Kiln glasses to fit over prescription eyeglasses? Or face shield?

[Helmsalee]

To anyone who wears prescription eyeglasses: Do you have a favorite pair of kiln glasses or face shield?

I am looking for safety protection to use while looking into peepholes of my electric kiln. I would also use a face shield if that were preferred.

And are infrared glasses/shield necessary? I do not do a large volume of pottery (compared to production potters).

Thanks in advance for any recommendations!

Ellen

[Min]

Yes, infrared is necessary if you are looking into a hot kiln. #3 lens like these ones.

[Chilly]

Welders goggles here, for the short amount of time I need to peek, the fit OK over my specs.

[Bill Kielb]

Generally viewed as a safety requirement for excess infrared. Folks sometimes confuse this with Ultra Violet light protection for which there are many really cheap goggles on Amazon. UV goggles will NOT filter out infrared and offer no protection when viewing your kiln. OSHA and ANSI / AWS have a chart here: https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHAfactsheet-eyeprotection-during-welding.pdf  that may help.

.While kilns aren’t on the list the minimal protection for just soldering with a torch is a protective shade number or 2-3.

Most folks with kilns  use goggles rated between 3-5 with 3 being considered light and 5 being considered a bit dark. Generally the darker they are the more  protective against infrared damage to your eye. Get goggles that are shade rated and don’t let light easily leak in which usually means some sort of welding goggle.