Over the Glass (OTG) Spoggles

As a devout wearer of prescription eyeglasses, the Industrious Hygienist is always in the market for safety glasses that can be worn over existing eyewear.  

The unofficial term is "Over the Glass" or OTG.

Unfortunately, this usually means I am relegated to wearing a bulky pair of chemical splash goggles so I look like a mad scientist in a hard hat. Here are some of the less-hideous options available to other safety professionals who must have prescription eyewear under their safety glasses or spoggles. 

Safety Glasses

1) Uline OTG Safety Glasses

These are the most basic OTG safety glasses and have basic impact protection. No frills.

Uline OTG Safety Glasses - Image courtesy of Uline

2) ERB Safety 606 OTG Safety Glasses

These are more fashionable and have a smoke-colored lens. According to the manufacturer, these glasses also meet ANSI Z87.1 requirements, have anti-fog coating, and UV protection. They also add a nice bit of femininity - thanks ERB Safety! Probably going to buy a pair and check them out. 

ERB 606 OTG Safety Glasses - Image courtesy of Full Source and ERB Safety

3) SiteGuard Safety Glasses

If you're looking for a cheap/economical pair of OTG safety glasses for visitors to your facility, these are a decent option. Although, the visitors will silently curse you when they have to wear these and everyone else gets more stylish and attractive wrap-around glasses.

Bouton 250-97-0900 SiteGuard OTG Safety Glasses - Image courtesy of Full Source and Bouton Optical

Safety Goggles/Spoggles

1) Uvex Strategy Goggle

An option is the Uvex Strategy Goggle, which can be used for protection against impact, chemical splash, dust, sand, and debris. These are a decent stand-in for spoggles but do not have the foam lining I have come to enjoy. These also look like they would stick out from your face and draw attention to the fact that you're a four-eyed wonder.

Uvex S3800 - Image courtesy of Boss Safety Products and Uvex

2) Uvex Stealth OTG Goggle

This is the less-nerdy option compared the the Strategy goggles above. These can be used for protection against impact, dust, chemical splash, and optical radiation (UV and welding radiation). These seem like they would draw less attention but might smush your glasses against your face. Sort of "snowboarder-esque" but look lighter and more comfortable. These could also be used as a stand-in for spoggles.  

Uvex S3970 - Image courtesy of Honeywell Safety Products and Uvex

3) Outfitter Clear A/F Safety Glasses

These are the Industrious Hygienist's favorite, and the safety glasses I wear most frequently. They are comfortable, the foam is washable, and you don't look like a ridiculous bug-eyed mook when wearing them. They are ANSI Z87.1 compliant and are officially "spoggles" in my humble opinion. Various lens colors are available.

Outfitter A/F Safety Glasses fit OTG and have foam lining - Image courtesy of Amazon and Global Vision Eyewear

The Industrious Hygienist has no affiliation with any of the companies providing safety glasses, safety goggles, or spoggles listed on this blog post - just a helpful review for other safety professionals who may wear prescription glasses. 

The Industrious Hygienist hard at work in 2015, rocking the spoggles!

Look for more spoggle-related posts in 2016, and the ever-awaited 2015 Holiday Manga in upcoming weeks. 

Spoggles Redux

They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery, right?

A friend of mine recently noted that if you search for "spoggles" on Google, my blog post from April 23, 2013 was one of the first things to pop up. This was a very exciting thing - I thought I would test it out today.

Imagine my surprise when a FlexiCrew blog post from August 27, 2013 popped up as the first item on Google. 

Me: "Dang, I'm not the first one anymore! Let's see what they have to say. I'll bet mine is better! Mine has cartoons!"

I clicked on their post and immediately realized most of the post was very familiar, because I wrote it last year. I almost always cite my sources or link to original works when "borrowing" material from other blogs or websites. I guess it's silly of me to expect the same effort from other bloggers.

See below for the most obvious examples.

Theirs: So, for those of you not in the environmental health and safety field, Spoggles is an industry term for safety eyewear designed to prevent airborne dust and debris from getting in our eyeballs. Airborne dust and debris is a leading cause of eye injuries in today’s workplaces. Spoggles = Safety + Goggles, with a random “p” thrown in there since “sgoggles” or “sagoggles” or “safoggles” sound even weirder."

Mine: So, for those of you not in the environmental health and safety field [...] Spoggles is an industry term for safety eyewear designed to prevent airborne dust and debris from getting in our eyeballs. Airborne dust and debris is a leading cause of eye injuries in today's workplaces. Spoggles = Safety + Goggles, with a random "p" thrown in there since "sgoggles" or "sagoggles" or "safoggles" sound even weirder.

And it continues...

Theirs: The glasses/goggles are supposed to seal up against your face (via the foam inserts at the interior edges of the lenses), and keep dust out of your eyes. There are potential issues with spoggles, and reasons why people sometimes choose not to wear their personal protective equipment (PPE) when doing work in a dusty environment:

• the glasses fog up 
• the glasses can get scratched so it is hard to see 
• the foam can get “smushed” (technical term) and be less effective 
• when you take off your glasses, the dust that was at the top and sides/edges of the glasses (and in your eyebrows) can fall right into your eye anyway 
• some people think they look nerdy (also a technical term) 
• the earpieces can irritate the heck out of the back of your ears 

Mine: The glasses/goggles are supposed to seal up against your face (via the foam inserts at the interior edges of the lenses), and keep dust out of your eyes. There are potential issues with spoggles, and reasons why people sometimes choose not to wear their personal protective equipment (PPE) when doing work in a dusty environment:

• the glasses fog up 
• the glasses can get scratched so it is hard to see 
• the foam can get “smushed” (technical term) and be less effective 
• when you take off your glasses, the dust that was at the top and sides/edges of the glasses (and in your eyebrows) can fall right into your eye anyway 
• some people think they look nerdy (also a technical term) 
• the earpieces can irritate the heck out of the back of your ears 

And then both blog posts end almost the same way.

Theirs: But looking nerdy and having to take care of your PPE and using good personal hygiene while at work are a small price to pay compared to losing your eyesight or getting a nasty infection in your eye from contaminated dust. So our Flexpert’s advice – Keep a supply of spoggles on hand. With some lanyards. And some no-fog. And to sum up: spoggles are real. Spoggles are good. Spoggles may save your eyesight. Wear them if you have them.

Mine: But looking nerdy and having to take care of your PPE and using good personal hygiene while at work are a small price to pay compared to losing your eyesight or getting a nasty infection in your eye from contaminated dust. [...] Keep a supply of spoggles on hand. With some lanyards. And some no-fog. [...] So, to sum up: spoggles are real. Spoggles are good. Spoggles may save your eyesight. Wear them if you have them.


I'm choosing to not be irritated (although, really, how hard would it have been to say something like, "Thanks, Industrious Hygienist in Arizona, for the original content!" with a link to my blog?). I'm choosing to remember that it doesn't matter how the information gets out to workers, as long as it is effective in helping them realize that PPE is important but has limitations.

And I'm choosing to be flattered. But I may continue to post about spoggles and throw the keyword into a bunch of my new posts just to keep the excitement alive. There will also be a new cartoon about spoggles coming up soon.