Welcome to Water Tip Wednesday. I’m Jackie Troller with Oceantroller Snorkeling and Freediving, sharing with you how to keep your mask from fogging. Imagine, you splash in the water ready to check out some fish, but you can’t see anything.

Foggy masks are beyond frustrating. Trust me.. I know from experience. So why does this happen to you? Or to me? When masks are produced, a thin silicone layer is left over from the manufacturing process. This thin layer is the culprit. This is the reason why no amount of spit or defog will help keep your mask clear. The solution? Use an abrasive gritty toothpaste, not the clear gel kind. Rub it around your mask for several minutes. Some people even leave the toothpaste in their mask overnight. Keep in mind this method is for glass lenses only, not for plastic lenses. If you use abrasive toothpaste on plastic lenses it’s just going to scratch them up. Another method to take out the silicone layer from glass lenses, is to burn it using a lighter or a match in a swift motion around the lens. It should turn black. This is good. This is the silicone layer burning off. However, manufacturers will take back their warranty if you use this method and you want to be careful not to burn the silicone skirt of your mask. In some cases, masks have cracked on divers from too much heat for too long. So if you use the burning method…. it’s on you. Lastly, before every dive, I recommend either using spit or filling a spray bottle full of no tears baby shampoo diluted with water and spraying it in your mask before every dive.

That’s your water tip for today, see you guys next Wednesday. Oceantroller out.