Most solution problems trace back to one of four bottles. Start with whichever touched the lens most recently.
Fill & rinse
Preservative-free saline
Goes in your eye
Sterile and preservative-free only. One vial per fill; throw the rest away.
Disinfect & store
Hydrogen peroxide system
Only after full neutralizing
Only in the case that came with the bottle. Wait the full time. Never fill the bowl with it or rinse with it before insertion.
Disinfect & store
Multipurpose / GP solution
Not for filling the bowl
Use one made for rigid (GP) lenses. Fresh solution every night, never topped off.
Comfort
Preservative-free drops
Over the lens, as directed
Rewetting drops go over the lens, as your fitter directs. Adding anything to the fill is their call.
Brands on this page are named as examples wearers use, not endorsements. Your fitter may prescribe specific products for your lens material or coating: their instructions come first.
Before you change anything
- Burning or stinging on insertion? Take the lens out now. Then look at what went in the bowl.
- Change one thing at a time, or you’ll never learn which one was the problem.
- Ask your fitter first. The FDA advises against changing your lens-care system without talking to an eye care professional.[3]
- Keep notes: which eye, how many hours in, which product, and the lot number. A photo of a red eye helps your fitter.
Symptom finder
| What you notice | Solution-related causes wearers discuss | What people ask their fitter about | Often not the solution if… |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stinging or burning on insertion | Residue; preserved saline; a buffer | A better rinse; the other saline type | It’s one new lens, or burning continues with the lens out |
| Redness after a few hours | Unbuffered saline; a slow-building reaction | A buffered fill; another storage solution | There’s a ring, a pale band, or one sore spot |
| Cloudy or foggy fill | Fill type; storage solution; residue | The other saline type; a midday refill | It started with a new lens, or fog stays after removal |
| Film or smears on the front | Wetting agents, gels, hand products | A different peroxide or cleaner | It comes back within minutes of cleaning |
| Slimy or greasy lens | Skipped rubbing, conditioning residue, lotion soap | A rub cleaner; plain soap | Your lids are oily or inflamed |
| White specks in the bowl | Lint, a dirty case | Rinsing the eye before insertion | It’s mucus, or yellow or green discharge |
| Itchy, allergic eyes | Preservatives; a buffer; a new product | Peroxide vs a GP multipurpose solution | It’s pollen season, or it’s the coating or material |
| Dryness late in the day | Fill type | A buffered fill; a midday refill | The bowl is nearly empty at removal |
Symptom by symptom
Stinging or burning on insertion
Take the lens out. Residue is what wearers find most often: cleaner or thick multipurpose solution not fully rinsed off, soap or lotion on your fingers, even toothpaste on the counter. Peroxide is the most painful: it must never touch a lens before insertion unless fully neutralized in the case that came with that bottle.[3] If peroxide gets in your eye, Alcon’s instructions are to remove the lens and flush the eye itself with large amounts of sterile saline or water for a few minutes, then call your eye doctor if burning continues.[4]
Check the fill too. Multi-use saline sold for rinsing often contains preservatives: only fill with sterile, preservative-free saline. Buffered salines contain borate or phosphate, and some people react to a buffer; unbuffered saline is slightly more acidic than tears, which stings others.[5] People who sting with one often ask about trying the other.
Probably not the solution if only a brand-new lens stings (clean and disinfect it first), right and left may be swapped, or the lens is chipped. Burning that continues once the lens is out needs a call today.
Redness after a few hours
Some wearers trace hours-later redness to unbuffered saline and do better on buffered. Others found a reaction to a fill or storage solution developed after months.
Probably not the solution if you see a red ring around the colored part of the eye, a pale band under the lens edge, or redness in one spot. Those point to fit, and wearers say a refit fixed what no product change did. See redness around the lens edge.
Cloudy or foggy fill
Wearers split: some fog more with buffered saline, others with unbuffered, and a few traced fog to their storage solution. Common requests are the other saline type, a midday rinse and refill, or a thicker preservative-free lubricant in the fill (off-label).
Probably not the solution if it started with a new lens, it’s one eye only, or vision stays foggy after the lens is out. Fit (an edge that lets tears and debris in), dry eye, lid disease, and allergies cause most persistent fog. Fog that lingers after removal can mean corneal swelling: call today. See midday fogging.
Film or smears on the front
Some wearers report a film with peroxide formulas that add a wetting agent (Clear Care Plus contains one, called HydraGlyde[4]) and none with the plain version. Others trace smears to thick gels or ointments, oily makeup, or a viscous multipurpose solution that wasn’t rinsed off. People ask about a different peroxide formula, a different cleaner, or for uncoated lenses only, a periodic stronger clean. Coated lenses need coating-compatible products.[7]
Probably not the solution if the film returns within minutes of cleaning. That’s often the lids or a lens surface that has stopped wetting well, and only your fitter can tell. See film and deposits on the lens.
Slimy or greasy lens
Usually something left on the lens: skipped rubbing, moisturizing hand soap, or conditioning solution residue. Rubbing each side with your cleaner and washing with plain soap fix it for many.
Probably not the solution if your lids are oily or inflamed. Lid treatment is a conversation with your eye doctor.
White specks in the bowl
Lint is common: dry your hands with a lint-free paper towel. Wearers also report fewer specks after rinsing the eye with preservative-free saline before insertion, or replacing an old case.
Probably not the solution if the specks are mucus that builds up during the day (often allergy, dry eye, or an edge letting debris in). Yellow or green discharge needs a call today.
Itchy, allergic eyes
Multipurpose solutions contain preservatives, and some people are allergic or sensitive to them. Hydrogen peroxide systems are generally preservative-free, which may suit those people better.[3] That’s why preservative-sensitive wearers so often ask their fitter about peroxide instead of a GP multipurpose solution. A reaction to a buffer is the other common suspect.[5]
Probably not the solution if it tracks with pollen season. Wearers also describe sensitivity to a lens coating or material. Your fitter can help sort out which.
Dryness late in the day
Some wearers get more comfortable hours from a buffered fill, and others prefer unbuffered. A midday refill and preservative-free rewetting drops over the lens are common next steps.
Probably not the solution if the bowl is nearly empty when you remove the lens: fluid should stay under a well-fitting lens, and wearers say a dry bowl usually meant a fit change. See dry eyes while wearing sclerals.
Fill and storage types at a glance
| Type | For | Not for | Examples wearers name |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unbuffered preservative-free saline, single-use | Filling and rinsing | Storing or disinfecting | LacriPure: no preservatives or buffers, single-use vials[8] |
| Buffered preservative-free saline, single-use | Filling and rinsing | Storing or disinfecting | ScleralFil: buffered, preservative-free[9] |
| Buffered preservative-free saline, multi-use bottle | Filling and rinsing | Use past the discard date | PuriLens Plus: borate-buffered; discard 14 days after opening[10] |
| GP multipurpose solution | Cleaning, disinfecting, storing | Filling the bowl | Boston Simplus (preserved; soak at least 4 hours)[11], Unique pH[12], Tangible Clean[7] |
| Hydrogen peroxide system | Disinfecting and storing, in its own case | Rinsing, filling, or any eye contact before neutralizing | Clear Care: at least 6 hours, never used to rinse lenses[4] |
What wearers report
- Unbuffered saline: liked for simplicity and, by some, for less fog; others get stinging or redness hours in.
- Buffered saline: many find it more comfortable; others react to the buffer or fog faster. Reacting to one buffered brand doesn’t mean you’ll react to all.
- Multi-use bottles: less waste, but many fitters limit how long an opened bottle is used for filling.
- GP multipurpose solutions: thicker ones are hard to rinse off fully.
- Peroxide: popular with sensitive eyes; complaints are burning when a step is missed, and film with the wetting-agent version.
Two off-label habits you’ll hear about
Inhalation saline as a fill. Vials like Addipak are FDA-cleared as a nebulizer device, not as a contact lens product.[14] Wearers use them because they’re sterile, preservative-free, and cheap. They’re unbuffered, and many wearers find them irritating.
A thick gel drop in the bowl. Celluvisc is a preservative-free carboxymethylcellulose gel in single-use vials, labeled as drops for the eye.[13] Putting it in the bowl is off-label. Wearers do it because a cushion of thicker fluid reduces fog for many. The risks they report are blur, smearing, and stinging in a very dry eye.
Both are decisions to make with your fitter, never on your own.
Troubleshooting without making it worse
Do
- Take out any lens that burns or stings, then check what went in the bowl.
- Fill from a fresh vial of sterile, preservative-free saline every time, and throw the rest away.
- Rinse multipurpose solution off before filling, unless your fitter or the label says otherwise.
- Change one product at a time, with your fitter’s agreement.
- Keep peroxide in its own case, with the new case from each bottle, for the full soak time.
Don’t
- Use water of any kind on lenses, cases, or tools.
- Top off old solution in the case.
- Put un-neutralized peroxide on a lens or in your eye.
- Keep wearing a lens that hurts to see if it settles.
- Treat a red, painful eye yourself with leftover prescription drops.
Mistakes that come up again and again
- Grabbing the wrong bottle when tired. Peroxide and saline look alike at night. Most peroxide bottles have a red cap or tip:[3] keep that bottle somewhere else.
- Stretching an opened bottle or vial. Saline without preservatives can grow germs once opened. Never reuse solution or top it off.[2]
- Rinsing with a preserved multipurpose solution right before filling. The bowl holds that residue against your cornea all day.[6]
- Using an old peroxide case with a new bottle. It may not neutralize the peroxide.[3]
- Pushing through redness. Wearers who did often found it was the fit all along.
Common questions
Can switching fill saline really cause irritation?
Yes. Wearers commonly report that one saline stings or reddens their eyes while another is fine. Buffered salines contain added chemicals such as borate or phosphate, and some people react to one buffer but not another. Unbuffered saline is slightly more acidic than tears, which bothers some eyes. If a new saline doesn't agree with you, go back to the one that did and tell your fitter.
Is buffered or unbuffered saline better?
Neither, for everyone. Some wearers find buffered saline more comfortable and fog less with it; others fog more with buffered saline and do better without buffers. Ask your fitter which to try, and whether a sample of the other kind makes sense.
My eyes seem sensitive to my multipurpose solution. What do people switch to?
Multipurpose solutions contain preservatives, and hydrogen peroxide systems generally don't, so people who seem to react to preservatives often ask their fitter about peroxide. Peroxide has strict rules: its own case, the full soak time, and never on the lens before it's neutralized. Don't switch on your own.
My new lens stings but my old one didn't. Is it the solution?
Maybe not. A new lens can carry residue from packaging or the lab, and wearers often find a new lens is fine once it has been through their usual cleaning and disinfecting routine. If it still stings, take it out and call your fitter: right and left lenses swapped, a chip, or the fit itself can all cause it.
How long should I give a new solution before deciding?
Wearers report everything from an instant difference to none at all. A burning lens should come out straight away. For slower problems like fog or late-day dryness, give a single change several days before judging, and keep a short note of how each day went to show your fitter.
Can I put a thicker eye drop in the bowl to stop fogging?
Many wearers do this on their fitter's advice, but it's off-label: those drops are labeled to go in the eye, not to fill a lens. It can blur vision or sting a very dry eye. Ask your fitter before trying it, and which product and how much.
Could my saline have been recalled?
It happens. In 2025, specific lots of one scleral fill saline were recalled because they might not be sterile, after reports of red, burning, painful eyes. If a new box coincides with new symptoms, stop using it, note the lot number on the box, and call your fitter. Check the FDA's recall listings for your product.