UV flashlights, precautions?

If any one can direct me to an appropriate thread if I have missed it I would appreciate it, otherwise...

I have had a couple of UV lights increasing in power as I go, I know of general dangers of UV light, damaging your sight. So I shouldn't shine it in my eyes, at children/animals etc. But what about reflected light, I have found myself while playing about with it getting a blue reflection off things(sometimes without realising), with glass surfaces etc, should I avoid this? Lastly can you get eyewear that will protect either fully or diminsh the effects?

thanks,
Ian B

Dont shine it on your privates for any length of time. Eyes too.

Lastly can you get eyewear that will protect either fully or diminsh the effects?

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Any sort of plastic will be an excellent filter for stopping short wave UV. The plastic safety goggles/glasses sold for use in science labs would work well.

Soniq7 said:

Dont shine it on your privates for any length of time.

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?!? Not that I want to but can that really cause damage ?

Ian B

impotence & infertility.

And general loss of appetite...

longwave UV is pretty benign in the levels that we typically experience, even with NUV LED flashlights and fluorescent blacklights. Oh, you might see a weird bluish haze around things during UV exposure; that's your eyeballs fluorescing! (Do this in a mirror if you don't believe me). We are constantly bathed in longwave UV every day, from sunlight to regular fluorescent lights.

Shortwave UV, on the other hand, is pretty nasty. It causes and/or contributes to sunburn, skin cancer and cataracts. At this time there are no shortwave UV LED flashlights that I know of. And shortwave UV is easily blocked by ordinary plastic and glass. They have to make shortwave lamps out of quartz instead of regular glass for this reason; regular glass wouldn't let any of the UV out.

Feel better now?

ianb said:

?!? Not that I want to but can that really cause damage ?

Ian B

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There was an incident in college involving hookers, a blacklight and some dayglo paint. Nasty sunburn...

At this time there are no shortwave UV flashlights that I know of. And shortwave UV is easily blocked by ordinary plastic and glass.

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I was with some people this weekend who had a flashlight they said was short wave. To test that claim I asked them "oh, is it an LED?" and got the response "no, LEDs won't give short wave UV, it is a bulb". They said it was a 1-watt device.

David_Campen said:

I was with some people this weekend who had a flashlight they said was short wave. To test that claim I asked them "oh, is it an LED?" and got the response "no, LEDs won't give short wave UV, it is a bulb". They said it was a 1-watt device.

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DOH! I meant to say "no shortwave LED flashlights." I have a couple of shortwave UV lights that are based on germicidal fluorescent bulbs.

Thanks for catching that, David.

take some sun glasses, and put a neon post it note on the face side , shine the light through them from the sun side, if the post it note doesn't glow, then your good to go.

UV light in the wavelenghts you get in a ledlight are pretty harmless and nothing compared to what the sun throws at you every day.

The only thing you might want to protect is your eyes, any plastic pair of glasses will do that. Shades with amber glass removes the purple/blue part of the light from the led and you will see the stuff that glows better.

Unless you use short range UV-C light there isn't really a danger with it uneless you shine it in your eyes a lot.

I asked my ophthalmologist and she said the UV coating on most eye glasses would protect your eyes. Of course I can't recall if my which of my glasses I had coated.

-LT

Thanks evreyone for your responses, it is a LED UV flashlight (believe to be longwave, Aleph 19 UV?) I am getting so with some care and suncream(if I get the Dayglo paints out ), I feel much happier,thanks agin,
Ian B

David_Campen said:

Any sort of plastic will be an excellent filter for stopping short wave UV. The plastic safety goggles/glasses sold for use in science labs would work well.

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I wouldn't trust those to block UV; most do not have UV filters, AFAIK. I'd get some real UV filtered glasses/goggles.

greenLED said:

I'd get some real UV filtered glasses/goggles.

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I've seen some that appear to be like NoFair described, would these be useful?

NoFair said:

...any plastic pair of glasses will do that. Shades with amber glass removes the purple/blue part of the light from the led and you will see the stuff that glows better.

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In fact I believe I get a free pair with my light, hope they work,
Ian

I sometimes do field autopsies on animals and it is a lot easier to see the glowing stuff if you wear amber shades. These filter out most of the blue and purple visible light, but lets the light from fluorescing stuff go through and makes it stand out against the backround.
I think CSI people do the same with humans at crime scenes.

Any polycarbonate lenses will stop UV afaik, and I think any other clear plastic will as well.... I would advise you to get a decent quality pair, preferably the kind where you can swap out the lenses to the kind you want at any time. Bollê and Oakley make nice ones.

greenLED said:

I wouldn't trust those to block UV; most do not have UV filters, AFAIK. I'd get some real UV filtered glasses/goggles.

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Yes, these goggles will work fine.

NoFair said:

I sometimes do field autopsies on animals and it is a lot easier to see the glowing stuff if you wear amber shades. These filter out most of the blue and purple visible light, but lets the light from fluorescing stuff go through and makes it stand out against the backround.
I think CSI people do the same with humans at crime scenes.

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Right. Sirchie http://www.sirchie.com
makes alot of these types of units including filters that fit over SL's or M@gs and an amber shield.

Lunal_Tic said:

I asked my ophthalmologist and she said the UV coating on most eye glasses would protect your eyes.

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greenLED said it above, but I'll mention it again. Don't assume your eyeglasses will block UV. I've got one of those inexpensive 8 LED UV lights from Dae's shop, and my prescription eyeglasses don't do squat to block the UV. You can shine the light through it, and ten dollar bills and credit cards still glow as if the glasses weren't there at all.

I keep seeing people say that "most glasses" or "any piece of plastic" will block the UV. Don't assume. Test it yourself first, if you think it's important to protect yourself from UV.