Fogged!

I see lots of swimmers use the Barracudas.. They will not fit all swimmers but no goggle will. Another goggle that was great for fog resistance was the Leader Pro-Fit but they are no longer made. I use the Barracuda Standard and find them very comfortable and watertight.I do have to let abit of water in to prevent fogging as Emmett says. The Barracuda anti fog drops do work pretty good, you have to dry the lens then apply the drops work it on the lens then dry it off with a soft cloth. It lasts maybe two swims. The anti fog coatings on all the goggles are a joke> I think it is a marketing sales tool. I will post a new thread called Barracuda Swim Goggle tips with more on my experience with these goggles I remember when I swam red eyed and goggle less, because the chaep goggles left marks and I saw the first Barracudas. I thought what a goofy looking goggle but they look comfortable and watertight. I tried a pair after a friend got some and I got over being "goofy" and decided to swim and be comfortable.

I've also tried quite a few goggles. I get the best fit and use from the Nike H-3000s. They last about 6 months (or a little more) completely fog- and trouble- free .... I'll have to try the soap soak method at my next interval! and see if I can stretch that out. I think it's interesting that they are also about a $10 goggle. ($8.50@ if you order a bunch from 4seasons). I've used the racetech ... which are great, but just don't fit me quite as well as these. Unfortunately, I think the trick is to try quite a few pairs until you snag the exact shape and fit for you. As far as a few months trouble-free, it looks like you can expect to be in the $9-12 market. TYR Velocity looks like they'll be good also. I also got some good advice on this board ... when you find the goggle that works well for you buy a bunch. They might be discontinued soon. Good Luck!

Here is an experiment that I have be wanting to try to clean my goggles, but don't have the equipment: Has anyone tried using a small ultrasonic jewelry cleaner on their goggles? Assuming that it wouldn't delaminate the anti-fog material from the polycarbonate/plastic lenses, it would probably get them very clean. Of course it would work as well or better with lenses that don't have anti-fog coatings. We must have someone here who has one for professional (jeweler, optician, etc) or personal use.

As all SCUBA and snorkelers know very well, the best solution (no pun intended) is old fashioned spit (or as Mickijean puts it so nicely, saliva).

Thanks everyone for the replies so far. I have some good ideas to work from now, so hopefully I'll soon be able to see something other than just the hazy line on the bottom. It's a little scary not being able to dodge those hairy things flitting around in there. If there are more ideas, please keep 'em coming.

Someone mentioned Tyr Velocity - they work well for me. I've given up trying other kinds at least for the time being. I'm kind of a sucker for new goggles, I've bought several that looked good and seemed to fit until the first couple laps, then I end up putting the old ones back on. If only they came in bright colors! I also use the saliva method for anti-fogging, it's there and always works. But I appreciate the cleaning suggestions, I'll try those too.

I wanted to thank everyone for their replies and great ideas and give an update on how I'm handling the problem. I had noticed that the Speedo anti-fog solution I had been using without success seemed soapy and would foam up a little when I rinsed it off the goggles (as per Speedo's instructions). Based on the advice to soak the goggles in soapy substances, I decided to experiment a little more with the Speedo stuff before risking damage to the foam on my Barracudas with soaking. Speedo says to coat the lenses and then rinse. I do that daily right after I get out of the pool, except that now, every several days I coat the lenses (without coating the foam seals) and let it sit there for several hours before rinsing. The solution dries to the lenses (or at least thickens) and seems to give a better coating that way. I don't let it thicken like that every day, but the quick applications on the days in between seem to help keep a coating on there in case a little too much gets washed off in the pool. I tried just leaving the stuff in there without rinsing, but that was a bad idea. The first thing that happened when I got into the pool was that I pushed off the wall at a funny angle and got a momentary little leak. It wasn't much, but there was enough water in there to dissolve some of the fog juice AND reach the corner of my eye when I turned my head to breathe. It wasn't painful, but the soapiness of it left an unpleasant "sticky" feeling in the corner of my eye throughout my entire workout. Now I shall always rinse before using. I'm also more careful now about washing the fog juice off in the pool. I have an overwhelming urge to take my goggles off in between sets, and I've had to suppress it. I also realized that I sometimes sit the goggles on the edge of the pool when not wearing them (for kicks and such), and they get washed into the gutter (we have wiiiiide gutters) where the coating gets washed off. I think that just being more careful with them in the pool has helped. There was one weird thing I discovered. I had used spit in the past and made a conscious effort to try it again, just to see if it worked better than the fog juice. Maybe there's something wrong with my saliva, but it didn't work! Not at all! Thanks again everyone for the suggestions. I can swim with much more confidence now that I can see the creatures in the pool to dodge them.

Another update on the fogging issue: The devil made me find an ultrasonic cleaner on sale and buy it ($30 @ The Sharper Image) - at least that is what I told Herself, The Court From Which There Is No Appeal. The results have been unconclusive to date (about 1 week). It hasn't delaminated the antifog stuff as yet, but the goggles also only seem marginally cleaner. Have tried an number of solutions as well. More as it happens... Shaky - Re the spit issue: Try eating a few raisins (or purple grapes) a few minutes before. I'm not sure why, but it does seem to help the anti-fogging properties. -LBJ

My goggles stopped fogging when I cleaned them with a little vinegar window cleaner (1Tbs vinegar or less per cup of water.) That also made them seal to my face and stop leaking. The silicone rubber seal must have been covered with some skin oil or something that was making them leak. That lasted about a week and they started fogging up again and I freaked because it was so beautiful to look through them without fog. I had just gotten used to thinking fogging was a way of life that couldn't be avoided. It was like having my sight restored. The joy, the glory. So I immediately tried cleaning them with the soap provided in the shower stalls of my club's natatorium--GOJO Luxury Foam Hair & Body Wash. www.gojo.com/.../product.asp I just rubbed it around with my fingers. Works like a charm. Brilliant, clear plastic every time. Lasts a few hours, then just clean them again.

Wow. I can't believe this is so hard. Every morning, just before I get in the water, I lick the inside surface of my goggles, then rinse the goggles in the pool quickly before I put them on my head and get it the pool. My goggles do not fog for the duration of a 75-80 minute practice. As any scuba diver knows, saliva only works on dry lenses. Eventually the goggles get a bit dirty from who knows what. Then I simply use a small squirt of liquid dishwashing detergent and wash the inside of the goggle with my finger. Rinse, dry, and the goggles are good to go again. This works with Speedo anti-fog (or not) goggles, and various TYR and Nike goggles I have used. Factory anti-fog has never worked as well as saliva and I have never purchased an antifog chemical.