that can prevent condensate from adhering to the inside of the mask glass can prevent the mask from fogging. Here are some common choices:
- Saliva
Now that we are ready to launch, both conditions and tools are limited. At this time, saliva demisting is also the most convenient choice. The method is as simple as spitting saliva directly into the mask, and then rubbing it with your fingers. It's better to have a little more saliva, because saliva doesn't contain too many surfactants, which can produce anti fog effect. Then immerse the mask in fresh water for a few seconds, and then it can be used.
- Special demister
Special demisters are specially designed to cover the lenses of masks, and these products are more effective than saliva.
First make sure your mask is dry and clean, and then drop a drop of demister on the surface. Apply the demister evenly with clean fingers. Rinse after evenly smearing, gently sprinkle water into the mask, shake it several times, and then pour it out. Fresh water and sea water are OK, but don't touch the inside of the lens after washing. If your fingers are not clean, it may make the lens stick with foreign matters such as grease, which will affect the demisting and visual effect.
There are also spray defoggers. If your fingers are not clean, spray will be more suitable, but the overall difference is minimal. Generally speaking, these products are expensive and easy to be lost when carried, and even some of their manufacturing ingredients may irritate the eyes.
- Baby Shampoo
Maybe you can use baby shampoo just like using a dedicated demisting solution. It is very cost-effective，many divers carry a bottle of diluted baby shampoo and their diving equipment with them.
You only need to drop a few drops of baby shampoo into the lens, and then rinse briefly to prevent the mask from fogging. Baby shampoo is superior to standard shampoo because it is usually hypoallergenic, less irritating to the eyes, and biodegradable. Baby shampoo also smells good.
Preparation before each launch
First, don't touch the inside of the mask with your hands before diving, because the residual grease on your hands will stay on the lens, making the mask easier to fog.
Second, use professional demister or saliva, which can form a layer of water film on the surface of the mask. Even if water droplets are formed inside the mask, the water droplets will combine with this layer of water film and will not form water mist to affect the line of sight. Note that if saliva is used as an antifogging agent, the mask must be cleaned and dried after landing to prevent the breeding of bacteria.
Finally, before wearing the mask, wash your face with fresh water or sea water in order to reduce the temperature of your face. If the temperature difference between the inside and outside of the mask is small, water mist is not easy to form.
In addition, some friends will ask why I still fog after cleaning and using special demisters? If your mask is fogged with special demister, you may need to change your diving habits to prevent fogging.
The other is not to exhale with your nose when diving. It may take some time to get used to inhaling and exhaling with your mouth underwater, but if you exhale with your nose, it is likely to cause the mask to fog. When diving, pay attention to the way you breathe, which may reduce the fogging of the mask.