As someone who wears glasses, I get irritated when my lenses are smudged with dirt and fingerprints. What more if you have and use a VR headset regularly? Smudged lenses are not only irritating but can also ruin your VR experience. So, how do you clean your VR lenses?
You can use a microfiber cloth to clean your VR lenses. Begin in the center of the lens, wiping in circles toward the outside rim. This will make sure you remove the dirt and fingerprints from the lenses.
This is the simplest way to clean your VR lens, but this article will also explain some alternatives, plus how to have a good storage solution for your VR headset to keep it free from extra dust.
Why Do You Need To Clean VR Lenses?
Cleaning VR lenses is like cleaning your home or taking a bath. You want your devices to be clean not just for the looks of it but for hygienic purposes as well.
Aside from that, VR lenses are fragile and can be damaged because of scratches it can get. Dirt, oil smudges, and fingerprints can also ruin your VR experiences, especially those on the lenses of your headset.
Head-mounted displays (HMDs), like VR or AR headsets, also sit on your face so you want them to be clean when you put them on and use them.
Clean headsets are just much better to use than dirty ones. The sweat on your face will also transfer to the headset and it might damage your headset because of the moisture. There are face covers or sweatbands you can use, but still, don’t forget to clean your headsets.
How Often Should You Clean VR Lenses?
After spending too long playing games or watching movies using your virtual reality headset, sometimes you just want to put it away without cleaning it.
But, you need to regularly clean your headset, especially if you use it a lot. Even if you don’t use it often, it can still accumulate dust when left in storage for a long time.
If you have kids who use them a lot, you want clean them all the time as children often have sticky fingers all the time. Dust, oil, and fingerprints can stay on the lenses if you don’t clean them often.
Ideally, you want to clean the lenses before and after each use. This ensures no dirt, oil, or fingerprints are on the lenses when you use them. And, you clean up the dirt that accumulated while you were using the headset.
What You Need
While you might have the urge to clean VR lenses with liquid products such as alcohol or chemical cleansers, it is not advised to not use those as they can damage the lenses.
But, having said that, some VR headsets can be cleaned with alcohol or lens cleaners. Make sure you read the manufacturer’s instructions on how to clean your VR headset.
Here are the materials you can use to clean your VR lenses:
Microfiber cloth
This is a cleaning cloth that can remove dirt, oils, and greases from surfaces, especially glass. You can use it dry or you can also wet the cloth when cleaning surfaces.
There are different microfiber cloths you can use but for VR lenses, you want to use a high-quality cloth that is lint-free. Microfiber cloths are reusable and washable so you just need a few to clean your lenses.
Can of compressed air
If you want to clean the dust quickly, you can also use a compressed air canister to clean your VR headset. This is good for cleaning the crevices of the headset.
Disinfectant wipes
Disinfectant wipes have played an important part in the cleaning department, especially with COVID. So, we understand that some might want to use disinfecting wipes to get rid of viruses and bacteria.
If you are using disinfecting wipes, don’t use them on the lenses. To be safe, use the wipes on the exterior of the headset, like the foam part and the head strap.
How To Clean VR Lenses
Now that we know what materials we can use to clean VR headset lenses, let’s see how it should be done.
- Wash your hands
Always make sure that your hands are clean before cleaning your VR lenses. You might think it unimportant but dirty hands can add to the dirt and oils on your device. You would also be dirtying the cloth before you can even clean your device.
- Wipe the lenses with a microfiber cloth
Using a dry microfiber cloth, we recommend wiping the exterior first so any dust that falls on the lens can be cleaned after. After cleaning the exterior, move on to the lenses.
Wipe the VR headset’s lenses gently in slow, circular motions from the center moving outwards. Make sure not to press too hard on the lenses else you might damage them. A soft, lint-free microfiber cloth will prevent micro scratches on the lenses.
If you wipe too hard, you might scratch the lenses and it will ruin your VR experience.
- Blow away dust
After wiping the lenses with the microfiber cloth, use the compressed air canister to blow away the remaining dust. Just make sure not to blow air on the lens itself to prevent damage. If you want to use the compressed air canister before using the microfiber cloth, you can do so as well.
- Use disinfectant wipes
After you are done wiping and blowing the dust away, you can use disinfectant wipes on the exterior of your VR headset to sanitize your device. Make sure you let the device dry before storing it back in its place.
How To Clean The VR Headset Exterior
How to clean the exterior of your VR headset is the same as how you would clean the lenses. You can wipe the head strap and foam part with a microfiber cloth or with wipes.
If you are using disinfectant wipes, they are most likely wet, so you would want to let the device dry before using it or storing it back. After it dries, wipe it again with a dry microfiber cloth to make sure that the device is thoroughly dry and no wet surfaces remain.
Just make sure you thoroughly clean the part of the headset that touches your face.
How To Clean Oculus Quest and HTC Vive Lenses
While we gave you the know-how of cleaning your VR lenses, different VR manufacturers have instructions on how to clean their VR headsets.
Cleaning Oculus lenses is different from cleaning HTC Vive lenses.
To clean Oculus lenses, they advise using a dry optical microfiber cloth to clean the lenses. While anti-bacterial wipes can be used to clean the headset exterior and controllers, you’ll have to wipe the surface with the wipes, let it air dry, and then wipe it off again with a dry microfiber cloth. Make sure the wipes aren’t abrasive
For HTC Vive headsets, you can moisten the microfiber cloth with alcohol or lens cleaner. The same gentle, circular motion should be used to clean the lenses. To clean the cushion, you can use a damped cloth (with cold water or diluted alcohol) and gently wipe the surface.
How To Store VR Headsets
You might have a dedicated space to put your VR headset away after use or you have a whole storage system to keep your VR headset in pristine condition.
You also want to think about where to place the cabinet or shelf that you will put your headset in. An open cabinet can expose your VR headset to sunlight and a closed cabinet may collect dust. But these two storage viable solutions for your VR headset.
If you have a good storage system for your VR headset, you still need to clean your device and the storage regularly to keep your device in good condition.
Whatever storage solution you use, you have to keep your headset in a dry place.
- Keep them in their original box
Keeping your VR headsets in their original box may not be your first choice, especially if you like to display your device where you can see them. But, the original box can actually keep your headset secure.
When you take out the VR headset outside of its box, you will see it placed in another container where it sits perfectly. Just make sure that you store the box in a safe place where it does not get jostled around.
- Put your VR headset inside a cabinet
You can also put your VR headset inside a cabinet for additional safety. A closed cabinet can protect your headset from sunlight that can cause damage.
If you are going to store your headset inside a cabinet, make sure to also clean the cabinet regularly to prevent dust from accumulating.
- Have a built-in shelf
If you want to display your VR headset and other accessories that you have, you can have a shelf purposely built for them. You can customize the shelf to fit your headset perfectly and have mounts for other accessories as well.
If it is an open-shelf design, make sure direct sunlight does not hit your VR headset as it can cause damage to the lenses.
Taking Care Of Your VR Headset
Aside from storage solutions, there are other ways you can take care of your VR headset and its lenses.
VR headset dust covers
There are dust covers specifically made for VR headsets. You can use them to prevent dust from accumulating on the lenses and they can also keep the light out to protect the lenses from damage due to direct sunlight exposure.
Clean surfaces frequently
Aside from cleaning your device, make sure to regularly clean the space where you store your headset. It will not make sense to put your clean headset in a space full of dirt and dust.
Get a cleaning kit
There are cleaning kits specifically for VR headsets that you can buy.
A VR headset cleaning kit usually comes with a screen cleaner, a VR lens cleaning pen, and a microfiber screen cleaning cloth. It also includes an air blower, gap cleaning stick, brush, and cleaning wipes.
If you already have most of these things, you can just buy a lens-cleaning pen.
All of these items can help clean your VR lenses and the headset itself. Maybe having a kit will make you commit to cleaning your headset often.
Bottom Line
Sometimes, it is just too tempting to store the headset away after using it but it really is important to keep your device clean, especially since it is worn on the face. It is a good idea to clean your headset before and after use.
For the safest way to clean your VR lenses, you can use a dry microfiber cloth. While in some headsets like HTC Vive, you can moisten the cloth with alcohol or a lens cleaner. But, generally, you don’t want to use any liquid products on your VR lenses to prevent damage.
If using anti-bacterial wipes on the exterior of your headset, let the device dry and wipe it again with a microfiber cloth.
If you are still not sure about how to go about cleaning your specific headset, better check the user manual for instructions. Manufacturers may have different instructions for your headset.
Hopefully, we gave you helpful information on how to keep your VR lenses clean. If you have more questions or clarifications, let us know and we’ll get in touch with you.
