The great Mask Defog Thread

[illumiGeek]

In Jamaica they showed me some plant life that grows in the sand away from the coral. If your having fogging problems you can take off your mask, rub this stuff on it and then don and clear and the fog is gone.

I know what it looks like, but I don't know what its called.

My guess is it's the plant we call Naupaka in Hawaii. It is also known as the Hawaiian Half-Flower or Sea Lettuce. It has smooth green leaves and small white half flowers (or seeds with a white fleshy coating). The juice from the leaves or seeds is an effective anti-fog.

I have tried most things suggested here (spit, soap, various comercial anti-fogs), and the only thing that didn't work was the "Absolutely Clear" stuff. I've heard good things about it, but it never worked for me.

Lately I've been using Sea Gold because I got a bottle for free. It works, but it is a bit thick, so apply it lightly and rise well.

Aloha, iG

 

[TLada]

I brief my student that if they dont want to do the next dive, or want to call the dive for themselves, they can claim ear problems. No one will ever know, and they can mysteriously clear up as soon as they start. It allows them to not dive and save face.

Watergal - best list yet!

 

[Green_Manelishi]

I brief my student that if they dont want to do the next dive, or want to call the dive for themselves, they can claim ear problems. No one will ever know, and they can mysteriously clear up as soon as they start. It allows them to not dive and save face.

Watergal - best list yet!

No one should EVER be questioned for a "I do not want to dive" decision. Nor should they have to make up a story to save face. If said "diver" repeatedly begs off diving that person needs to be honest with him or herself and decide if diving is really the sport for them to pursue.

 

[Sahel578]

"Before every dive I put ear drops in my ears. Ever since I have been doing this I go down with zero problems on equalizing. I was told putting the alcohol in the ear drums, closes the ear drum slightly, and hence, less problems. I never use it after a dive, only before."

What kind of drops?

 

[czjack]

2) After diving, inflate your BC from your tank before rinsing - rather than using the manual inflation

I know there is a reason for this but what is it?

 

[alexdiver]

just reading about all the great info about cleaning a mask.... I was wondering is there anything special I should do to a brand new mask before soap/ baby shampoo/ toothpaste/ spit (delete as appropriate)
I just bought a Mares Lirica but the shop didn't give me any care guidelines with it- I think it was the display model.
Thanks
Alex

 

[Mustapha Loves Guns]

I tried everything, spit, droplets nothing works for me. Anything else I missed?

 

[rubbachicken]

4. Relax when you do your first open water dive, and have fun

that's one of the best bits of advise, but not just on the first dive, relax and enjoy every dive
i had a german dive buddy on a dive in the maldives, he was far too serious about the dive, don't get me wrong i take my diving very seriously, but this guy drove me nuts, so i spent a lot of my dive with him upright but upside down, when there some some thing that need a close look, rather than crowd around laying almost on the bottom
also waiting on a new diver to complete his check dive a few of us waited upside down



diving should be taken seriously, but it should also be fun
tip 497: when you buy a new mask, clean the glass inside and out with tooth paste, give it a squirt then scrub it around with your finger, the abrasive of the tooth paste will clean off the oil film that's there from manufacturing

 

[chongming]

Panty hose? That's too expensive.
I used Plastic Bags (biodegradable stuffs from Carefour) to slip into my Mares Tropic.
Oh Yeah! One more advice (lesson learnt the hard way)
After you surface, and you think your mask is bugging you, pull down to your neck. Never ever put it up on your forehead. I lost mine that way.

 

[GrierHPharmD]

Ben - your own saliva is harmless to your own eyes. Just FYI. Technically, so is urine, but I wouldn't recommend peeing in your mask.

Sorry guys, it doesn't work that way. Things that are sterile can sometimes go to other sterile places, but anything from you mouth, skin, or naughty bits that has bacteria growing in it can cause big problems if it gets into places that do not have bacteria growing there. (Remember the old wipe front to back thing...)

One comment - I use a modified baby shampoo mixture, and it seems to work a little better than plain baby shampoo. I use baby shampoo, glycerine (you get in the cosmetics section at the drug store) and 91% isopropyl alcohol in an approximate ratio of 50:30:20 ratio. It's from an old recipe for an eyeglass defogger that I found somewhere years ago. I think it works much better than the commerical products. And like Walter said, I put it on early and let it dry.

As a cleaner, I like plain old colgate toothpaste (non-gel). I never could stand the taste/smell of Crest...