LED surface gummy?

[Zero_Enigma]

Just curious as I'm just starting out with building some LED projects but the SSC P4's I have here have a gummy LED cover to it. ;; Is that usual? :duh2: I thought it would be hard like a light bulb. It attacts dust like ants to honey on the ground. What can I use to clea the surface? Alchohal?

What types of LED (not even sure what to call it bulb?) bulb surfaces are?


Thanks in advance.

 

[carrot]

The SSC P4's are supposed to be like that. I believe they are made out of some kind of silicone mixture?

Cree XR-E's have glass domes and I believe all Luxeons except the K2 and Rebels use some kind of optically clear polymer. The K2 uses silicone.

I think alcohol is safe but you shouldn't take my word for it.

 

[DonShock]

Yes, it is normal for the SSC P4s to have a soft gummy dome to the LED. It's a soft silicone of some type instead of a hard plastic.

 

[clg0159]

You can clean them with a swab and isopropyl

 

[Lighthouse one]

Spit also works great....also cheap and handy!

 

[Illum]

Spit also works great....also cheap and handy!

I'd rather have all my LEDs smell like the PCB etching fluid than to have it smelling like spinach and anchovies dipped in vinegar....no :thanks:

 

[Ivanhoe]

being a mod newbie, I also found out the hard way how these p4's have the gummy dome. I was inspecting one that I just received and thought I saw a small speck of lint on the dome, so I just rubbed it with the end of my polo shirt and Whooooooaaaaa. Instant lint magnet. doh! Live and learn...

 

[Zero_Enigma]

being a mod newbie, I also found out the hard way how these p4's have the gummy dome. I was inspecting one that I just received and thought I saw a small speck of lint on the dome, so I just rubbed it with the end of my polo shirt and Whooooooaaaaa. Instant lint magnet. doh! Live and learn...

I actually found out when I accidently pressed the LED dome while trying on reflectors. I thought it'd be hard and not soft.

The LED dome from the m*g factory retrofit 3W was hard so I thought all LED's had a hard surface. Is there a reason why the dome is soft? Any advantages? Is there a dome replacement out there to make it hard?

 

[magneo]

What I did to solve the dust problem, was rinsed the dome then put a layer of transparent nail varnish. Now dust doesn't stick to it anymore.

 

[greenLED]

No replacements, Zero - at least not without destroying the emitter's integrity. :green:

Magneo :welcome: - I wonder what that did to the optical performance of the emitter.

 

[Lightingguy321]

Aren't most clear nail polishes applied with a thin nylon bristled brush? If that is the case I would think it would scatter the light accordingly to the way the striations that are made by the brush in the nail polish. If it is a smooth coating, it could probably cause the total output to drop so slightly that the human eye wouldn't be able to tell.

 

[tonycollinet]

Until the varnish ages and goes yellow. :naughty: