Glass lens frameless Mask fogging issue

[lowviz]

@Kevin Floyd, Recent developments:

If you note in post#25, I was trying to convince myself to buy a new mask just for testing. Totally unsolicited, Dano of https://www.makospearguns.com/ PM'ed me with an offer of two new masks for scientific testing.

Game on! I bought a third mask at his asking price and paid shipping for the lot. I now have skin in this game too. I will start another thread concerned only with testing the three new masks when they arrive. Should be soon...

 

[Kevin Floyd]

@Kevin Floyd, Recent developments:

If you note in post#25, I was trying to convince myself to buy a new mask just for testing. Totally unsolicited, Dano of https://www.makospearguns.com/ PM'ed me with an offer of two new masks for scientific testing.

Game on! I bought a third mask at his asking price and paid shipping for the lot. I now have skin in this game too. I will start another thread concerned only with testing the three new masks when they arrive. Should be soon...

Badass!! I had no idea the rabbit hole I would start.

The funny thing is that the main reason why I ended up with a frameless mask after my plastic one broke was because I was looking for one to mount my go pro on...the frameless part was a second thought.

 

[Kevin Floyd]

I never flame the outside.
I never flame til things turn black.
I never flame to the extent that the glass has to cool.

Cool for you.

I have flamed the outside...why not?
I have used a low heat flame that caused soot
I have been very careful to never put cold water on glass that was recently exposed to heat.

 

[Diving Dubai]

I have used a low heat flame that caused soot

When you flame a mask you'll see the glass go hazy first then clear as teh residue is burn off. When it's gone clear you can move on. No need for soot

Personally I use neat baby shampoo as a defog, just a drop or 2 on my finger, gentle rubbed over the mask, wait for a min and rinse. The only fogging issues I get is if I'm constantly flooding my mask for demos

EDIT: I'll regularly (couple of times a year) give masks a quick clean with toothpaste to remove any body oils that may have built up

 

[lowviz]

When you flame a mask you'll see the glass go hazy first then clear ...//...

That is interesting, I've never heard that before. I assume that what you see is not condensation.

I will add that as a 'spot treatment', along with the standard blackening process that I always hear about.

 

[scrane]

A quick hot flame is the way to go. One of those long nosed lighters is perfect.

 

[dberry]

Could very well be. Didn't take long to go down that rabbit hole. Came up with some interesting stuff:

Sealer and Release Agent Reference Guide
This looks like a common release agent.

https://www.smooth-on.com/msds/files/ER200.pdf
Uh, they only listed the volatiles. Note that one of them is a fluorocarbon. (dissolves silicon oil)
Also note the '200' in the name. Very, very common silicon oil. It is very possible that THAT is the culprit.

200 SILICONE OIL 100 CS

It looks like finding a way to hydrolize silicone oil 200 (or its next-of-kin) is a possible approach...

Hydrolysis of polydimethylsiloxane fluids in controlled aqueous solutions. - PubMed - NCBI

You're much better off with physically removing any residual coating (i.e. scrubbing) than trying to hydrolyze silicones, which requires fairly strong alkali solutions (NaOH aka lye) that are likely to also attack the glass (micro scratches / slight frosting) and degrade the frame and strap. Careful flaming is also fine.

FWIW, at various times silicone chemistry has been part of my research focus.

 

[Dan]

That is interesting, I've never heard that before. I assume that what you see is not condensation.

I will add that as a 'spot treatment', along with the standard blackening process that I always hear about.

Check out this video. I’ve done it on both of my masks. Easy peasy.

 

[Kevin Floyd]

I’m not sure which variable did it but it worked today.

2 ~ 45min dives in 55* water. I applied a gel defogger before each dive and had no problems.

 

[Dan]

Gel defogger, if it is viscous (thick) enough could be harder to get dissolved. Then it’ll stay on the glass lens longer.

I use the cheap baby shampoo ($1 in Walmart). Just put a drop on the lens, smearing it evenly on the inside lens without rinsing to keep the thick film on the glass. I drain the water that gets into the mask during entry to flush any excess coating, keeping the mask seal tight on my face during the entire dive.