How to Prevent Your SCUBA Mask from Fogging Up
It has happened to all of us at one point or another. We have arrived at our dive site! We have been anticipating this for some time. The reef is waiting to display its opulence of life. The Crew gives us their briefing. We don our gear and are anxious to get in and enjoy the view. We enter the water and begin our descent into the abyss, and then it happens…OUR MASK FOGS UP!!!
It’s too late to go back now, we know that we will spend the rest of our dive with a foggy mask because we did not follow the right procedure to ensure that this does not happen. While it is not a serious situation, a foggy mask causes an inconvenience that it is impossible for us to ignore.
Don't worry though, in this article you are going to learn a new scuba mask preparation procedure that will ensure that this does not happen to you ever again. Keep reading so you can learn what you can do to make it so you never dive with a fogged up mask again.
Mask Preparation: The Key to a No Fog Mask
***Disclaimer***
Different manufacturers have different processes that they use in the production of their masks. Before you do anything to your new mask, you need to read the instructions that come with it. The procedure that will be detailed below does not apply to masks that come factory-applied defog or no fog masks.
Mask manufacturers often spray their masks with silicon during the manufacturing process to protect the mask skirt as well as the glass. In many cases, this silicon spray is not removed as it also protects the mask during shipping. The problem is that, if not removed before diving, this silicon spray will make it practically impossible to stop your mask from fogging up. The best anti-fog spray for scuba masks in the world will not make a difference if you do not pretreat your dive mask.
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Below is a video explaining how to do this:
Pre-dive Ritual that Prevents Your SCUBA Mask from Fogging Up.
Even if you clean your mask like we did in the video above, you will still need to apply some sort of SCUBA mask
- Antifog Spray: There are plenty of commercially available defogs you can use to prevent your mask from fogging up. The way they work is simple, you apply the solution to the inside of your mask and rub it in. You rinse off the excess and the residue leaves a film on the mask that prevents it from fogging up.
- Baby Shampoo: Many people swear by this. A diluted solution of baby shampoo can be used in the same manner as the defog above. Divers who use this like it because it is designed not to irritate the eyes.
- Spit: For many divers, spit is their method of choice. It is effective, ready-available and it most certainly does not irritate the eyes. Some people are not a fan because they are grossed out by the idea of using spit as
defog . I will admit, this is my method of choice and I do not mind a "spit mask."
I would like to mention one last thing, I have never been a fan of using mask buckets on dive boats. Often times they contain dish soap which can be extremely irritating and this is made worse when every other diver on the boat dunks their mask into the bucket. If you are going to use the mask bucket, I highly recommend that you try on your mask before you get in the water to make sure that it does not irritate your eyes.
What is your preferred method of dealing with a foggy mask?