Cleaning the inside of the headlight lens, how to

[Wildthings]

I have a pair of the headlights being sold by Bus Depot that are maybe 5-6 years old at this point in time:

https://www.busdepot.com/0301600118
The lenses have gotten pretty foggy on the inside so I was wondering what others have done to clean them.

Thanks, WT

[raygreenwood]

It skunds crude....but it works. I use a pair of long harbor freight hemostats clamped onto a rolled up piece of soft, clean cotton cloth....a classic yellow dust cloth actually....wet with non ammonia glass cleaner like windex crystal rain. Wet it all down and then use a dry one tk polish. Takes several passes. Ray

[Terminatez]

Windex without ammonia.

Stopped by a VW shop a while back and some guy was spraying them with clear coat. He said it prevented them from becoming foggy/yellow. Not sure if it's the same foggy you may be speaking of though.
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1972 Westfalia P30 hardtop Campmobile [On-going Restoration]

[raygreenwood]

I think....or assumed......he is speaking of the fog that appears over time on the inside of the glass lenses and on the reflectors of any lamp that has a removeable bulb assembly....H1, HB2,H3, H4 etc.
Ray

[Dana Champion]

I've used rubbing alcohol inside of H4's

A little tricky getting to all areas.

[Wildthings]

[raygreenwood]

[SGKent]

soapy (dishsoap ) warm water, followed by clean water, and some soft towels pushed around by something soft then let them air or blow a hair dryer in on low. Even really clean compressed air. I am guessing you are talking about CIBIE, Hella's etc.. I'd avoid ammonia and/or alcohol only because I have seen finishes stripped by both.
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“Most people don’t know what they’re doing, and a lot of them are really good at it.” - George Carlin

[vwwestyman]

I've never tried it, but remember from my days on the Cabriolet email list, recommendations to use some of those denture cleaning tablets inside the light.

It was more or less fill the light housing with water, and drop in a fizzy tablet.
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Dave Cook

President, Wild Westerner Club

1978 Champagne Edition Westy, repowered to '97 Jetta TDI
1973 Wild Westerner
My Thing

[raygreenwood]

Regular isopropyl....or as I and others have noted....amonnia free windex work fine.

At least on Hella products....the old school lnes...70% isopropyl will not hurt anything. The reflectors are vapor coated steel. Nothing but something abrasive will hurt those. Cant vouch for new stuff. The lenses are lead crystal.

The problem with this fog/film is that its oily.

I would tend to say dishwashing ljquid as well....but be careful because on newer types.....dishwashing liquid can defeat the lens to reflector adhesive if its git any pores. Dilute it well. Ray

[SGKent]

[raygreenwood]

[70Crew]

I just bought these Hella H4 headlights from Bus Depot. Even out of the box, the inside surface of the lens has a milky film.

Reading through the descriptions on how to clean the lens made sense… until I tried to do it. See the photo below. There is a metal cage in the hole that blocks direct forward light from the bulb. That cage would make it virtually impossible to get any sort of rag inside there and do a thorough job. Is this a different style than everyone else has? If not, did you remove the cage? It looks like I could, but the metal is thin and I am afraid I will break something.

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1970 Crew Cab

[SGKent]

can't you fish strips of a diaper or something in there, swish with a mild soap and water then invert and get the strips out and rinse with really clean water - maybe even distilled water? I know that some of the milky color is a result of particulates in the air, but some is also due to the dies not being as good as they were in 1970. I use Cibie myself and they don't seem to be as milky as the Hellas. 7" round just isn't that popular anymore for factories to invest in new dies.
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“Most people don’t know what they’re doing, and a lot of them are really good at it.” - George Carlin

[70Crew]

Thanks Steve, I followed your suggestion to the letter and it worked great. After the distilled water I ran a hair dryer on warm and the did a final pass with a clean cloth. Big difference. Shame I have to spend an hour of my Sunday cleaning a brand new part, but that's another topic.
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1970 Crew Cab

[airschooled]

[vwwestyman]

My '78 has Bosch (motorcycle) lights from Bus Depot that I installed at some point as I was working on the TDI conversion. So they've been there for roughly 3 years. With relays and the upgraded 90/100w bulbs, the high beams are so bright you can see into the future!

But they still have haze in there.

Later (2015ish), I installed the Bus Depot upgrade kit that they sell for round-light Vanagons in my '73. It includes Hella lenses. Again with the beefy bulbs. Certainly an improvement over stock headlights, but not quite as bright or defined beam as the setup in the '78.

They might have a little bit of haze, not sure... I cannot see the swirl like I can in the '78.

I need to change the bulbs in the '78 (both beefy bulbs burned out on a recent trip-that was an adventure-I replaced with stuff from the FLAPS but just ordered new bulbs.) Maybe then I'll try washing them. With what? Maybe a little Dawn and warm water?
_________________
Dave Cook

President, Wild Westerner Club

1978 Champagne Edition Westy, repowered to '97 Jetta TDI
1973 Wild Westerner
My Thing

[SGKent]

glad it worked out
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“Most people don’t know what they’re doing, and a lot of them are really good at it.” - George Carlin

[70Crew]

[vwwestyman]