I need a little air compressor for a silly job

[Steve knight]

how is this. I get the anti reflective coating with my new glasses and that was a mistake. they are almost impossible to get clean without streaking. the best way I found is soap and hot water. but I found I can't touch the lens when I rinse off the soap. and usually drying them is tricky or I get smudges. my usual glasses cleaning towelettes always leave streaks.
So the best way is to blow the water off with air.
but at home I don't have a compressor and don't need a big one. I want something small but most of the little ones don't have any tank at all and I don't think they could blow much since they are so slow. any idea's? a little 1/2 gal bottle would work I could fill at work. the stuff for computers is spendy and can leave stuff if I am not careful.
if the lens were not so expensive I would replace them. I never had such a hassle as I do now.

[Russ Kay]

After, or in place of your lens-cleaning towlettes (minhe streak too), I use a lens-cleaning spray from the drugstore and then dry it with plain ordinary toilet paper -- not the kind with lotion or aloe in it. No lint, no streaks.

[Philip Duffy]

Why not get a can of spray-air, the kind that people us to clean the dust off monitors? Phil

[Rich Engelhardt]

Have you tried a hair dryer?

[Brian Loucks]

How about an aquarium air pump?

[David Cefai]

A little air compressor with a small diameter nozzle attachment may do the trick.

However as somebody else said above, you may be using the wrong materials as this does not seem to be a common problem.

Have you asked about cleaners at the shop you got the lenses from?

[Dick Bringhurst]

You can buy cans of compressed air similar to a rattlle can of paint. I use it to blow out my computer periodicly. Dick B.

[John Coloccia]

I wouldn't use a paper towel. Any eyeglass place (Lenscrafters for instance) will have a dispenser of lens cleaning cloths. Not the pre-soaked one. Just good, dry cloth that won't scratch your lens like paper towels and tissues can (and they can and will). They'll also have a bottle of lens cleaner. I've had every kind of lens and coating on the planet, and that combination gets everything clean and streak free. Those pre-soaked towelettes are for the birds.

[Jason Roehl]

I, too, after asking at the optometrist years ago, switched to a lens-cleaning solution in a pump-spray bottle. One spray per lens face, rub with fingers, rinse with water, then dry with a regular hand towel. No paper products--they scratch (unless it's actual lens paper, but that's a hassle to keep handy). My lenses last much, much longer now without getting all scratched up. I used to barely get a year out of a lens set, I'm going on 5 years with my current ones. Being a painter, I have to clean them often, too, especially when I'm spraying, so I'm definitely hard on the lenses.

[Steve knight]

I never had a problem cleaning lens before. I bought two pair of glasses and one does not have the coating. they clean fine the pair with the anti glare are like oil freaks. Just pinching the cloth between fingers causes streaks. if I rub them while rinsing off it causes streaks.
I have microfiber glass cloths that help but they still streak. the canned air works ok but it can splatter and it does not always have enough power to really blow the water off.plus the cost can add up.

[John Coloccia]

The microfiber is nowhere near as good as a good lens cleaning cloth. Believe me. I did machine vision and electro-optics for just about my entire career. We use Kimwipes. The Lenscrafters cleaning cloth is very similar and far superior to paper towels, microfiber, etc. The only reason you're streaking is that you're not removing 100% of the fluid and/or it's leaving a "film" behind (which is a fancy way of saying it's leaving crud behind). To do that, you need an absorbent cloth and the proper kind of solution that will keep crud suspended and not leave a junk behind as you clean it. With certain coating, the problem is exacerbated because of how the light interacts with the film you've left behind, and to some extent the physical properties of the coating too.

The way I clean mine is:

1) rinse with water if there's sawdust on them (so I don't scratch). If not, you can skid this

2) spray both sides of the lens with the solution (again, I've found the lenscrafters stuff to be nearly perfect for this)

3) I take the cloth and pinch the lens, and then rub each lens to clean it

4) I fold over the cloth to get to a dry part, and pinch/rub again to dry it.

My wife had the same exact problem until I showed her how to do it. Now she has clean, streak free glasses too

I hope that helps. I've been wearing glasses my whole life, and I know just how frustrating it can be when they're not clear. It can really just ruin your whole day.

[Lee Schierer]

I have anti glare coating on my glasses and find the best way to clean them is to use soap and hot water under the faucet. Rinse off the dust first then soap your fingers and wash the lenses. Rinse and shake dray. To eliminate the final few water droplets pinch the lens in the fold of a clean terry towel or use a teflon glass cleaning cloth. No streaks or blotches.

[kevin loftus]

Have you tried a hair dryer?

+1 Works for both me and my wife.

[Rick Huelsbeck]

At the risk of upsetting some folks here goes. I've noticed on here when you ask for something what you get is a lot of advise and no one really answers your question. My best example is when I tried to ask for a source of 220 volt power cords. You should read this http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=145091 It's hilarious.

Anyway I really like this one, it may be from the borg but I've used it on my finish nailer and my stapler and it works great, plus it will blow the water off of glass (I know) I've also used it to blow the water lines on my motor home dry. I think it's a great little compressor and really portable. http://www.homedepot.com/Tools-Hardw...atalogId=10053

[Alan Lightstone]

1.) There are little air compressors in art supply stores like Michaels. Used to power air brushes.
2.) My optometrist friend just confirmed the lens cleaning scenarios here, though he's OK with microfiber with lens cleaning solution.
3.) Glad I didn't respond to the 220V thread.