Posted By Barry Cooper The process at our company creates extremely humid conditions, so much so that when you approach the process machinery, spectacles mist up immediately, and can stay misted for several minutes I wear glasses, and when I enter the area, they mist up, but I just remove them until they clear. It is not that easy for operatives, as they may need their glasses to do their job. A suggestion has been made that these operatives should not work in this environment unless they wear contact lenses. We have tried demisting fluids, and are only partially successful. Any suggestions? Barry

Posted By MT Have you looked into engineering controls such as enclosures to prevent the steam/condensation or whatever from entering the atmosphere inside the work area? The hierarchy of controls should always be considered before PPE.

Posted By Merv Newman I used to work in paper mills and found that this "misting" problem could occur when going from cool to warm/damp areas (of which there were many. We solved the safety glasses problem by keeping a stock of glasses WITHIN the warm/damp areas. As they were already "acclimatised" they did not mist up. This doesn't solve the problem of those who have to wear prescription glasses all the time. You could check with an optician about permanent anti-misting coatings. For me, contact lenses, hard (do they still exist ?) or soft, are a nono in any industrial area. They give no mechanical protection and little against particulates or vapours. In fact I have been told that they could aggravate an injury by holding the contaminant onto the eye. (comments anyone ?) In any case, people who do wear contacts should inform their friendly local first aider. (before the accident) Merv

Posted By Sally Solution to this we used many years ago in a paper mill was a spray that motorcyclists use to stop their visors misting up - worked a treat.

Posted By Paul Bibby Hi Barry, Coming from an occ hygiene background I am loathed to recommend a person-based solution. It always seems to be putting too much onus on the employee and avoids making the place safer. I tend towards solutions higher up the hierachy of controls, Full Enclosure of the Plant, LEV and the like. Unfortunately, these solutions are not always viable especially from an economic point of view. They should always be considered and reasons given in the risk assessment as to why they cannot be implemented. In this instance I agree fully with Merv Newman. I must say that contact lenses should not to be used in an industrial environment as they only compound the problem when foreign objects get in the eye. A spare set of spectacles, with lenses made from safety glass, in each of the Humid environments is in my view the best practical option. After all how many of your guys wear glasses? I suspect only a small number that can easily be accommodated with this solution. Not ideal but the best in the circumstances. Rgds, Paul