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It’s a hell of a thing, ain’t it? You plan your big snowboarding trip perfectly—dope location, tremendous accommodations, all the gear you should need. Head to toe, you feel covered, literally and figuratively. Everything should be stellar and you feel you’ve accounted for any major issues that may throw a wrench into things…
…then you finally hit the slopes and your goggles start fogging up. You don’t know why it’s happening or how to prevent snow goggle fogging, you only know that you can’t see properly and can’t enjoy the magic of the mountain.
The above scenario happens to way too many people, but before we get into how to prevent snow goggle fogging, it’s important that we understand the why behind it.
Why Are My Snow Goggles Fogging Up?
Put simply, snow goggle fogging is all about condensation. It’s the same phenomenon that occurs when you bring a cold drink out of the fridge and let it sit in the sun for a few minutes—water droplets accumulate because of the interaction between the warmer temperature of the outside air and the colder temperature of the soda can. Now consider your snow goggles: While the outside temperature is cold as heck, your body is still giving off heat. This body heat can become trapped inside your goggles; the resulting interaction between that warm, moist air and the cold air on the surface of the lens causes fogging.
A pretty obnoxious phenomenon, right? Well, here’s how to prevent snow goggle fogging.
Tips to Stop Your Goggles From Fogging Up
If you wanna prevent snow goggle fogging, you need to minimize moisture on the inside of your goggles and maintain a better temperature balance between the interior and exterior of your gear. Here are some tips to accomplish this:
- Live in Forward Motion. Really, we’re not joking! Not only is this our Blenders company motto, it directly applies to preventing snow goggle fogging. When you remain in motion, air keeps flowing, with the warm air moving out and the cold air moving in. This helps maintain better temperature balance. So, if your goggles are starting to fog, don’t panic but also don’t commit yourself to a black diamond; instead, try going down an easy trail or small slope to get the air moving. Once your view is clear, you can resume full-on slope shredding!
- On a ski lift and can’t get moving like we advised above? Try simply lifting your goggles off your face a few inches for a few seconds. Just don’t do so when snow or any other moisture is on your hands or gloves—it will make matters worse!
- Remove any snow or moisture from the inside of your goggles. You’ll need to dry your lenses once the snow is removed, too, but again, resist using your hands. Instead, use whatever dry cleaning cloth you received with your goggles.
- Check your accessories. Is your balaclava, face mask, or neck gaiter tucked in under your goggles? Make sure it isn’t! It’s a sure-fire way to increase the chance of fogging.
- Ensure you aren’t resting your goggles on your head. After all, tons of heat escapes from your noggin’—remember how we warned you about temperature balance above!
- Resist the urge to overdress. It’s absolutely imperative that you keep yourself warm, of course, but if you’re wearing unnecessary layers, it’ll only cause your body to create and release more heat which can lead to more fogging.
Consider Upgrading to Anti-Fog Goggles
We hope the tips above helped in learning how to prevent snow goggle fogging, but if we’re being honest, there’s one piece of advice that reigns above all others:
Upgrade your snow goggles!
Modern snow goggles often come packing an anti-fog lens coating (among other nifty tricks) that keeps your view crystal clear as you’re making fresh tracks. Here at Blenders, all of our snow collections—including ‘Nebula,’ ‘Aura,’ and ‘Lunar’—deliver anti-fog technology for premier performance.
Good luck—and have fun out there!