As the school year comes to a close, properly preparing your AR/VR hardware for summer storage is essential to extending the lifespan of your investment. Taking a few deliberate steps ensures that when teachers and students return in the fall, their headsets, controllers, and charging carts will be clean, functional, and ready for classroom use.

This blog provides a comprehensive checklist and guide for cleaning, battery management, environmental control, and software preparation. Read more to discover how to safely store your AR/VR headsets for the summer!

1. Physical Cleaning and Sanitization           

Deep cleaning your headsets before packing them away is essential. Devices such as ClassVR and SCIVR must be thoroughly cleaned. This prevents the buildup of oils, sweat, and dust, which can degrade hardware materials over time.

• Optical Lenses: Clean the lenses using only a dry, microfiber cloth specifically designed for glasses or optical equipment. Wipe in a gentle, circular motion from the center outward. Never use liquid cleaners, alcohol wipes, or paper towels, as they can permanently scratch or strip protective coatings.
• Shell and Straps: Use non-abrasive, alcohol-free antibacterial wipes to clean the plastic outer shell and head straps. Avoid wipes containing bleach or harsh solvents.
• Facial Interfaces (Foam/Silicone): Prevent mold and bacteria growth by wiping down silicone covers with skin-safe sanitizing wipes and letting them air dry completely. For headsets with foam cushions, remove them to air out or replace heavily soiled ones before the fall. Additionally, ensure the facial interface area is completely dry before safely storing your headset. This prevents trapped moisture, which can cause permanent damage.

2. Battery Management and Power Settings

Leaving lithium-ion batteries completely drained or fully charged for months at a time can permanently degrade their overall capacity and lifespan. Safely store your batteries by leaving all devices at a partial charge.

3. Environmental Controls and Storage Location

Where you store your devices is just as important as how you prepare them. School buildings frequently experience fluctuating temperatures and elevated humidity levels when central HVAC systems are scaled back for the summer break.

• The Golden Rule of VR Lenses:
  NEVER store headsets where direct or ambient sunlight can reach the lenses. Even a few seconds of direct sunlight passing through the lenses acts like a magnifying glass, permanently burning the internal screens and destroying the hardware. Always store headsets facing away from windows, preferably inside opaque cases, bins, or closed carts.
• Temperature and Climate:
  Choose a storage room, closet, or secure office that remains climate-controlled. Aim for a cool, dry environment (ideally between 50°F and 80°F). Avoid unventilated metal storage sheds, top floor classrooms without AC, or damp basements.
• Moisture and Dust Protection:
  High humidity can cause internal corrosion, so it’s important to always keep devices off the floor. If you’re storing headsets inside a mobile charging cart, ensure the cart doors are closed to keep out dust. However, you should avoid wrapping individual devices in airtight plastic bags, which can trap ambient moisture and cause permanent damage.

4. Inventory and Security

Summer is the perfect time to run an inventory check. This prevents the headache of discovering missing gear during the busy first week of school.

1. Label Equipment: Ensure each headset is paired and stored together with its corresponding controllers, chargers, and cables. Consider numbering your kits (e.g., “Headset 01, Controller 01-L, Controller 01-R”) to simplify tracking.
2. Document Damages: Keep a log of any headsets that showed signs of hardware failure, missing parts, or physical wear during the year. Tag these units clearly so they can be serviced before classes resume.
3. Lock and Secure: AR/VR equipment is high-value hardware. Ensure all mobile carts are securely locked and stored in restricted-access rooms or cabinets to protect your gear from theft.

5. End-of-Summer Returning Checklist

When returning in August/September, follow these steps to deploy your devices flawlessly:

• Unpack devices and inspect for any structural changes or dust.
• Plug in the headsets and controllers to bring them back up to a 100% full charge.
• Power on the units, connect them to the school Wi-Fi, and check for operating system updates. (Doing this a week before classes start avoids network slowdowns once students arrive!)
• Re-sync or calibrate controllers if required by your specific hardware platform. This ensures precise motion tracking.To discover more about the world of AR/VR, visit our online learning platform OTIS for educators, and check out our library of engaging professional development courses.

For more tips, tricks, and tools for teaching in and out of the classroom, check out more content on the Teq Talk blog or our YouTube channels OTIS for educators and Tequipment.

We also offer virtual professional development, training, and support with OTIS for educators. Explore the technology and strategies that spark student success — no matter where teaching or learning are happening!

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