Tried cleaning a hazy lens with dish soap and it actually worked better than my $18 cleaning solution

Andrew Park · 2026-10-15T05:05:03.782044+00:00

Last month I picked up a beat up Canon FD 50mm at a garage sale in Sacramento for $12, and the front element had this nasty haze that my usual isopropyl and microfiber routine would not touch. Out of frustration I put one tiny drop of Dawn in a bowl of warm water, swirled the element for maybe 20 seconds, rinsed it with distilled water, and the haze just lifted off like it was never there. I have been repairing glass for 9 years and I never once thought to try it because everyone says soap leaves residue, but under my loupe I could not find a single streak. My guess is the previous owner had some kind of oil based film on it that alcohol could not break down. Anyone else use dish soap on coated glass, or am I about to find out in 6 months that I wrecked the coating?

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Tried cleaning a hazy lens with dish soap and it actually worked better than my $18 cleaning solution | Camera Repairers - Topic Shares