I have anti-glare coating on my glasses and it's very scratched. Can I have the coating removed, or possibly re-applied?

If the coating is scratched, chances are the lenses are scratched as well, particularly if they are made of plastic. Lenses can be recoated, but the old coating must first be removed, by polishing the lens with an abrasive or chemically removing the coating(s).

The industry itself is not particularly oriented towards providing this type of service, but is quite efficient at delivering new lenses to customers. Repair services are not as economical or readily available, because the cost of repairing an old lens is not that much less than manufacturing a new one.

If the glasses are more than a year old, it makes more sense to have the prescription checked to see if it has changed before you have an old lens repaired. Up to about the age of 25, an individual's eyes are likely to change enough to warrant a new pair of lenses on an annual basis. They tend to change little until middle age arrives, when further changes bring the need for bifocals and regular examinations again.

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Re: "how do I remove the antiglare coating"

Some coatings chemically bond to plastic lenses. These may be impossible to remove, except through precision polishing, which would likely cause optical changes to the lens. Poorly-bonded coatings can be physically peeled off, but such inferior coatings are rare today. There are specialty chemicals on the market that are used to dissolve some coatings, but these must be selected to match the type of coating and, usually, the type of plastic used to manufacture the lens (e.g., http://www.lenscoloring.com/lenscoloring/htm/Accessories/AR_Stripper.htm). The use of the wrong chemical stripper may ruin a lens.

I was considering getting anti-glare coating and you have answered my question. I won't get that addition now.
Sounds like more trouble than it's worth.
Thank you.
Did you notice a huge difference with it? If not, I don't need it.

I was a technician for an optician. THe anti-glare is a different coating than the anti-scratch coating. So I'm wonding if your anti-scratch coating is scratched?
Which can definitely happen...either coating can be removed by a lab. I did not even try to do that in my facility - we sent those requests to a lab. If you got them at an optician's, take them and back and ask. It might be covered under warranty you have on the glasses and can be done for free - maybe. Just an idea..

I asked the same question, and I was told that it was not possible. It was not even possible to have it applied to glasses that I had used for about six months that did not have it originally.

I've read on other blogs that using Armour Etch will remove the AG coating. However, be careful using it - wear gloves and don't get in eyes. You can purchase this on e-bay or at a local hobby store (Michael's, JoAnne's, Hobby Lobby, etc.).

Take them into your opticians they will be able to tell you for certain, i think it can be done though good luck

I had an anti-glare coating applied when I renewed my prescription. It was the biggest mistake I ever made. Never, Never again will I let those eye glass people talk me into that crap.

Very easy to scratch. Almost impossible to clean. All it does is smear. I should ask eye glass people to replace them free of charge.

I looked at this thread and some others. I then looked to see if there was a repair service. THERE IS:

http://www.useyeglassframerepair.com/index.htm

I haven't tried this yet, but the cost is reasonable to have this done professionally. I'm mailing my glasses in tomorrow. I'll let you know how it works out for me.

I have tried several cleaner and removers but good out vinegar did it, With a soft towel it removed the anti-glare coating in about 10 minutes of scrubbing. You monitor smell like a salad for a while is the only problem I had.

My old prescription sunglasses had become nearly unwearable due to the cloudy, flaking, scratched anti-glare coating on the inside of the polycarbonate lenses (the coating is often on the inside of the lenses of sunglasses to reduce reflections). After reading these posts and several on other sites that indicated success using toothpaste, which has a mild abrasive quality, I decided to give good old Bon Ami a shot. Bingo!

I made a paste of Bon Ami and water and rubbed the lenses with the pad of my thumb for a couple of minutes. I then rinsed and dried the lenses and checked them under a bright light to judge my progress, then repeated the procedure about four times until the lenses were clear.

There is no apparent scratching or other new damage due to the Bon Ami -- but the coating is nearly all gone. There's just a tad of it left around the screws that mount the lenses to the frame, but not enough to interfere with my vision. There are still a couple of tiny scratches on the lenses themselves, but overall the glasses are about 1000% better then they were.

Bon Ami's advertising slogan is "Hasn't Scratched Yet!" I'll be darned if it isn't TRUE!