Glow in the Dark Projects and Mods

[Skylighter]

Reports from our customers lead me to believe that each pigment's frequency charge range is different. I do not beleive this range is necessarily determined by its output frequency.

My unofficial observations are that UV-A seems to be the optimal frequency for charging almost all of the pigments.

If I remember right, red lasers do not charge any of the pigments. Green lasers charge some of the pigments.

But you can't go wrong with a black light tube or a UV Led.

But you do not need a black light to get UV. Most "white light" bulbs spew out UV as a byproduct. The sun also spews out lots of UV.

About a year ago, I was contacted by a customer who claimed that some high end standard light bulbs had such a tight frequency curve on the white light spectrum that they didnt charge the pigments. To be honest, I don't beleive him. But I do suspect they may have not been the optimal charging mechanism.

Now for another take on the situation:

White light causes your eyes to adjust. Black Lights for the most part do not readjust your eyes

Pick up your favorite glow project, hold it next to a 100 watt bulb for 1 minute, then turn out the light.

Have someone else take the glow project to another room and charge it for 1 minute and bring it back while you stay in the dark room. You will now notice that the glow will appear to be 2-3 times brighter.

If you do the same with black light, you will notice almost no difference.

 

[TrueBlue]

I confess. Yes, I do hide on the other side of the Net and make little glowing toys. Yes, my models have LEDs and glow in the dark. They blink and glow. Now you know that I'm not just a flashaholic but part of the bigger world of playing with lights. If something involves lights then I'm there. If it doesn't involve lights then I'll figure a way to make a light work in it. Hmmm, it sounds like modding.

I wonder if plastic modelers would come over here to learn how to make their models glow brighter. Maybe I should go tell the modelers I'm a flashaholic?

I might as well add my favorite model. Yes, it has blinking LEDs in the front and rear of the starboard engine. I can sure break a model, can't I? :naughty:

 

[Skylighter]

Orange Glow in the Dark Candle

This product is from one of our commercial customers, After-Glo Inc. Their website can be found at http://www.aftergloinc.com

 

[IsaacHayes]

oooo. That's purdy!!!!

 

[Skylighter]

Pyrotechnic Firing Panel that Glows in the Dark

This is what is known as a "Pyrotechnics Firing Panel" It is home-made by a Pyrotechnician Joe Zastrow. More details and pictures can be read at: http://www.pyrouniverse.com/firingsystems/joe.htm

This project appeals to me for two reasons. First, most glow projects are done for the looks only. Like the glow flashlights, the glow on this project actually adds to its functionality. Since these systems are usually used outdoors after dark. The glow makes a big difference.

On the other note, I am also a rather well-known pyrotechnician myself. So I thought it was really great to see our product being used for pyrotechnic uses.

Electrically fired fireworks use a device called an e-match. It is two wires connected together with a nichrome bridge and dipped into a pyrogen and then dipped in shellac. This ematch is then inserted into the firework next to the main fuse or black powder lift charge. The other ends of the wires are attached to a firing system. A firing system in its most basic form completes the loop with a switch and battery. It typically also can do a continuity test without firing the device.

I work with very high-end firing systems from a company called Pyromate (http://www.pyromate.com) that are fully computer controlled and can sync to music. The systems cost about $20K. But for all that money, they don't glow in the dark.

 

[Skylighter]

Glow in the Dark Play-Dough aka Play-Glow

Ok, I know you CPF'ers like to play with glow powder. So here it is...."Play-Glow".

"Play-Glow" is very easy to make. Simply mix any of our glow powders into Play-Dough. For this prop, I mixed 25% by weight of Ultra Green Powder into Play-Dough. This sounds like a lot, but glow powder has a high density and Play-Dough has a low density. So this is about 1% by volume.

The upper picture is taken with an Inova X5 UV flashlight. The lower picture was taken just as the flashlight was turned off.

[BTW, this is a CPF exclusive. I just finished this project and you can only find it here on CPF!]

Teaser for tommorow...I will release a new technique to use glow powder with stencils, complete with pictures.

 

[IsaacHayes]

I've heard of some place that sells sillyputty that glows in the dark, and they have other colors and color changing etc. You could possibly mix GP with other stuff like that. Perhaps green slime would be very effective as it's more clear, so less GP would need to be used. Glowing slime.. I like it...

I wonder if glycerin would be viscous enough to keep the powder suspended. Then put it in a vial/jar as a paper weight that was "radio active"

Oooooh Stencil how to.. JUST what I've been needing to make some signs!!

 

[Skylighter]

A customer told me that glow powder does mix well with Silly Putty. You dont necessarily have to start with their glow silly putty. Any color should work.

For a test next week, I also bought some of Crayola's new model magic to see if that works with Glow Powder.

I tried to make glow slime once just for fun. I succeeded only in making a mess. But that was a long time ago before we had the coated pigments.

 

[greenLED]

I tried to make glow slime once just for fun. I succeeded only in making a mess.

:laughing: So that's how the magic starts at Glowinc!

 

[Skylighter]

Experimental Stencil Technique #1:

Surface is photo paper for inkjet. Sit stencil over paper and hold into place. Spray stencil and paper with spray glue*. Remove stencil. Dust liberal amounts of glow powder*** onto paper. Pick up paper and dump excess powder into original container for future use. Blow on the paper to remove powder that may be attaching via static. If you are very careful, you can also remove the static dust with a clean, dry brush. Seal with Krylon Crystal Clear**.

Problems: I only did one pass of spray from the spray glue. In future tests, I did 3 quick passes, which applied just the right amount of glue.

*Spray glue comes in a variety of flavors and brands. Almost all of them should work. Some brands, like 3M have different spray glues depending on the surface. For these tests, I used 3M Super 77, which is good for paper and plastic. If you are doing only paper, try the cheaper 3M Spray Glue 45.

**In these tests, I have not applied a sealing layer.

***Literally any of our glow powders should work for this technique. This one is Ultra Green.

 

[Skylighter]

Experimental Stencil Technique #2:

The second try was done directly onto a lightswitch cover. The technique was the same as before with two exceptions. 1. I applied 3 swipes of spray glue, which turned out well. 2. I left the stencil in place when I poured on the glow powder. This did not work well. So, I suggest that you remove the stencil and then apply the powder.

Glue was 3M Super 77, Powder is Ultra Blue.

Top picture was taken with a Inova X5 UV flashlight (notice how I left the flashlight in the picture for the flashaholics).

Bottom picture was taken just as the flashlight was turned off. The picture is fuzzy because I didnt use a tripod and remote. I will try to take another and update.

 

[IsaacHayes]

Ah, spray glue. That's the part I couldn't figure out. Hmmm. Gotta get some some of that to make my large Nuclear/radiation symbol posters

 

[greenLED]

Woa! I like those light switches!

 

[Skylighter]

Yeah, the spray glue worked better than I expected. Getting the right thickness of glue is the tricky part. If done right, the glow is smooth and as bright as you can get it.

For the beginner reading this ... Stick to the paint, it is much easier. For advanced users who dont mind tweaking...this is awesome.

Of course, now the trick is to figure out how to get this on a ceiling!!!

 

[billw]

Don't you need a glow power that is compatible with water to mix with
playdough?

Glow in the dark silly putty at: http://www.puttyworld.com
(other neat colors too...)

Note that most doughs of this sort contain opacifiers (probably chalk,
calcium carbonate, "whiting") that are (I think) exactly what you DON'T
want if you're going to mix in glow powder...

GID slime should be easy if you start off with real polyvinyl alcohol instead
of something like elmers glue. I'll give it a try. I've done slime with
fluorescein; glows nicely in black light. (again, you'll need water-compatible
powders, sand, or gravel. (chunky slime is cool. http://homepage.mac.com/westfw/PhotoAlbum21.html ))


So questions:

1) You mentioned "coated" powders, and the website also refers to them
in the section on concrete, but I couldn't find any actual products described
in those terms. is this just the "glow powder for water", or something more
general?

2) I noticed that the green glow powder I bought (elsewhere) doesn't
fluoresce much under UV LED illumination or even a typical longwave
black light. I was sort of hoping to have a fluorescent phosphor as well
as GID capabilty... Which colors of the new breed powders DO fluoresce
under "black light."

BillW

 

[LEDcandle]

I mixed my glow powder from glowinc with some regular clear nail polish (not nail coating). I was trying hard to look for UV filters on the label but only one other brand mentioned something about them. I just bought this one because it was the cheapest.

It seems to work ok; powder will settle to the bottom after a period of non-use. After shaking, distribution is 'fairly' even, but application is quite messy. Painting it on larger surfaces usually produced uneven results.

I tried out some glow stuff on various objects and finally decided to try it on my Z2 with a pyrex-lens bezel. I painted the 'notches' in the bezel and I think it came out pretty well. The GID substance is recharged everytime I switch on the light, and looks like a flower-shape. Not sure how long this one glows, esp since its painted on black.

I also bought some GID sand, and took a 1 inch glowstick, cut off one end and emptied its contents, poured the sand into it, dabbed a drop of superglue on the opened end and voila.. a rechargeable glowstick. The stick glows faintly for about 3 or more hours (didn't fully test it; glows bright when first 'charged') and should be useful for what its worth. I'll prob try to attach a small split ring to the ends.

 

[Skylighter]

> Don't you need a glow power that is compatible with water to mix with playdough?

Oddly enough you do not. We have seen this with other water-based materials as well. I think if the percentage of water is so low that it is absorbed into the other materials, then it can not dissolve the glow powder.

> Note that most doughs of this sort contain opacifiers (probably chalk, calcium carbonate, "whiting") that are (I think) exactly what you DON'T want if you're going to mix in glow powder...

I also would concur with your other notes about the additives in play-dough. But the reality is that adding glow powder to the play-dough is amazingly effective.

My only thoughts on this is that powders rotate out to the surface and are not coated by the opaque play-dough. The first time we made Play-Glow, I had it on my desk and played with it for at least 15 minutes a day for a couple of weeks. The glow never had a problem. The problem is that the playdough started to get kind of nasty. I also realized that my desk was getting a bit sticky. So, it had to go. But the glow still worked better than I ever suspected.

> You mentioned "coated" powders

"Coated" are the ones marked "Glow powders for water". We are trying to get that fixed on the site now.

> hoping to have a fluorescent phosphor as well

Any product with the word "Daytime" is one of our standard powders with fluorescent powder added. That being said, our non-"Daytime" powders fluoresce fairly well under black light.

BTW, some education for those interested:
Fluorescent materials convert light and release it immediately.
Phosphorescent materials absorb light and then release it slowly in a converted state.

 

[Skylighter]

LEDcandle,

Awesome project and photos. Thanks for sharing them.

 

[LEDcandle]

LEDcandle,

Awesome project and photos. Thanks for sharing them.

Thanks Danny, I hope to update with more stuff.

Pls go ahead and use the photos if you need on your site or whatever. They are from a mobile phone camera though, so pardon the poor quality.

More photos of the glowstick mod (now with split ring) :-

One of the sticks is using glow sand and the other glow powder. I think the glow powder has a smoother glow overall; not sure if it holds the charge any less than the sand.

Now I'm thinking of doing a full size glowstick replaced with powder! Hope it glows as brightly and long as an original glowstick.... I didn't know the craze for rechargeables could extend to glowsticks! haha....

 

[LEDcandle]

More little rechargeable stickies were made! Mostly for giving out and sticking them on my keyring and mobile :-

And, a big brother stick has emerged as well :-

The powder grain is visible and for the next one I am planning to fill the stick up with nail polish or glue before adding powder to retain a liquid glowstick feel, but the advantage of this dry setup is that the powder is actually re-usable for any future mods!

It is merely being 'stored' in a canister that happens to be a glowstick (And a crazed Samurai's magical sword, it seems)