Bear in mind that sensitive persons need to wear UV glasses when using such flashlights in their homes/hotel rooms. A lot of light gets reflected and can hurt the eyes. Feels like snow blindness.
For me I use them to load up the glow on my fishing jigs/flashers. Works very well. 395nm is good enough although I do also use 365nm for curing windshield ding resin. I use it to attach tritium onto stuff as well since it dries optically clear. A 395nm wouldn’t work well for curing purposes. My other UV is the Convoy S2 UV using LG 365UV and ZWB filter 18650 battery. My box of squid jigs light up like a Christmas tree!
I would add that sensitive persons should not use these lights in hotels (etc) at all.
It will keep you awake at night, puzzling “how did that footprint get on the ceiling”.
Kitchen, shower, and toilets will be pretty clean. It’s the places you expect the least that ….
OK, I have a couple of the I3 UV lights on the way, looking forward to some fun night time explorations in the yard with my son. I will defiantly make sure I hide them if we visit a hotel to shield him from long term emotional damage
Now I just need some recommendations for a good set of 395nm UV blocking safety glasses, preferably that can be worn over glasses.
Hi, thanks for the heads up. I see a lot of people mentioning eye protection. While I don’t plan on shining this in my eyes is it really powerful enough to need PPE?
Absolutely, yes. There are geocachers that take pictures from illuminated objects so they don’t have to stare at them for longer. So, even outside where reflections are a minor problem sensitive persons have problems.
UV is dangerous, but I wear glasses… they block UV
I bought the UV light so I can make trits glow when I take a photo during the day
I already know that the 395 UV is not effective to show the red line on USA $100… but I did not buy a tiny aaa UV to test currency… nor do I plan to get that close to a scorpion… if I did I would buy a serious UV light, instead of a (dangerous) toy…
I bet people will turn the light on and look at it to see if its working… can you say, burned retina? Just dont use UV without eye protection…
gotta love “free”… (my wallet says $5 is not free)… lol
I have a “blacklight” CFL bulb of unknown wavelength and yes the light from it is quite disorienting. It practically never gets used, and even when turned on it’s never for long.
I don’t know the transmission rate or wavelength cutoff for UV protection in eyeglasses. Lately they sell lenses with blue light blocking polymers, maybe in the range of 420nm.
For PPE, something like the Uvex Skyper with SCT Orange would be an option. It might fit over some eyeglasses and seems to have a cutoff at 540nm. It seems popular with people who want to block blue light from electronic displays and is affordable. https://www.amazon.ca/Uvex-S1933X-Eyewear-SCT-Orange-Anti-Fog/dp/B000USRG90
My Uvex Blaze 3 came with three sets of glasses (rainbow polarized, yellow, and clear), all with sufficient UV protection. I use them for running (polarized) and when working with UV light (clear) and I never noticed impairment due to the light. See if you find them at least with the clear glasses option. But I guess all brand glasses labeled “100% UV protection” will do.
Seems reinbow/polarized is hard to find in the US/CA, but grey is available:
Thanks phouton, I was looking at some of the Uvex safety glasses. The form factor looks good and I am hoping to find some that are clear. I was thinking of Uvex (Honeywell) or 3M mainly as brands that would have done accurate testing and manufacturing.
My glasses also have a UV coating but I can’t really confirm how well they will block the UV and also if the coating may have deteriorated or scratched off in places. A dedicated set of UV glasses seems like a good option for me.
I have a couple friends who work in UV environments and will ask them for advice. If I find anything at a good price I will pass it along.
Unheard Maybe some of the clear options make more sense for most people. I wish the transmission spectrum or at least cutoff wavelength would be mentioned more prominently. I found a few mentions of these for Uvex Skyper with SCT Orange which is why I mentioned it.
Ilumenati When your order arrives you can qualitatively test the 395nm transmission through your glasses. (Not by point into your eyes obviously )
jon_slider Nice pics! Interesting that the 365nm UV LED still emits a fair bit of visible light. It would be nice to see the same lighting conditions with and without the polycarbonate glasses filter, though I wonder what can be concluded without a spectrometer. Could try with fluorescent material in the background. Curious why you got a 395nm UV if you already have a 365nm.