How to Recycle Old or Scratched Eyeglasses and Sunglasses

I have gone through so many pairs of sunglasses in my life. It seems like they get scratched so easily, no matter how hard you try to take care of them. Even if they are kept in a case, they can be damaged while you are wearing them or if they are dropped or set down for a moment. Sometimes you just want a new pair and are not sure what to do with the old ones. Even if your sunglasses or regular eye glasses are scratched or damaged, they can still be repaired, reused, or recycled.

If you are trying to get rid of an old prescription pair of eyeglasses or reading glasses that you no longer use, there is a charity that they can be donated to. You can either mail them to the charity or drop them off at any eyeglass store or optometrist's office and they will be donated in bulk.

Unite for Sight is one global organization which does nonprofit work providing free used eyeglasses to those in need around the world as well as provide donated money for surgeries to prevent blindness. If you are interested in what you can do to help Unite for Sight, visit their website at uniteforsight.org.

Schools and theaters use old eyeglasses all the time for props in their plays. If you are planning to throw away your old sunglasses, donate them instead. Leave the lenses in your old sunglasses, even if they are scratched. If the theater troupe needs to use them as pretend eyeglasses, they can pop the lenses out themselves.

Scratched eyeglasses can sometimes be repaired by your optometrist. Many different types of glass and plastic lenses can be fixed if the scratches are not too bad. Try asking your doctor if they can be fixed before donating them or attempting to fix them yourself.

If your sunglasses are scratched and they have plastic lenses, you may be able to fix them on your own. This should not be tried with expensive sunglasses that may have a warranty. If your glasses are just cheap plastic, go right ahead and give it a shot. All you need is some plastic polish on a soft rag. Novus makes a great plastic polish that I have used on many occasions. It will not remove very deep scratch marks, but surface abrasions can be eliminated and your glasses will be just like new again.

Freecycle.org is a great venue where you can offer your old glasses for free. Someone may be willing to take them off of your hands, even if they are scratched or not very useful. They may need them for parts or for a play. Some people don't mind that their sunglasses have a small scratch or two on the lens.

Ebay is a great place to get rid of old and scratched glasses and sunglasses. Usually, the lenses will not be wanted. Many shoppers have found that they can get a much better deal on their glasses by buying the frames used on Ebay. They can then have their optometrist insert brand new prescription lenses.

If one of the lenses has popped out of your sunglasses and cannot be replaced, you can use it as a polarizer for your handheld camera. Almost all sunglasses nowadays are polarized. The polarization brings out the colors in the photo, makes skies look more dramatic, and reduces glare. They are perfect for taking pictures in and over water as well. All you need to do is hold the polarizing lens over the camera lens while you snap the photo.