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Here is the fact that many of you do not know: More than 1,500 workers suffer from eye injuries at work every day in the United States of America. Many accidents include dust and metal particles, falling building materials, poisonous gases, acids, etc. These hazards can cause corneal abrasions, conjunctivitis, particles stuck in the eye, burns, eyeball laceration, etc. Accidents happen at work; that is not uncommon, especially for those who have high-risk jobs. Nonetheless, many of these injuries would not be serious if the workers wore adequate eye protection glasses. So, the question is, how to choose the best eye protection glasses? Keep reading to find out!
What Is Safety Eye Wear?
By definition, safety eyewear is everything that covers your face and eyes with the primary objective of keeping you away from contact with chemicals, gases, flying objects, and other materials that can damage the eye. The eyewear is designed to resist collision, smashing, and breaking when touching complex or dangerous substances.
Safety eyewear can be represented as many things, such as goggles, glasses, shields, and other protective equipment. There are plenty of occupations that require workers to wear safety equipment. Some are machinists, mechanics, plumbers, carpenters, electricians, sheet metal workers, grinding machine operators, chemical handlers, etc.
The most common form of safety eyewear is safety spectacles or eyeglasses. Their objective is simple; keep the eyes safe from any situation. When choosing the perfect eye spectacles, you should have a couple of things: level of protection, comfort, size, durability, etc.
How to Choose the Best Eye Protection Glasses: What to Look For?
Finding the proper eyewear is not a joke if you face many dangerous situations while at work; excellent protective eyeglasses are the only thing that can save your eyes from any damage.
First, you must acknowledge which type of accidents you are prone to daily. If your workplace is filled with dust and objects that fly around, you need eye protection glasses with side protection. On the other hand, safety goggles are the best choice for people who work with dangerous chemicals. People in danger of radiation from lasers or welding need a different, particular type of safety eyewear.
But there are a couple of things to remember while shopping for the ideal pair of eye safety glasses, regardless of your profession. This is the complete list:
Type of Lens
The most common material for safety glasses and goggles is plastic, glass, or polycarbonate. If your job requires strong protective eyeglasses that resist impact, scratches, and crashes, you must look for polycarbonate eyewear. Polycarbonate is the most robust material out of the three, and it will keep your eyes safe at all times while feeling very light on your face.
Also, when considering types of lenses, it is always better to go with polarized ones. The glasses with polarized lenses offer more visual clarity and reduce the reflecting light. Polarized lenses use a laminated filter between the plastic pieces that pass through only vertical light. They block any horizontal light and reduce the reflection to the eye.
The polarized lenses are great for people who work outside or in zones with high luminosity. Also, these safety eyeglasses are excellent for anyone who is doing renovations, professional construction, or DIY projects.
Approval From the ANSI (American National Standards Institute)
ANSI approval is essential when it comes to choosing suitable safety eyewear. Although this is a private organization, it works closely with the government. Together, they set up the standards for all safety equipment.
So, the next time you think about ‘how to choose the best eye protection glasses,’ think about the ANSI. The organization’s symbol is blue or black; you will find it on the packaging or the glasses frame.
Lens Technology
The lens technology is the only thing keeping you safe from hazardous situations. As in everything, the lens technology for protective eyewear has gone very far. Many modern technologies are used to create high-quality safety eyewear. These eyeglasses offer optimal resistance and clarity while protecting you from dangerous UVA and UVB rays.
Durability
Durability goes for any product you buy, right? Especially for the ones that you use in your workplace. It is frustrating if an important workpiece breaks after the second use. Besides the money you have wasted, you will be in a risky situation.
When you doubt how to choose the best eye protection glasses,’ always go with glasses made of rugged nylon. If the frames are made of hard materials such as nylon, they will refrain from breaking and twisting. As for the lenses, we mentioned that the polycarbonate ones are the most durable.
Coverage
Another essential thing to have in mind when thinking about ‘how to choose the best eye protection glasses’ is the peripheral coverage. Peripheral is referred to as the side area of your eyes. Hence, eyeglasses that offer a peripheral range and frontal are always better. As you may know, the front of your face is exposed to accidents. Things tend to hit you on the side, also.
For this reason, it is better to go with all-closed goggles. They offer the ultimate coverage from every side and feel very lightweight. Although you may face fogging, paying for complete eye protection is a small price.
Great Fit
Not one of our last pieces of advice will serve if the eyeglasses you choose do not fit you well. If the glasses don’t provide you, you will be more prone to take them constantly, putting you at risk of injury. Eyewear that fits you perfectly ensures both comfort and safety.
It is also essential that the eyeglasses are tight enough, so they keep slipping down your face. Loose eyewear is not protective eyewear. The same goes for eyeglasses that are too tight.
Eye Prescription
If you have vision problems and wear prescription glasses, you need to adjust your safety eyeglasses to your prescription. Otherwise, you would end up with two sets of glasses you need to wear on top of each other, which is uncomfortable. Keep this in mind when choosing a pair of protective eyeglasses.
Impact and Scratch Resistance and Specialized Protection
If you are working with chemicals or your work involves being around complex objects that can end up falling on your face, you need to consider the impact resistance of your eyewear. Safety goggles are always great to keep your eyes safe from any dangerous explosion.
The same goes for scratches. All types of glasses are easily scratched. Therefore, investing in high-quality glasses that are scratch-resistant will undoubtedly pay off. To ensure that a pair is scratch-free, look for a label that says the lenses were treated in DLC (diamond-like carbon). Also, a label indicating that the lenses were treated in a polycrystalline diamond is scratch-resistant. Of course, the price will be higher than a regular pair of safety eyeglasses.
Many workers need safety eyewear with additional features such as radiation explosions. This type of eyewear is specialized for certain professions and contains a lot of filters and substances that protect the eyes from particular hazards. If you are not in danger of radiation, you won’t need unique eyeglasses.
UV Protection
When thinking about ‘how to choose the best eye protection glasses,’ you must consider if your job requires you to stay outside in the sun. Ensure that your safety eyewear has good ultraviolet protection for those who work outdoors. We all know the sun’s rays can harm the skin, but that goes for the eyes.
Ultraviolet light can cause a lot of damage to the cornea. If the cornea is damaged, it can lead to corneal sunburn, macular degeneration, cataract formation, etc.
Extra Features
The extra features are last on our’ how to choose the best eye protection glasses’ list. These features are unnecessary, but they can make your experience more comfortable and enjoyable. One of the unique features is attached hearing protection. This feature lets you keep your earplugs untangled and out of your vision.
Other features, like vent-free placements, are valuable in extreme weather situations. If you are working with wildfires, ventilation can easily create a problem.
How to Choose the Best Eye Protection Glasses: Conclusion
The perfect pair of protective eyeglasses depends mainly on one’s job and work environment. If you are in contact with chemicals, you will need different safety goggles, like a sheet metal worker.
Still, some things are equally important in any profession. Durability, impact, and scratch protection are among the essential features you need to look for in safety eyewear.
Finally, if you’re still wondering “how to choose the best eye protection glasses,” keep an eye out for the ANSI mark. Thus, you can be assured that the eyeglasses are approved and were made according to the standards.
