Woodstock
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Contact lens fluidHi there.
I use soft contact lenses and the deal is that the opticians send me a three month supply at a time. This means i get three huge bottles of the lens fluid but i never ever use all of it so it means I have brand new unopened bottles of the stuff just sitting around for months on end. Does anyone know anywhere that recycles the fluid rather than just the bottle or any charities who will take them? Thanks in advance as usual.
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cab
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Just sterile salty water I think, not a lot to be said for recycling it I'd have thought.
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marigold
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Try offering them on Freecycle. As long as the bottles are sealed I can't see any harm in giving them away.
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Woodstock
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Thanks guys.
To be exact it's a hydrogen peroxide solution. Just feels a waste if there's not a charity that could use it or something and i dislike throwing away whole bottles of anything, let alone chemicals!!!
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cab
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| Woodstock wrote: | Thanks guys.
To be exact it's a hydrogen peroxide solution. Just feels a waste if there's not a charity that could use it or something and i dislike throwing away whole bottles of anything, let alone chemicals!!! |
I see where you're coming from... But at the end of the day a little peroxide is neither environmentally harmful nor worth the energy needed to take it away and use elsewhere.
Might be a use for it in the house though. What concentration of hydrogen peroxide is it?
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Slim
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I think that stuff is usually a fairly strong mixture. Might make a good oxidate substitute around the garden
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Helen_A
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You could ask the opticians to send you less - the place I get mine from often gives me freebies because its excess that has been ordered to cover the 3 months worth thing, but not wanted (they do reduce peoples charge accordingly there when they have less and can as they are inde., but I suspect a lot of monthly schemes from the big places wouldn't though  )
Or you could offer it up unopened on freecycle, or via b&s forums on fora where you are known? Or ask around generally?
Helen_A
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mark
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In my dealings with big chain opticians they
1) alsways sign you up for a scheme where they provide you more of this stuff than you need so they can charge you more
2) are always issueing threats about the dire results if you use someone elses brand of liquid with their lenses - or the aweful things tht wil happen to another person if you give someone else your fluid. I thing your eyes turn bright red rotate rapidly and fall out!!
I have always thought most of it is bullshit to keep people tied into expensive contracts nd not getting cheaper lenses and fluids off the internet!
Anyway i am now sittign here feeliong sorry for myself cos i have done everything i was told and have used all the right fluids from my optician and been scrupulouly clen etc and still have very have very sore eyes and conjunctivitis (first time ever) and cant see too well right now!
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Helen_A
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could also be that actually you are um reactive to one of the components of the solution..... the preservative in some can be pretty nasty for some people, the 'light' version of the same is usually made without said preservative. What you get 'sold' is more about what that optician is comfortable using than anything else, unless you are with an independent who has actually looked at them properly 
In my experience there are several 'brands' of solution that are actually exactly the same one in different bottles... the one I use is made by sauflon, sold by them as such, sold to Vision Express and Specsavers (and possibly boots, although no on will confirm this) and these all sell it as their own brand solution..... Handy if you run out or forget to take it away with you (btdt  ) because you can usually find a branch of one of those on your travels.....
These days I get my lenses from an online optician - because they are coming to the end of their life as a 'type' and this place is the only one that still has my prescription available any more
Helen_A
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mark
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"could also be that actually you are um reactive to one of the components of the solution..... the preservative in some can be pretty nasty for some people"
possible - but i don't think so in this case - i've been using it for around 2 years with no problems
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Woodstock
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Oh Mark - sorry to hear about that. Hope it clears up soon.
I tried asking to be sent less but it's a package deal thing they say they can't change. The random thing is even when i went shopping around to see if i could just buy the things seperately it ends up costing quite a bit more
Will check the levels and advertise on freecycle. Thanks again for the ideas guys. I am just sure that at some point i heard about some sort of eye based charity who wanted anything lens or glasses related. Although to be fair I used to be involved in a local one for unused medication that got shut down so i suspect this might be the same. Ho hum it was worth a try 
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mark
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| Woodstock wrote: | Oh Mark - sorry to hear about that. Hope it clears up soon.
I tried asking to be sent less but it's a package deal thing they say they can't change. The random thing is even when i went shopping around to see if i could just buy the things seperately it ends up costing quite a bit more
Will check the levels and advertise on freecycle. Thanks again for the ideas guys. I am just sure that at some point i heard about some sort of eye based charity who wanted anything lens or glasses related. Although to be fair I used to be involved in a local one for unused medication that got shut down so i suspect this might be the same. Ho hum it was worth a try |
I'd send a not to your local Freecycle group moderator first.
Most groups have a blanket no drugs /no medicines rule - and your local mioderators probably wil be faced with deciding whether this fall into that category.
Opticians usually advise against passing it on - and though i am cynical about their motives (they want to sell another bottle) - it can make life difficult for moderators of the local group to decide.
mark
(who is also listowner for our local freecycle group)
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Woodstock
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Thanks Mark, you're a star.
(and yes, as far as the opticians go i would say it is a cynical move to shift more product although legally i suspect they are also covering their back sides).
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Jamanda
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Could you not use it for sterilising other things - wine making kit or similar.
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Nick
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It's likely to be about 100ml bottles. Not really enough for 25 demi johns.
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Jamanda
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| Nick wrote: | | It's likely to be about 100ml bottles. Not really enough for 25 demi johns. |
No, but you could dilute it and use it for air locks or similar.
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Gervase
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When I wore contact lenses I used to make my own - four percent peroxide with a drop of wetting agent per litre. Cheap as chips and it worked fine.
My Braille keyboard's lovely, by the way! 
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mark
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| Jamanda wrote: | | Could you not use it for sterilising other things - wine making kit or similar. |
I think most contact lense fluids are not strong enough.
Thery are mostly sterile rather than sterilising - though some contain a mild steriliser (but nothing strong enough to harm you eyes)
Its to keep lenses in overnight in sealed containers and instead of water to rinse them.
It isn't real strong enough for steriling winemaking equipment in a short time by wiping it.
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Cathryn
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Mark, check if the ingredients have altered at all. The standard one that both my son and myself used was altered and fortunately then labelled as "New". We both had problems with it, stinging eyes and reported this to our independant optician. I believe that the brand was withdrawn almost immediately and returned back to the old reliable one.
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mark
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| Cathryn wrote: | | Mark, check if the ingredients have altered at all. The standard one that both my son and myself used was altered and fortunately then labelled as "New". We both had problems with it, stinging eyes and reported this to our independant optician. I believe that the brand was withdrawn almost immediately and returned back to the old reliable one. |
No i have an infection - the antibiotic cream the walk in clinic gave me is doing its stuff..
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Slim
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| mark wrote: | | Jamanda wrote: | | Could you not use it for sterilising other things - wine making kit or similar. |
I think most contact lense fluids are not strong enough.
Thery are mostly sterile rather than sterilising - though some contain a mild steriliser (but nothing strong enough to harm you eyes)
Its to keep lenses in overnight in sealed containers and instead of water to rinse them.
It isn't real strong enough for steriling winemaking equipment in a short time by wiping it. |
most saline fluids are sterile rather than sterilizing, but we're talking about a peroxide sterilizing solution, aren't we?
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mark
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well thoughts on that
1) my solutions are sterile saline so don't assume al are active sterilisers
2) peroxide isn't a good sterilising solution for wine making - if you use it you need to make sure it is thoroughly rinsed off the equipment or neutralised before you use the kit for winemaking.
3) lots of contact lens solution strenths are designed for overnight sterilisation when immersed
Wine makers typically work on a tigher timedscale than this.
4) the quantities of contact lens solution are trivially small and insufficient when used for sterilising wine making kit
better to use contact solution for contacts
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nettie
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Back to the original post, I'm with Specsavers and, having had the same problem, i asked them to supply lenses only in the end and got a reduction in the monthly bill. TBH if your opticians won't change the package then i would close the account and go somewhere more helpful! You could always keep the stuff you've got and go lenses only, until you run out of fluid, then change packages again.
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Woodstock
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Nettie - that's really great knowing that they do it. Even just knowing that means I have more bargaining power with Vision Express. Much thanks to everyone again as well.
Loving the ideas though.
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nettie
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Good! in this day and age, retailers really can't afford to bully their customers. Hope it all works out!
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Aeolienne
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| nettie wrote: | | Back to the original post, I'm with Specsavers and, having had the same problem, i asked them to supply lenses only in the end and got a reduction in the monthly bill. TBH if your opticians won't change the package then i would close the account and go somewhere more helpful! You could always keep the stuff you've got and go lenses only, until you run out of fluid, then change packages again. |
I'm pleased to report that Dolland & Aitchinson are also willing to supply lenses only.
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