How Can We Help?

IP Rating for 395nm realUV™ LED Strip

I was wondering if you could provide the IP rating for your realUV™ 395nm LED strip. 

Though our realUV™ LED Flood Light product has an IP65 rating, the majority of our products, including the realUV™ LED Strip Lights, do not have an IP rating at this time.

As such, we discourage installations where this product could come in contact with moisture or excess condensation, as it would create a safety hazard and void the product warranty.

365nm UV LED Lights for Exposing Photo Polymer for Braille Signs

I'm wondering if these will work for exposing photo polymer for braille signs. The manufacturer recommends 350 nm.

We unfortunately do not have any data on photo polymers for this specific application, but do suspect that there may be some cross-compatibility between 350 nm and 365 nm.

I would perhaps recommend testing and taking advantage of our free returns policy. If for whatever reason you find that the LED bulbs are not going to work for your project, we would be more than happy to pay for return shipping and offer a full refund. 

Any Ideas to temporarily mount 32" to a metal plate?

The one idea I can think of would be to see if a small section of the photopolymer cures effectively under a single row of the UV LED strip light. This of course would not be the same as the final installation, but may be helpful in getting an approximation on cure times and proof of concept.

Do you have a way off measuring Milli Watts/Square Meter Irradiance of the lights at 2" inches away?

Please see below for our irradiance charts. 

https://www.waveformlighting.com/photometrics/BP_7021.pdf

Our closest measurement was from 12 inches, where we observed 228 µW/cm². This is equal to 0.228 mW/cm², or 2,280 W/m².

While we do not have any measurements at 2", one quick way to roughly estimate is to use the inverse square law, which states that the irradiance values increase by the square of the distance. Therefore, at 3" away (1/4 the distance), we would expect a 16-fold increase in the irradiance values.

UV-A Light Transmitting Material

I have some of your products and have decided to create custom housing for them. I will need to use some sort of plastic or glass to cover them. I need to permit both the 395 and 365nm UV to pass through keeping my losses <10%. I am having a hard time finding a plastic that can permit these frequencies to pass without great losses. I noticed your UV spotlight has a cover protecting the LED. Are you able to tell me specifically what material you are using to cover it?

While we are unable to disclose the specific materials used in our products, I do know that "quartz glass" is commonly known to have a high rate of UV transmission, and maybe a viable avenue for exploration.

UV-A LED Strips for Curing Etching Plates

I want to build a UV exposure unit to cure Tojobo Photopolymer etching plates using your 365nm realUV™LED strips. My largest plates are size A2 (16.5” x 23.735”) so I designed a grid of strips (about 12 meters) that covers that area as follows:

Strip length 500mm, Strip separation 13.75mm, Number of strips 22

Would this number of lights and arrangement work to expose photopolymer gravure plates?

We don't have any data or experience for this particular application, unfortunately, but we have had customers report success with our UV LED strip lights (particularly the 365 nm versions) for various curing applications, so I do believe that this should be a viable approach in concept.

​The biggest unknown, from my perspective, is the required UV irradiance levels for a satisfactorily fast cure time. If you have any data on the photopolymer material using as far as their recommended irradiance or dosage levels, that may help us provide some additional guidance in terms of irradiance needs.

Is the proposed strip separation a problem for even illumination of the plate at about 2-3"?

The LEDs emit UV radiation at a 120-degree angle. This generally means that the LED strips should not be spaced farther apart than the distance away from the irradiance surface. In other words, if the exposure irradiance surface is 2-3 inches away, the LED strip lights should not be spaced farther than 2-3 inches per row.

​Your proposed LED "strip separation" indicates 13.75 mm which works out to approximately half an inch, and furthermore dividing the 22 rows across 23.735 inches, we would not significantly exceed 1 inch between LED strip rows (on center), so I think we are well within the limits and should not be concerned about uneven irradiation.

Is this calculation correct?

Yes, the LED strip lights require 14.4 watts per meter, so the entire 12-meter section will need 173 watts, and the 350-watt power supply should be a great option for your needs.

Is this bus topology OK with your strips and the required power in my project? The copper power bus makes the soldering clean but I am not sure if it is safe (not sure where to get them either).

The proposed bus topology is perfectly fine from an electrical standpoint. In fact, this is probably the only feasible way for such an installation requiring a relatively high current draw, as the maximum LED strip run length is 5 meters (your proposal has a maximum run length of only 0.5 meters x 22 rows, so we are OK here since you are taking a parallel bus connection approach).

We don't have any specific recommendations, but I do know solar panel assemblies require a similarly high current carrying capacity, so that might be an area that could be worth looking into.

As far as safety is concerned, since we are using a 12-volt DC, the electric shock risk here is relatively low. The only potential concern would be high heat buildup, which may be caused by improper or loose wire connections, so we would recommend checking to make sure you do not see any unexpected behavior or hotspots during operation.

Flat Spectrum Light Source for Hyperspectral Imaging

I lead the NASA OSIRIS-REX Asteroid Sample Return Mission. We are planning for laboratory analysis of the returned samples. One goal is to perform hyperspectral imaging from 350 nm - 950 nm. We need a light source for this imaging. The preference is for a "flat" spectrum, meaning equal emission at all wavelengths, or as close as possible.

We currently do not offer any products that would be able to meet the requirements for such a wide range of wavelengths.

​For the visible wavelength range, our ABSOLUTE SERIES would be the best match, with coverage between 420-650 nm. 

Please see below for the photometric report:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/photometrics/TR_7001.50.pdf

​To supplement the low and high end of the spectrum, additional wavelength LEDs would be needed, but it would be quite difficult to achieve a fully flat or complete spectrum across the 350-950 nm wavelength range.

​Below are our 365, 395, and 850 nm wavelength LED strip light options, respectively:

As an alternate approach, a key objective is to perform spectral imaging under conditions similar to those that we obtained of asteroid Bennu’s surface using the MapCam broadband photometer. MapCam has four color filters (b, v, w, and x). The MapCam bands are b′ (440 to 500 nm), v (520 to 580 nm), w (670 to 730 nm), and x (820 to 890 nm) as indicated in the figure below. Can you provide light sources focused on these bands?

As far as your lighting requirements are concerned, we can certainly look into providing narrow-band sources that focus on each of those bands as an alternative to a wideband source. The only one I do see a challenge with would be the "w" channel. Please see below for my recommendations:

​b′ (440 to 500 nm): SimpleColor 460 nm

v (520 to 580 nm):​ SimpleColor 525 nm

w (670 to 730 nm): closest match would be SimpleColor 630 nm

x (820 to 890 nm): Infrared 850 nm

Please let me know if you have any questions regarding this proposed solution.

As an alternative, have you looked into using an incandescent light source with a set of optical filters? This would be beyond the scope of our LED offerings, but based on your requirements, may be worth looking into for the original broadband approach.

UV-C LED Strip Lights for Disinfection

We are medical equipment manufacturers. We are using UV-C lamps for disinfection. Can we replace classical lamps with your LED strips? 

Our UV-C LED strip lights feature 270 nm wavelength output, which is an effective wavelength for many germicidal applications. While we do not have any specific guidance or technical documentation on integrating the product into any existing systems, our various data, and reports may help provide additional information and guidance in this process.

For example, please see below for the irradiance pattern charts:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/datasheets/BP_7026.pdf

Can I plug the UV-A LED Strip into the Vessel or Cigarette Lighter?

I am making a UV 365 charge box for my boat and would like to plug your 1 meter UV led strip either to my 12 volts directly or the cigarette lighter. How do I do that?

As the 12V battery within your vessel will likely have more than enough power to utilize the 365nm realUV™ LED Strip Lights through a direct-wired connection with a product such as our Male DC Barrel Jack Plug Adapter, there is a chance that some cigarette lighter adapter models could have hardware-defined output limitations that are lower than 12V.

Based on my review of some products available online, there do appear to be several listings that provide low-voltage protection for the products utilizing the ports. We might recommend selecting a similar product that can ensure sufficient and stable power for the LED product.

For more technical details regarding the realUV™ LED Strip Lights, I have included a link to the product sheet below.

realUV™ LED Strip Lights Product Sheet: https://www.waveformlighting.com/datasheets/CS_7021.pdf

realUV 365nm LED Strip Accessories and Installation Guide

I want to build an exposure box with UV-LEDs (real UV- 365nm). For that purpose, I plan to install the three LED strips side by side so that I have a broader strip with a width of 30 mm. Is this possible or are there any issues with heat transport, etc.? The equipment I plan to order is the following: 7021.65.5M, PN 3091, PN 3070 (3x), and PN 3071. Do I need the extra PN 3070 or is all I need for installation of the LED Strip and the Power Supply?

We completely understand the proposed installation of using three gapless rows of the UV LED strip lights. We do not anticipate any heat or thermal issues and this should be a good way to boost the UV output from a small area.

For a single 5 meter run, the power supply and LED strip reel is all that is needed. To cut the LED strip and re-join them, you will want to use PN 3071 as shown in the diagram below:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4C

Also, we do not think you will need PN 3070 if your proposed layout is similar to the one shown above.

Does your LED Strip Light mark for CE and RoHS compliance?

We are looking for a white light and UV light source to include in our product. Our product needs to be CE marked and the components RoHS compliant. The electronic components must be UL 94V-2 or VW-1 compliant as well. Does your LED strip light meet these requirements? 

Our LED strip lights are marked for CE and RoHS compliance. The LED strips are also UL listed to UL 2108, Low Voltage Lighting Systems, which inherently requires and tests for requirements such as the flammability standards referenced.

I’m not familiar with UL 2108 and checking the UL website that standard references UL-94. The standard we need to comply with is IEC-61010 which has a flammability requirement of UL 94V-2 or better for connectors and insulating material components mounted on and UL 2556 VW-1 for wire. Can you find out if the flammability rating for the LED Flex Strips meets these standards?

​Unfortunately we do not have this information on hand, and the only assurances we can provide with certainty would be adherence to the UL 2108 standard.

UV-A LED Strips to Expose Photopolymer Plates

I am looking for UV LED strips that allow me to expose Photopolymer plates that are sensitive to 365nm wavelengths. My application calls for about 15-20 meters. The LED Pitch should be higher than 60 and preferably 120-130. Is there a specific model I should be looking at? Do you have standard and high-output versions? 

We are happy to confirm that the LED density per meter of our 365nm realUV™ LED Strip Lights product is 8.3 mm. It might also be helpful to know that this product has a 120-degree emission angle.

For more information on the products, you might find value in the product specification sheet and photometric reports, which I have linked below.

Specification Sheet: https://www.waveformlighting.com/datasheets/CS_7021.pdf

365nm Photometric Report: https://www.waveformlighting.com/photometrics/TR_7010.365.pdf

How flexible the realUV™ LED Strip Lights 395 nm are?

I was wondering how flexible the realUV™ LED Strip Lights 395 nm / 3.2 ft (1 m) are? Can I bend then past 30° to affix them to the inside of some tighter fabric? I don't want to try and bend it more than the circumference of the spool but I would essentially like to bend it much tighter if that is possible, without damaging the product. 

The specification we have on hand is that the minimum bend radius for our LED strip products is 0.8 inches. This specification tells us how "sharp" the turns can be without damaging the components, as opposed to the total angle turned. (This would be analogous to driving a winding road - sharp turns, rather than extended turns, tend to be more hazardous).

​As such, making a 30 degree turn should be no problem as long as the turn is not too sharp at the corner (as defined by the minimum bend radius of 0.8 inches).

Do realUV™ LED Lights have rainbow lights too?

This might be a silly question but I’m a little confused. Are these lights just black lights or do they have rainbow lights too?

We can confirm that our realUV™ LED Strip Lights are specifically designed to output ultraviolet light wavelengths, whereas other 'ultraviolet' products have been known to simply pair red and blue LEDs to create a purple-colored light output.

If you were hoping to include an RGB LED strip light product in your installation, we might recommend the FilmGrade™ FiveSpect 5-in-1 LED Strip Lights. This product can be combined with third-party controllers or our 'FilmGrade™ DMX LED Dimmer & Decoder with 5 Channel Output' product for color configuration.

For more information regarding our LED strip lights and the realUV™ products, we have provided links to two helpful blog posts from our website below.

LED Strip Lights: Everything you need to know before you buy

https://www.waveformlighting.com/led-strip-lights

realUV™ LED Lights

https://www.waveformlighting.com/real-uv-led-lights

UV-A LED Strips for Tanning Wood and Curing Oil Varnish

I'm interested in these UV LEDs for tanning wood and curing oil varnish. They're listed as 12V units. My question is could I get higher intensity output by using your 24v power supply, or would that blow out the lights? 

As our LED products are designed at the circuit level with a specific voltage in mind, we do not recommend utilizing a 24V power supply with a 12V LED strip light product. In general, connections that lead to an over-voltage can permanently damage the LED strip lights and void the product warranty.

UV-A LED Strip Lights for Curing

Interested in UV LED for curing, 350 nm. I need 2 or 4 strips about 1 ft long. What products do I need, LED Power supply?

Based on the details provided, it appears that the closest product match would be the 365nm realUV™ LED Strip Lights. These products are available in 3.2 ft (1 meter) increments and can be powered using a power supply such as our 12V FilmGrade™ DC Power Supply for LED Strip products.

If you would prefer to connect multiple lengths using the pre-installed power plugs, you might be interested in our Daisy-Chain DC Connector for UV LED Strips product. Please note that these LED strip lights can support a maximum connected length of 16.4 ft (5 meters).

We have also attached two layout diagrams below, which illustrate some of the most common product installation configurations:

LayoutMaps™ - LED Strip Light Layout 7021_4B: https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4B?px=-2201&py=-2213.5&pw=1402&ph=1427&s=0.1

LayoutMaps™ - LED Strip Light Layout 7021_4C: https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4C?px=-2201&py=-2213.5&pw=1402&ph=1427&s=0.1

LED Lights that Simulates Sunlight and UV Output

I'm an avid salmon fisherman. I tie a lot of flies and painting lures for salmon. I'm looking for a light that best simulates sunlight but also has UV down to about 350nm. Do you have a light that would work? 

While we can confirm that many of our products (such as the ABSOLUTE SERIES™ LED Flexible Strip) offer light output which closely simulates direct sunlight, these products generally do not offer UV output as well. 

As such, we, unfortunately, might not have the ideal lighting product available at the moment.

I was looking for a simple bulb. I have a light box I built where I can put different colored filters to simulate different watercolors. However, currently, it just uses a standard bulb. About UV, is there a single 350-400 nm light you guys sell?

If your light box is designed to utilize an E26 base lightbulb, we unfortunately might not have the ideal ultraviolet product form factor available at the moment. However, depending on the dimensions and design of the lightbox, you might also be able to utilize our 365 nm realUV™ LED Strip Lights. This product is designed to output UV-A light which is centered within the referenced range.

realUV LED Lights for Activating Antimicrobial Glass

I have come across the realUV product range while researching producers of LED lighting. I am looking for solutions for activating the coating when natural daylight UV is unavailable. The realUV series appears to be a good fit, emitting strongly in the 360 nm range. 

Our 365 nm UV LED products sound like a great fit for the application!

​We do have several form factors, such as our 20-watt flood light, as well as the LED strip lights, which could work for your needs.

Can the LED light be directionally controlled?

The LEDs have an inherent 120-degree beam angle; as such, they can be somewhat "directed" toward a target but their orientation cannot be dynamically controlled.

What is the smallest form factor that can be used?

The smallest form factor would be our LED strip lights. I've included the product datasheet below for your reference, with a dimensional diagram included.

https://www.waveformlighting.com/datasheets/CS_7021.pdf

Have the products been safety certified for use when people are present?

The products have not been safety certified. We would recommend taking additional precautions if the lights will be used extensively and/or near people. UV-blocking glasses may also be a beneficial addition for safety purposes.

Do you have known values for UV irradiance at a set distances from the light (i.e. value of mW / cm2 at 50 cm, 1 m, 2m, etc)

Please see below:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/photometrics/BP_7021.pdf

What we would like to do is find LED solutions for the concept described in the attached PDF. Can the LEDs be housed/contained, such that the light is directed onto the face of the glass, and not towards customers or employees on either side?

Unfortunately, I do not believe the geometry would allow for irradiating the surface of the material effectively without having the lamps shining perpendicularly from one side or the other. The only thing I can think of would be to implement an edge-lit solution with the UV LED strip lights, but we do not have any data or experience for this type of application and we would need to have the testing and validation performed on your end.

Another thought I have is that if the barrier itself contains UV-blocking properties (as do most residential and commercial windows), I would imagine that the LED lamps could be directed at the barrier without the harmful UV rays passing through, thereby preventing any harm to people on the other side.

Output Wattage of UV-C LED Strip

What are the output led watts for this product? I am looking for a led strip for a new product.

We can confirm that the cleanUV™ UV-C LED Strip Light product has a UV output of 130-140 mW per reel.

For more information regarding this product, I have attached a link to the product specification sheet below.

Specification Sheet: https://www.waveformlighting.com/datasheets/CS_7026.pdf

Do you have UV-C LED Strips in 254-270 nanometers?

I collaborate with an Irish company that deals with the construction of sterilization boxes with UV-C, I ask you if you also have UV-C LED strips in your catalog the 254 nanometers and 270 nanometers with relative certification. 

We can confirm that we sell the cleanUV™ UV-C LED Strip Light product, which emits 270nm UVC radiation. However, the product wavelength of 270-275nm does not include the 254nm specified in your email. For more product details, including a specification sheet and photometric reports, please visit the product page.

UV-A LED Light for Curing Glue-On Metal to Glass

Which UV light is best for curing glue-on metal to glass? Should I use 365nm or 395 nm? 

While we do not have any specific data on cure rates including the glue-on product, our 365 nm wavelength is generally better suited for curing applications and should be a good option for you.

The product I am using is CRL UV adhesive, UV KLEBSTOFF, high viscosity. I am attaching metal jewels to glass containers and need to know if this is the correct UV light before I order additional lamps?

We did a quick search online but was unable to locate any specific UV requirements for the UV Klebstoff product. However, we do believe that our UV-A lamps are in the general range of wavelengths required for most curing applications and should work sufficiently for your needs.

We would perhaps recommend testing and taking advantage of our free returns policy. If for whatever reason you find that the UV LED will not work for your project, we would be more than happy to pay for return shipping and offer a full refund. 

Do you make UV-B lights that are 300-400 nm?

Do you guys happen to make UV-B lights that are 300-400 nm?

We do make several lights that are at the 365 nm wavelength, which falls within the wavelength range you specified below (300-400 nm). Please note, however, that these lamps are typically considered "UV-A" and not "UV-B".

​Please see below for one of our most popular UV-A lamps:

​

UV LEDs for Wildfire Painted Artwork

What would you recommend for an LED UV strip with an av 110v power plug-in or battery-powered supply? For a painting with UV and acrylic artwork to go around the canvas perimeter. To switch from natural light to UV light.

Based on the details provided, we might recommend our 365nm realUV™ LED Strip Lights. As most fluorescents are strongest within the 320-380nm range, we believe that this product would allow for the most effectiveness in your photography.

As this product utilizes 4.5 watts per foot, an entire 16.4 ft (5 meters) reel should only utilize 73.8 watts in total. As such, the 110-watt power supply should be more than sufficient.

UV-C LED Lighting for a Package Disinfection Application

I’m looking for UVC light strips for an application which is a box that holds packages. The box is 22"x14"x15" and the smallest package will be 5”x5”x2”. The box has a lid at the top. Assumed exposure time can be 10 min. I’d like to know the following:

-Do you have any recommendations regarding the amount and layout of LE D strips recommended for this application? I’m only looking for a rough estimate. We will do our own validation for this.

-Do you have the irradiance pattern on your website in excel so we could manipulate it for our specific application?

-I want to confirm you do not require a LED regulator board (i.e. the LED strips can be directly connected to a regulated power supply)

-Is any heatsinking of the LED strips required?

Based on the dimensions of the box, it appears that the farthest distance from the box side surface to the disinfection surface will be 10 inches (5"x5"x2" box placed in the center of the box, 22 inches wide).

As such, I would imagine that the 10-inch distance would be a good starting point for referencing the exposure dosage values, which are shown below (unfortunately only available in PDF format):

https://www.waveformlighting.com/datasheets/BP_7026_EXPOSURE.pdf

The exposure dosage at 10 inches and 5 minutes of exposure time show 61.5 J/m². Extrapolating to 10 minutes would provide 123 J/m². While different pathogens have different levels of susceptibility, we believe that this would be a good starting point in terms of being "in the ballpark" for sufficient exposure.

​Our ability to provide extensive support in the design and layout is somewhat limited, but I would imagine that having the UV-C LED strip lights on each side of the box (5 total?) would be necessary as some "shadowing" could otherwise occur.

The LED strip lights are constant voltage 12-volt DC devices that do not require any special controllers. Even a simple 12-volt DC battery would be sufficient to operate it.

No heatsinking is required.

UV-A LED Strip for Cannabis Grow Light

I have a question about the realUV LED strip. Is this spectrum going to need a pair of glasses with a UV block? Are they going to affect my eyes if not protected? It's for a cannabis grow, and so I'm curious as to photons as well. Basically, can I build a UV board with these that's equivalent to say the high buck 380-nanometer diodes like spider farmer, mars hydro even gave? 

Our UV LED strip lights can certainly be used for a DIY grow light build and sounds like a great option for you!

​Unfortunately, we do not have PPFD values available, but below is our UV irradiance pattern chart:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/photometrics/BP_7021.pdf

​We would recommend using eye protection whenever possible with any kind of UV or high intensity lighting systems.

Should I secure them to a aluminum plate to dissipate heat? It said no but where's the hear loss in the power box or the LED? 

​You may find our layout maps helpful for providing you with some conceptual guidance and ideas for your installation:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4C?px=-2219&py=-2490&pw=1438&ph=1980&s=0.1

The UV LED strips do not require any aluminum plates for heatsinking as the heat is designed to dissipate through the heavy-duty (4 oz) copper circuit board.

UV-A LED Strip Light to Glow a Painting Studio

I have approx. 10×10 room with a 2×4 panel drop ceiling - black acoustic) I would like to have independent white and fixtures or another way to control white and UV independently. I plan on filming in there so need lots of white light preferably on a dimmer. The blacklight/UV would be useful to have both 365nm and possibly another wavelength (this is one major question) I'm using strontium aluminate pigments but maybe it might help to have another wavelength in there as well. The wall switch can be changed, in fact, everything is open with bonus points if I can control them via remote control. 

The closest alternative option would be to incorporate our LED strip lights, which are offered both in 365 nm UV-A as well as in various color temperatures in white. This would require some rewiring and modification of the fixtures as well as familiarity with low-voltage wiring systems.

Based on what you are looking for, the Lutron Caseta remote control system to control our LED strip lights may be a great option for you. (See article here: https://www.waveformlighting.com/home-residential/dimming-led-strip-lights-and-led-bulbs-using-smart-lighting-systems)

I just need advice what to put on the switch or if there's a primary fixture for the dimmable bright white lights with the ability to daisy chain for power only to the UV. If 10,000 lumen is overkill that's beyond overkill (I plan to keep it dimmed, but would like option of brightness for the microscope) I can be flexible.

We do not have any fixtures that would meet your needs, so everything would need to be a custom build / installation on your end.

​Our LED strip lights can be a viable option and can be connected to a wall dimmer as shown in the layout chart shown in the link below:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/3001_1C

​​I've input your room dimensions in our lumen estimation calculator (https://www.waveformlighting.com/lumen-calculator) and the 10,000 lumens would provide you with roughly 100 footcandles across the space. This is certainly on the high side but may be preferred or even needed, depending on how much light you are looking for your film and photography needs.

Each 1 ft section of the white LED strip lights emits approximately 450 lumens, so you would be looking for approximately 22 ft of LED strip lights to achieve 10,000 lumens.

UV-A LED Light for Aging

I'm interested in an LED strip which can be used for accelerated life testing, preferably something that is close to the UVA-340 florescent lamps. 

While we do not have any specific guidance or test data, our UV-A LED strip lights could certainly be considered for ultraviolet exposure in simulating accelerated aging under certain lighting conditions.

Our 365 nm and 395 nm LED strip lights may be a good starting point for providing UV-A radiation output. I've provided the product link below.

​

Do you have a UV-C LED Strip Lights in 250-260 nm range?

Do you happen to have any products that are in the 250-260nm range that use LED’s? This is for a project prototype awaiting patent approval.

Unfortunately the only product we have near that wavelength range would be our UV-C LED strip lights which are centered at 275 nm.

​Please see the product link below:

Outdoor UV LED Blacklight Sign Lighting

I'm working on lighting up a music venue sign with blacklight LED strips. The strips will be under a metal awning. Do you have a UV blacklight, weatherproof, LED strip?

Although our UV LED strip lights would be a great fit for a backlight sign, they are unfortunately not waterproof so even for use under an awning, they would not be a good option for outdoor use.

​Our UV flood lights, however, are IP65 rated and can be used outdoors. I'm wondering if this might be a viable alternative product that you may want to consider.

​We've included the product link below for your reference:

Can UV-C LED Strip Light be daisy-chained?

I see that you only offer this product in lengths of 3.2 ft. I suppose that is sufficient for most applications (i.e. air ducts). I am trying to do a similar space but the length I am interested in is roughly 50 to 60 feet. What are the engineering challenges when implementing this product at such lengths? This would be something I would be interested in pursuing long-term at large volumes. 

​The UV-C LED strip light can be daisy-chained using the PN 7096 daisy-chain connector up to 5 reels at a time. As such, you should be able to span distances up to 16.4 ft for each installation unit.

​Unfortunately, due to power supply and circuitry constraints, we would not be able to support longer distances. Therefore, a longer run of 50-60 feet would require multiple installation units (perhaps 3-4 separate runs).

UV-A LED Strip Lights for (Gum Bichromate) Photo Printing Processes

I am trying to construct a UV exposure unit for historic photo printing processes (gum Bichromate). I think the best wavelength is 365 nm because it is firmly in the UV window. Do you have any experience with this application for UV LED? I think I will need a 5 m reel to adequately cover a 20x24” surface. The distance to the image from the lights would be about 6”. Would you be able to suggest the maximum gap between strips that provide even illumination? Could you recommend a power supply that I could order at the same time that is sufficient for the 5 m of the LED? 

Our UV LED strip lights sound like a great option for your installation. While we do not have any data or specific recommendations for the gum bichromate process, we agree that the 365 nm wavelength should be a good fit based on what is generally known about its sensitivity to UV wavelengths.

The 5-meter length (approximately 16 ft) should be sufficient for the installation surface. Based on a 24" width, you could, for example, install eight sections of 2 ft each. 

To ensure even coverage, we generally recommend spacing the LED strips no farther apart than the distance away from the irradiance surface. In other words, for your installation, the LED strip sections should be placed no farther than 6 inches apart.

​Our 12-volt power supply has sufficient power capacity to operate a 5-meter reel of UV LED strip lights.

Finally, I've included a link to a layout diagram for a similar configuration, which may be helpful:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4C

I plan on cutting and soldering the sections together with the wire. Is there any specific wire that you would recommend for this application and the current? Over the 5m is there much of a voltage drop and corresponding drop in UV power across the length of an LED?

The primary thing to look out for when soldering the sections together is to use wire with the sufficient thickness (gauge). Our 16 AWG wire, for example, would be a great option for connecting the LED strip sections together. Please see below:

​In terms of voltage drop, we do not see any significant decrease in UV across the 5-meter run, as long as the connections between the LED strip sections are made securely and with wires of sufficient wire gauge. 

If consistent UV intensity is a significant concern, however, we may recommend powering the LED strip running from both ends, thereby effectively reducing the max run length to 2.5 meters each.

UV-A LED Lighting for Avian Application

I own a parrot sanctuary, and we currently use 12-volt LED full-spectrum lighting for our parrot's living cages. We would like to add UVA lighting for the general health and well-being of our flock (birds actually see well into the UV spectrum, in addition to the health benefits from UVA exposure to avian species) and your 365/395nm UV LED strips look like a fantastic option for this purpose. Can you tell me if you have provided lighting products for others for this purpose? 

We, unfortunately, do not have any data or previous use cases for our UV-A products in avian applications, but this could definitely be a viable option to supplement the UV-A wavelength needs for birds.

In order to replicate the full solar spectrum, including the UV-A wavelength band, the use of our UV-A LED strip lights may indeed be an effective approach.

We've included the product link below :

Technical Specs and Test reports of cleanUV UV-C LED Strip Light

Please share the Tech Specs and Test reports if any. 

Please see below for the requested product information:

UV LED Light for Cyanotype Printing Application

I have read several of your helpful articles but still have no idea which would be the best light for working with cyanotypes. (Cyanotypes are a type of cameraless photography where you contact print images and expose them either under the Sun or a UV light) I assume people have purchased these lights for this purpose before. Can you let me know if both NM types work or if one is superior for this particular use? 

While we have not done any internal tests or gathered any data to verify, we have indeed have numerous customers reach out regarding this application.

​We believe that the 365 nm wavelength works best for cyanotype printing applications. The 365 nm UV LED flood light is certainly a popular option. Please see below for the product link:

We would perhaps recommend testing and taking advantage of our free returns policy. If for whatever reason you find that the LED bulbs are not going to work for your project, we would be more than happy to pay for return shipping and offer a full refund. 

UV Lights for Invisible UV Activated Paints

I am looking for the UV light that will activate invisible paints made by wildfire. Modern masters. What would you recommend for that and do you have a diagram of the angle for the lights? I am trying to calculate how to hide it in millwork. 

While we do not have any exact data or measurements for the Wildfire fluorescent paint products, our 365 nm UV LED lights will likely be a great fit for your needs.

I've included a link to our 365 nm UV LED flood lights, which I believe will be a nice option:

I've also included the irradiance pattern below, which can provide additional information on coverage at various mounting heights:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/photometrics/BP_7022.pdf

Do you have any LEDs that produce light at 293nm?

Do you have any LEDs that produce light at 293nm? Looking to supplement vitamin D per this article: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-11362-2

Unfortunately, we do not sell LED products that produce light at the 293nm wavelength at this time. We apologize!

How safe is UV-A LED Light?

I am considering realUV™ LED Strip Lights in a custom bookshelf to make some vaseline glass fluoresce. I read on your site that 365nm is better than 395 for this application. How safe is UVA? I thought about putting the fluorescent items and LEDs behind the glass (which I know *passes* UVA) and applying a UV-blocking film to the glass which would pass the visible fluorescence. Is this kind of protection necessary? Is there a distance from the LEDs where the amount of UVA hitting a person would be negligible?

Our UV-A LED strips sound like a great fit for your vaseline glass fluorescence project!

Both the 365 nm and 395 nm wavelengths fall under the UV-A wavelength range, which is a weaker form of ultraviolet radiation that is found in natural daylight so there are fewer concerns than other ultraviolet products that fall under the UV-B or UV-C wavelength ranges, for example.

​That being said, below are some general safety guidelines that we would recommend following:

UV exposure is usually not an issue as long as a reasonable distance is kept between the UV source and human skin and/or eyes, and as such, we do not anticipate any significant safety risks arising from the proposed installation. We recommend consulting a UV safety expert if you have any further concerns.​

UV-C LED Strip Lights for Water Purification

Can the ultraviolet LED strip be used to treat water? I have a use case for a 300-gallon tank on a circulation pump, and I am looking for inexpensive ways to treat the water. Are your strips waterproof? Or would they need to be isolated in an outer clear tube with the water running through an inner clear tube? 

Our UV-C LED strips are designed for sterilization applications, but unfortunately we do not have any data or application support for liquid disinfection at this time.

​Furthermore, the UV-C LED strip lights are not waterproof and would need to be enclosed in a waterproof casing that simultaneously protects the components from moisture and water exposure, while allowing for the 275 nm UV-C radiation to pass through unobstructed.

Do you have a full-spectrum UV-A LED Lights in 300 to 400 nm wavelength?

Do you have an LED light that emits the full 300 to 400 nm range? If not, what wavelength options do you offer?

Unfortunately, we do not have any "full spectrum" UV-A options.

​We do offer a 365 nm and 395 nm option, but these are narrow-band products that have a full-width half-max (FWHM) of approximately 15-20 nm only, and therefore would not cover the entirety of the wavelength range.

Do you have glasses/goggles/camera/etc., that would allow me to see the 365 and 395 nm light?

The 365 nm wavelength is completely invisible so there is no way to make this visible even with goggles or other equipment. 395 nm, on the other hand, does have a purple tint and can be observed with the naked eye.

Daisy-chaining realUV LED Strip Lights

Daisy chaining seven 16.4 ft lengths of your UV LEDs. Rather than using 7 power supplies, can you recommend a 600W power supply/driver I could use to power 115ft of this product? What other items would I need to daisy chain that length of 7021.95? 

While the realUV™ LED Strip Lights can be daisy-chained together, please note that this product has a maximum run length of 16.4 ft (5 meters).

As such, we do not recommend arranging this product into a combined run of 115 ft with a single power source, as this may introduce safety hazards.

Further, we, unfortunately, do not have any recommendations for power supplies that would be capable of powering seven reels of this product. We apologize! ​

Can I plug the realUV LED Strip Lights into a ceiling fan fixture?

If I replace a ceiling fan, can I plug the wires into the old ceiling fan wires and have it work off the light switch? 

Thank you for reaching out! Unfortunately our UV LED strip lights are not designed to be mounted into a ceiling fixture and would therefore not be an appropriate installation location.

As an alternative, we would perhaps recommend using our UV flood light, which can be plugged into a switched outlet. Please see below for the product link and let us know if you have any further questions.

365 nm UV Lighting for Imaging Failure/Cracks

I'm looking to know if you might have any 365 nm UV lighting that could be of assistance for the detection of cracks/failures when imaging (using a Canon camera set for UV conditions). 

We, unfortunately, do not have any test data or literature for the application you mention, but we do expect that our UV LED products are well suited for installations that require the use of UV to visually inspect and fluorescence effects. In particular, we would recommend our 365 nm version over the 395 nm version, as this provides additional visual contrast of fluorescence effects without as much visible, purple light.

We would perhaps recommend testing and taking advantage of our free returns policy. If for whatever reason you find that the LED lamps are not going to work for your project, we would be more than happy to pay for return shipping and offer a full refund. 

UV LED Strip Lights for SLA 3D Print Curing

I am considering the use of your UV LED strips in the fabrication of one or more UV curing stations for SLA 3D resin prints. The print objects will be roughly 2-3 inches from the sides of the container during curing. I am looking to duplicate or get as close as practically possible to, the effect of leaving the prints exposed to direct sunlight. What would be the recommended length of your UV LED strip lights for this application? Will I need to consider ventilation to dissipate heat?

Our UV LED strips sound like a nice option for your UV curing needs. Unfortunately, while we completely understand the reason and nature of your question, it'll likely be quite difficult for us to provide you with a satisfactory answer as far as "how much" UV LED intensity would be needed.

The primary difficulty in making this determination is that natural sunlight produces a wide range of ultraviolet radiation, anywhere from 300 nm to 400 nm. It is a combination of these various wavelength energies that are likely producing the chemical reactions needed during the curing process, but without additional information from the resin material manufacturer, we can't be certain as to whether the curing happens most optimally at 320 nm, 340 nm, 360 nm or 380 nm, for example.

Our UV LED strip lights, on the other hand, are narrow-band UV wavelength devices. Our 365 nm LED products, for example, emit energy only in the 355 - 375 nm wavelength range. This typically is a wavelength range that happens to be within the range for many curing processes, but the extent to which this happens efficiently or optimally would ultimately depend on the specific resin material.

As a very rough estimate, we do believe that one or two rows of the LED strip lights, if placed 2-3 inches away from the curing surface, should be a good starting point for testing purposes. No special thermal management for the LED strips would be needed as long as they are used at standard room temperature.

To that end, we would perhaps recommend testing and taking advantage of our free returns policy. If for whatever reason you find that the LED strips are not going to work for your project, we would be more than happy to pay for return shipping and offer a full refund. All we ask is for you to keep the LED strips in their original condition, meaning that the adhesive liner must not be removed, and that the LED strips must not be cut into any shorter sections or otherwise altered.

According to the vendor for my printer and resins, they use a 385-405 nm UV wavelength, with the shorter end of that range being the more effective. How might this change your recommendation (if at all)? Also, when you say one or two rows of the strip lights, you mean the 1m length or 5m?

Based on this graphic published on Wikipedia showing irradiance levels of sunlight, we should be able to extrapolate approximately a 1.0 W/m² /nm irradiance level across the 385-405 nm wavelength range.

​If we do a basic integration across this wavelength range, we can estimate that the irradiance levels provided across that 20 nm wavelength range is approximately 20 W/m² .

​Based on our measurements of the LED strip light, the irradiance levels at 12 inches is approximately 228 µW/cm², which converts to approximately 2.28 ​W/m². 

​You mention that you will be using the LED strip lights from approximately 2-3 inches away. Extrapolating by using the inverse square law twice, we would estimate an irradiance level of approximately 36.5 W/m² at this distance, which will be sufficient to match the irradiance levels of natural sunlight, as suggested by the references above.

​Please keep in mind that these values are extrapolated using a combination of empirical and theoretical values, and actual results may vary. It seems, however, that we would be "in the ballpark" in terms of the required irradiance levels to match natural daylight, and we do hope this might be helpful as a first step.

Our suggestion of using one or two rows did not take into account the reel size, as the length of the reel would only affect the irradiance surface coverage laterally and not the irradiance of a single point. In other words, extending a 1 meter reel by another 4 meters would not alone increase the irradiance levels of a point near the beginning of that reel.

You are basically saying that a single one of your 1 m strips at 2-3 inches from the object (wrapped round the sides of the circular can pointed inward) should be able to roughly match the effect of sunlight for UV 385-405 nm range , yes?

I note that the measurement chart you linked to is based on the 365nm strip. Can I assume that the 395 nm strips (which fall within the correct exposure range for my resin prints) will behave in a roughly similar fashion?

The answer to both of your questions is yes, and as mentioned prior, we would recommend testing and taking advantage of our free returns policy. If for whatever reason you find that the LED strips are not going to work for your project, we would be more than happy to pay for return shipping and offer a full refund. All we ask is for you to keep the LED strips in their original condition, meaning that the adhesive liner must not be removed, and that the LED strips must not be cut into any shorter sections or otherwise altered. 

After your recommendation, I purchased a couple of 1 m strips of UV LED lighting to trial with 3D print curing. I also purchased a pack of PN 7096 daisy-chain connectors; unfortunately these are quite bulky and interfere a bit with what I am trying to setup. Do the PN 3072 LED strip to strip connectors work with your UV LEDs? These would be a much better solution in terms of space in my curing can. 

The first alternative would be to solder your own wires directly, thereby avoiding the thick cables and connector pieces altogether. Please do let me know if you would be open to this approach and I can provide additional guidance on the steps needed.

The second option would be to use PN 3071 to join the two sections together. This cable is thinner and should cause fewer issues for your installation. PN 3072 is also compatible, but does not include the cable so you would be constrained to joining two LED strip sections end-to-end (no turns allowed).

Both products in the second option are packaged in packs of 10. Unfortunately we are unable to split these into smaller packs and we do apologize for the inconvenience.

Will exposure to 365nm LED UV Strip Lights cause any skin damage?

I would like to get some of your 365nm UV LED strips. Will exposure to the 365nm light cause any skin damage? 

Generally speaking, it's a bit difficult for us to provide assurances and guarantees regarding the safe use of ultraviolet LED products, as each installation and application can vary significantly, so we recommend consulting a UV safety expert if you have any further concerns.

​Both the 365 nm and 395 nm wavelengths fall under the UV-A wavelength range, which is a weaker form of ultraviolet radiation that is found in natural daylight so there are fewer concerns than other ultraviolet products that fall under the UV-B or UV-C wavelength ranges, for example. 

​That being said, below are some general safety guidelines that we would recommend following: 

UV-C LED Strip Light for Fluorescent Mineral Display

I want to install UV shortwave lighting for my fluorescent mineral display. The minerals are on two shelves, each about 30 inches long and 6 inches wide. I believe the UV-C LED strip light will work. I am planning to buy the Filmgrade DC power supply. Is that the right power supply for what I want to do? How do I hook up the two strips (each 1/2 segment of the original)? Is there a way to do this without having to buy two power supplies? 

I am happy to confirm that the 12V FilmGrade™ DC Power Supply for LED Strip is indeed compatible with the realUV™ LED Strip Lights.

Please feel free to utilize our return policy, if the realUV™ LED Strip Lights wind up not working well for your mineral display. For your testing purposes, please note that we are unable to accept returns for LED strip light products that have been cut or altered, including the removal of the adhesive liner.

Regarding installing multiple strips, there are a few configurations that might work for your installation. I have provided layout links below which illustrate these configurations further. To utilize two strip segments powered by one power supply, you may benefit from using the LED Strip-to-Strip product.

LayoutMaps™ - LED Strip Light Layout 7021_4B: https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4B?px=-2278.5&py=-2245.5&pw=1557&ph=1491&s=0.1

LayoutMaps™ - LED Strip Light Layout 7021_4C: https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4C?px=-2278.5&py=-2245.5&pw=1557&ph=1491&s=0.1

Do I have to unroll the entire LED strip to test it? I would like to test it using just half the length, then test using just 15 inches and finally test it using just 8 inches. 

Can I daisy chain two pieces (one will not have a DC connector) for my display and then use the third piece (with the second DC connector) somewhere else?

We're happy to confirm that the cleanUV™ UV-C LED Strip Light item can be removed from the reel, as well as tested without altering the product.

To daisy-chain the individual UV-C barrel jack lengths together, we sell a product called the Daisy-Chain DC Connector for UV LED Strips, which might prove to be useful.

Further, to connect the individual cut segments, we might recommend the LED Strip to Strip product.

For powering the product, we recommend a 12V DC power supply, such as our FilmGrade™ DC Power Supply for LED Strip product.

Do you offer full-spectrum LED lights that contain UV-A?

I was wondering whether you sell any full spectrum lights that also contain UVA.

Unfortunately, we do not currently sell UV-A products that also offer full spectrum output at this time. We apologize!

365 nm LED Strip Light with Comparable Specs as Digikey 160-2184DKR

I am looking for LEDs with the same specifications as these LEDs from Digikey 160-2184DKR. I need to get these in a strip version. 

Based on our review of the product referenced, it appears that the most similar product that we offer is the 365nm realUV™ LED Strip Lights.

Product link: https://store.waveformlighting.com/products/real-uv-led-strip-lights?variant=12339996721254

However, please note that there may be considerable differences between the two items, as we are only able to offer expertise for our products. 

Do you offer 365nm UV LED Strip Light?

Do you sell or can you sell any of these I can use for a pc case? Currently, you only offer them with DC plugs. I’m looking to hook these up to my pc 1600-watt power supply. Molex connection.

Unfortunately we do not offer the 365 nm UV LED strip lights with a Molex-compatible connector, however, you may be able to locate third-party plug adapters such as the one below to operate the LED strip from your computer's power supply unit.

​

realUV LED Strip Lights for Aquatic Turtles

Would the UV LED strip be good for my aquatic turtle? The tank I have came with LED lighting to look nice however turtles require UVB lighting for their shell. The tank is closed so a regular lamp won't work. I'm hoping I could stick your product on the inside cover and provide her w the required UVB light she needs. 

The first step in checking for compatibility would be ensuring that the inner cover area of the tank is waterproof. This is because our LED strip lights are not designed to come into contact with water or moisture, and are not IP rated. The presence of moisture or water on the products could cause an unsafe electrical hazard and would void the product warranty.​As such, generally speaking, we discourage the use of LED strip light products within installations where they may come into contact with water.​However, if the inner cover of the tank is indeed waterproof, and could offer protection against outside moisture, then the RealUV™ LED Strip Lights product could be a great option for your aquatic turtles!

UV Light Box for Cyanotype

I am not that familiar with LEDs and hope that you could check the following for me before I place the order - I want to build a UV lightbox for Cyanotype and similar processes, so the LED strip would be cut and arranged in a grid-type pattern on a flat surface. I believe the following is all I need:

We've reviewed the cart contents, and have confirmed that the items you currently have selected should be sufficient to install in a grid layout.

Below is a layout map showing an example installation and the parts list, which lines up exactly with the configuration you have in mind.

https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4C?px=-2093&py=-2098.5&pw=1186&ph=1197&s=0.1

Short Wave UV LED Strip Light for Fluorescent Minerals Display

I would like to set up a display of my fluorescent minerals. Most of them fluoresce under short-wave UV which I believe is 250, not 365. In looking over your website I saw nothing at that wavelength. Did I miss it? I would really like the LED strip for my display. Given how many mineral collectors there are I would hope there is a strong market for such a product.

We currently offer the following UV wavelengths:

​395 nm:https://store.waveformlighting.com/products/real-uv-led-strip-lights

365 nm: https://store.waveformlighting.com/products/real-uv-led-strip-lights?variant=12339996721254

​275 nm: https://store.waveformlighting.com/products/cleanuv-uv-c-led-strip-light

The 275 nm wavelength option, while typically used for sterilization applications, may fit your needs well.

LED Black Light for Vehicle Electrical System

I'm looking for a black light strip or bulbs that can be used in a car. I have a beautiful forefoot tube with black light chips but it's made for the house and my stereo installer can't make it work. So I'm wondering if yours can be used in a vehicle's electrical system. 

While we don't have any official installation or use support for our UV LED strip lights in vehicles, our LED strip lights operate on 12 volts DC and should integrate quite seamlessly into a 12-volt electrical system.

​We've included the product link below:

What is the irradiance of UV-A fluorescent bulbs versus distance?

I enjoyed reading through your webpage "Understanding UV-A Irradiance, and Requirements for Various Applications."I'm trying to figure out the (approximate) irradiance values at different distances. I've been given two values for a 365nm fluorescent bulb fixture: 1,700 uW/cm2 @ 5 inches and 800 uW/cm2 @ 12 inches. I've tried applying the Inverse Square Law but this isn't working for me. 

We would expect that the inverse square law would indeed apply for a fluorescent lamp as well, but there may of course be some variations depending on the lamp length or other factors.

I would recommend reaching out to the manufacturer of the lamp for additional details, or purchase a UV meter to empirically determine irradiance values.

Do you offer smaller quantities of UV-C LED Strip Lights?

We are looking to find UVC LEDs that are compatible with our current product and were wondering if you sell smaller quantities of your UVC LEDs. 

We currently offer UV-C LEDs in an LED strip light format. Unfortunately, we do not offer the product in any other form factors at this time. Please see the product link below:

What is the Fahrenheit temperature of the cleanUV™ UV-C LED Strip Light?

What is the Fahrenheit temperature of the cleanUV™ UV-C LED Strip Light? How hot does it get? Is it suitable for HVAC duct installation?

The temperature rise of the LED strip light and LED case is typically 40-80 degrees Fahrenheit over ambient. Generally, temperatures enter equilibrium within 30 minutes of operation.

The product has not been tested for suitability or efficacy in HVAC systems. We would recommend reviewing the installation location to ensure that it is not subject to moisture as the LED strip lights are not moisture or waterproof.

Can a 3-foot UVC strip be cut into 3 pieces? In other words, can a section from The middle be cut out, connection soldered, and still illuminate on its own without the end pieces? I see there are cut lines on the strip. Just wanted to make sure all cut strips would illuminate, as well as the end pieces when cut. 

Yes, each of the LED strip sections will remain functional even after they are cut into shorter sections. As long as each section is powered with 12 volts, they can function independently.

Does your realUV LED Floodlight properly expose a standard size silkscreen?

Could you tell me if your 20W 395nm UV-led flood light will properly expose a standard size 20"x24" silkscreen? If so, could you tell me what brand of emulsion is for solvent-based or plastisol-type inks? I can't find any info on your site that says it will work or won't work. Are the 395nm UV-led strips effective in the same application? Approximately how far apart should the strips be and approximately how far away from the screen?

Unfortunately, we do not have any test or reference data for silkscreen exposure applications. Several customers who have used our products have reported success using the 365 nm wavelength variant of our LED strip lights. The exact requirements are likely to depend on the emulsion product and variations among manufacturers and formulations. If you have any additional information on peak wavelength sensitivities or irradiance requirements, we may be able to provide some additional guidance here.

​For your reference, below is an example of a customer who successfully used the 365 nm UV LED strips to produce a similar solution:

We do apologize that we do not have any readily available literature or data on silkscreen UV applications. As we enter the new year we do hope to be able to provide additional information for this specific application as we have seen quite a bit of interest in this area.

In the meantime, we would perhaps recommend testing and taking advantage of our free returns policy. If for whatever reason you find that the LED strips are not going to work for your project, we would be more than happy to pay for return shipping and offer a full refund. All we ask is for you to keep the LED strips in their original condition, meaning that the adhesive liner must not be removed and that the LED strips must not be cut into any shorter sections or otherwise altered.

realUV LED Strip Lights for Cabinet with Uranium Glass

I have 5 shelves that are 3' by 2' with uranium glass that I want to 'glow'. Planning on purchasing a 5m 365nm realUV LED strip and cutting it into 5 pieces. Question: based on your Watt estimator, 3' of LED strip is a lot of coverage for 6 sq ft of the shelf. Will I want a dimmer? Side note: I wish you had longer connector wires. Shelves are 1.5' ft apart. I can kludge together with extra connectors/wire/wire-nuts, but will not be a real clean look. 

While we have not done any tests in-house, we do believe that our realUV LED strip lights will work very well for uranium glass, and have had several customers report success with similar projects.

You are correct that our UV LED strip lights do offer quite a bit of output per foot, so you may not need as much power to achieve the fluorescence effects you are after. In general, however, having too much UV intensity is not necessarily a bad thing, as the fluorescence effects will tend to hit a "ceiling" once a certain UV intensity level is reached.

That being said, we do offer an inline dimmer that could very well be used for your installation should you prefer to have control over the UV intensity. The connection diagram can be found at the link below:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4D

Finally, we sincerely appreciate your feedback on the solderless connector cable length. I'll definitey have our team consider a longer cable product for future product development.

In the meantime, our PN 7098 cable product will likely be your best workaround. For a cleaner installation, if you are comfortable, directly soldering the wires onto the copper pads may also be an option for you.

When you say ‘solder onto the copper pad’, are you suggesting that I could remove the wire from PN 3070 and solder in the new, longer length of wire? I’m very comfortable with soldering and that would be a great option! 

The LED strip lights, once they are cut, will have solder pads exposed and accessible. The photo below shows the copper semi-circles right along the cut-line:

​From there, the PN 7098 wires can be tinned, and then directly soldered onto the copper semi-circles. This assembly will essentially replace and negate the need for PN 3070 / 3071 altogether.

Can you produce a UV-C LED Strip product in a lower-density configuration?

I am curious if you can produce the strip in a low-density version as compared to your standard product.

Unfortunately, we do not offer the UV-C LED strip product in a lower-density configuration. If you can let us know what you would be looking to achieve by lowering the density of the emitters, we'd be glad to see if can suggest an alternate solution.

I am designing sanitizing equipment and have tested your UVC emitters to see how well they work. In addition, I am trying to lower the cost as the LEDs are the most expensive item in the Bill of materials. I was looking at your other LED strips and saw they came in a low-density configuration. I would ideally like to have a spacing of the UVC emitters about 3” apart. Is it possible to get what I’m looking for to test? 

Unfortunately, our LED strip production runs are typically done on the order of thousands of feet, so unless this is a high-volume application, a custom LED strip layout is unlikely to be feasible.

The LED strip lights can be cut in single-LED increments, so if you do have the ability to cut and rejoin them in longer intervals, that could be another workaround solution. We offer solderless connectors as well, which may help in reducing assembly labor costs and time. Please see below:

Air Disinfection Efficacy of UVC LED Light

I would like to know, if I installed a UVC light in my furnace return air chamber, how effective could it be?

Unfortunately we do not have any data on air disinfection efficacy for our products at this time. Our data is currently limited to surface disinfection, and additional information can be found below:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/uv-c-led/how-to-determine-uv-c-irradiance-requirements-for-disinfection-applications

Under-Counter Mountable Bright UV LED Light for Currency

We need an under-counter mountable UV Light that is bright enough to check for counterfeit currency. Do you make the such thing? 

We do not have any products that are exclusively designed for under-cabinet installations, but our UV LED strip lights should work very well for your needs. The LED strip lights come with 3M double sided adhesive pre-applied, and can be mounted to the underside of cabinets and should be a great solution for you. For counterfeit currency detection, we believe that the 365 nm wavelength will work best for maximum fluorescence and color contrast.

​Please see below for the product link and let us know your thoughts!

365 nm vs 395 nm UV LED Strip Lights

Our business is platinum photographic printing. I have 10 meters of 395nm strip. I am building an exposure unit with those. I believe the sensitive area for a pt. print is around 300 to 400 nm and glass is about 300 nm cut off. The glass is needed. Is there an advantage to using 365 nm UV strips? How much, if any, can voltage boost output -- considering air cooling? is there an advantage to using UV floods? 

We don't have any official support for exposure unit installations, but other customers have reported much success using our UV LED strip lights for screen printing applications.

​We believe that the 365 nm may be a more effective wavelength given that this wavelength level is a "deeper" UV-A wavelength that may be a closer overlap with the sensitivity range of various emulsion materials. We do not believe that the 300 nm cut-off glass will be an issue.

​The products are rated at 12 volts only, and over-drive is not supported and will likely lead to premature failure, even with sufficient cooling.

​The UV floods can also be an option, though achieving uniformity may be a bit more challenging. For example, please see our irradiance charts for the UV flood light below:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/photometrics/BP_7022.pdf

UVC LED Strip Light Technical and Specification Details

Please provide a technical details of the UVC LED light strip. Also, a comparison study of UVC LED Vs UVC Tubes, if made available would be very helpful.

Please see below for the product specification sheet for our UV-C LED strip lights and let us know if you have any further questions.

https://www.waveformlighting.com/datasheets/CS_7026.pdf

​Unfortunately we do not have any comparison studies at this time. Sorry!

We would need a timer switch attached to the subject light. We just install the light in the cabinet, plug and play. The exposure range will be 1 to 100 minutes. Is this something that you could help us with?

If the proto type is successful, there will be scope for multiple units, as we have plans to provide UVC disinfection units enterprise wide.

Unfortunately, we do not provide any direct solutions for a timer feature. If you're looking for something simple and plug + play, you may want to consider something as basic as a wall-plug timer such as the one linked to below:

UV floodlights or LEDS for Fluorescent Wood Pieces?

I've got a 12-foot-tall cedar log standing in my garage. I've inlaid several pieces of very fluorescent wood into it. I don't know which would highlight this the best, the LEDs or the floodlights. 

Our realUV LED lights sound like a great option to bring out the fluorescence effects from your fluorescent wood pieces. We would generally recommend the 365 nm option, as this version would produce less visible light but stronger fluorescence effects, which would produce a nice level of contrast for your installation.

​Please see below for the product link:

Do you have a 24-volt DC solution for the cleanUV UV-C LED Strip Light?

We have only 24V DC available in place, where we are planning to use this UV-C light. Do you have a 24V DC solution for this UV-C strip light? 

Unfortunately, we do not have any 24-volt DC configurations of our UV-C LED strip light products. If you do not have any other viable option, you may want to consider the following approach, which is not officially supported but may be workable, depending on your needs:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/pcb-designs/using-a-12v-led-strip-in-a-24v-system

Also, I have to ask for your help with UVC-dose calculations. You have very good specifications and data sheets, but this is a new thing for me. With this led strip, what is UVC-dose in a 50cm distance within 20 minutes? Do you have some program or formula to share, on how I could easily calculate UVC dose for shorter LED strips?

For the UV-C product, the exposure dosage charts can be found below:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/datasheets/BP_7026_EXPOSURE.pdf

The nearest data we have is 30 cm at 15 minutes, for which the exposure dosage is 171 J/m2. For additional calculations, you may find our exposure dosage calculator below helpful:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/uv-c-led/uv-unit-calculator

Fixture Style UV LED Lighting

I have a customer looking for the following: 1st Light UV-A Nanometers: between 315-400nm Fixture Style: Can hang overhead Coverage: A minimum of 3x2 feet for testing purposes 2nd Light UV-B Nanometers: between 280-315nm Fixture Style: Can hang overhead Coverage: A minimum of 3x2 feet for testing purposes 3rd Light UV-C Nanometers: 250nm and below (the lower the better) Fixture Style: Can hang overhead Coverage: A minimum of 3x2 feet for testing purposes.

We are happy to offer the realUV™ LED Strip Light product in both 395nm, as well as 365nm. Each version of this item is available in reels of 3.2 ft (1 meter), and 16.4 ft (5 meter). We also offer the cleanUV™ UV-C LED Strip Light product, which emits 270 nanometer UVC radiation. This product is sold in a 3.2 ft (1 meter) reel.

Further, you may want to consider our realUV flood light available in 365nm and 395nm - a fixture-style that can hang overhead.

Unfortunately, it does not appear that we offer products which meet the '280-315nm' and '250nm and below' requirements requested.

UV LED Strips Lights for Screen Printing

I am looking to build an exposure unit for screen printing. I am looking for strips of UV LED lights. I am not sure of the specs of the lights I need, but do you guys have any idea? Also, would I need a controller or anything from you guys for them?

We, unfortunately, don't have any official documentation or support for building a screen printing exposure unit, but we would be glad to offer suggestions and recommendations to the best of our ability.

We certainly have had customers successfully utilize our LED strip lights for screen printing applications. For example, here is a photo provided by one of our customers. Other product reviews on the product page may serve as an effective starting point or inspiration.

​It's a bit difficult to know "how much" UV is needed, as this can depend on a variety of factors such as the distance from the screen printing surface as well as the type of emulsion being used. If the emulsion material manufacturer has any discrete data on irradiance (typically expressed in mW/cm2) we may be able to provide additional guidance here.

While we do not have any test data on hand, we believe that 365 nm would be the superior choice given that it is a strong UV-A wavelength that should provide far more energy than 395 nm for curing and other photochemical processes. For further information, please reference our article comparing 365 nm to 395 nm.

The only essential components needed for the installation would be the LED strip reel itself, as well as a 12-volt power supply. The power supply can plug directly into the LED strip reel, and no controllers or any other equipment would be needed.

​If you were looking to build an array of LED strip lights, you may want to use our PN 3071 solderless connectors to join the cut LED strip sections. Our layout diagram along with product links can be found below:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4C

realUV LED Strips for Printing Box

For my printing box, I need UV led strips realUV™ LED Strip Lights (5meter) and 365nm. I need to cut them and connect 10 pieces together. Also, do you have a powerboat that will work for Belgium? So if possible can you send me all of the information I need for ordering this? 

We have listed some product recommendations for your project below, which we hope will be helpful. However, if you would like to provide us with a sketch or layout of the printing box, we would be more than happy to provide you with a more precise product recommendation list.

We are also happy to confirm that the 12V FilmGrade™ DC Power Supply for LED Strip product is compatible with the 220-240V Belgium standard, though you may require an additional wall socket adapter.

In order to connect the ten LED strip light segments together, we recommend using the LED Strip to Strip Solderless Connector for Single Color LED Strip product (PN3071). Please note that the realUV™ LED Strip Lights product has a maximum combined run length of 16.4 ft (5 meters).

In the event that your configuration requires the connection to more than one power supply, you may also find value in the LED Strip to Wire Solderless Connector for Single Color LED Strip (PN3070) product, which can be used in addition to the Male DC Barrel Jack Plug Adapter (PN7095) and 16 AWG Wire for LED Strip Lights (PN7098) products in order to connect the cut segments to additional power supplies.

For more information regarding the various connection methods, please reference the below links which provide further illustration:

LayoutMaps™ - LED Strip Light Layout 7021_4C: https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4C?px=-2260.5&py=-2245.5&pw=1521&ph=1491&s=0.1

LayoutMaps™ - LED Strip Light Layout 7021_4B: https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4B?px=-2260.5&py=-2245.5&pw=1521&ph=1491&s=0.1

So if I order 5 meter realUV 365nm led strip I need another power supply. Is it possible to order the 24v power supply and connect both led strips to one power supply or must each led strip have its own power supply.

While we can confirm that each 16.4 ft (5 meter) reel of the RealUV™ LED Strip Lights would require a dedicated power supply, the 24V power supply is not unfortunately compatible with this strip light product, as it is only designed for 12V.

As such, we might recommend utilizing an additional 12V FilmGrade™ DC Power Supply for LED Strip product with your additional reel of the 365nm realUV™ LED Strip Lights.

UV LED Strip Lights for Swimming Pool Installation

We need bright LED UV 365 nm wavelength strips to place on edge of pools just above the waterline close to the water edge (not in water) to illuminate the bottom of pools during the nighttime.

We plan to enclose a strip of LEDs in some form of enclosure (clear plastic or clear rubber tubing) to protect them from water splashing on LEDs.

We do offer a 365 nm UV LED strip in a 2835 LED form factor which should work well for your needs from a photometric perspective. The LED strips themselves, however, are not waterproof and therefore do not have the IP rating you are looking for.​If you are able to encase the LED strips in your own waterproofing material, we could definitely see our product being a great fit for your needs.​The one thing we would advise you to confirm is to ensure that the waterproofing material does not inadvertently absorb the UV output, as this is a commonly seen issue with plastics and epoxies.

By using 365nm for short exposure, am I going to create a lot of blind customers? I plan on installing a timer to light up LEDs for about 5 to 10 minutes every ½ hour and then shut off just long enough to recharge our glow in the dark products. In your opinion, is this a problem for health reasons? What is your recommendation for these installations on LEDs? 

Generally speaking, it's a bit difficult for us to provide assurances and guarantees regarding the safe use of ultraviolet LED products, as each installation and application can vary significantly, so we recommend consulting a UV safety expert if you have any further concerns.

​Both the 365 nm and 395 nm wavelengths fall under the UV-A wavelength range, which is a weaker form of ultraviolet radiation that is found in natural daylight so there are fewer concerns than other ultraviolet products that fall under the UV-B or UV-C wavelength ranges, for example.

That being said, below are some general safety guidelines that we would recommend following:

UV exposure is usually not an issue as long as a reasonable distance is kept between the UV source and human skin and/or eyes. I am concerned, however, about the location of the UV light installation, as I could see young children curiously looking into the light source from a very short distance, potentially leading to some issues there.

realUV LED Lights and Bird Anti-Collision Glass

Last year I built a new modern design house for myself and my wife which has many 10 ft tall by 5 ft wide windows. Bird collisions are now a problem and I do care about our feathered friends. I am trying to find bird anti-collision applications that have a vetted high degree of efficiency but yet are relatively unnoticeable. I have applied clear UV liquid in 2 x 4 patterns on the exterior of the glass, however I am still witnessing bird strikes and the UV liquid washes off in a few spots of rain and must be re-applied. So please, a few questions; 

Do you know of a realUV LED application as a shadow caster on large insulated residential windows specifically for bird anti-collision? The “UV shadow caster” illustration has the 385 NM UV LEDs in a canted (45-degree?) wood trim at the interior window glass frame. 

Do you think that a realUV Flood Light might work if it was aimed from the exterior on a large window? If the realUV 365 nm flood is invisible to the human eye, it might possibly be an economical solution. 

I read your cautionary note on exposure of the human eye to UV light. So in the end, realUV light might work to invisibly illuminate window glass so that birds will avoid it, but at what cost to the vision health of the human occupants?

We have checked on our end, but this is the first time we have worked with any customers on a solution for bird collisions using our UV LED products. As such, our support will likely be limited to product-related technical information as well as practical guidance, but we would nonetheless be more than happy to assist to the best of our ability.

It looks like our realUV LED strip lights would be a great option that would replicate the 385 nm UV LED strip lights used in the shadow caster installation. We do believe that the 365 nm wavelength option would perform just as well, if not better than, the the 385 nm wavelength. (For further reference, please see our article comparing 365 nm to 395 nm).

We must admit that we're still not clear on the mechanism of the UV shadow caster. Specifically, what is the "shadow" being cast and how does the UV interact with the glazing to create such shadows? What is the glazing material and what is the desired effect in terms of making it visible (or visible exclusively to birds) under the UV?

Most birds have twice the UV vision perception of the human eye. The concept is that flooding the surface of the glass with UV light will appear to birds as a virtual, near solid barrier. 

I have been in touch with an eye doctor regarding her opinion about being substantially exposed to UVA light in the 365 NM and 405 NM spectrum on a daily basis. The doctor’s opinion is that UVA exposure is not harmless.  

Regarding the “UV caster” with the above said, I am now inclined to explore utilizing the UVA 365 NM flood lights aimed at the window glass in combination with UV filtering applied window film to block the UV light from entering the interior.

While we can't speak to the efficacy of the specific UV caster product, we do now understand that taking advantage of the differences between birds and humans in terms of their wavelength sensitivities, there may be an opportunity to develop a solution that benefits birds without creating a significant hindrance to humans.

As far as UV safety is concerned, it’s a bit difficult for us to provide assurances and guarantees regarding the safe use of ultraviolet LED products, as each installation and application can vary significantly, so we recommend consulting a UV safety expert if you have any further concerns.

Both the 365 nm and 395 nm wavelengths fall under the UV-A wavelength range, which is a weaker form of ultraviolet radiation that is found in natural daylight so there are fewer concerns than other ultraviolet products that fall under the UV-B or UV-C wavelength ranges, for example.

That being said, below are some general safety guidelines that we would recommend following:

UV-A realUV LED Blacklights for Body Paint Application

I am a professional artist that works in multiple medians. I recently started looking into UV body paint and will use Krylon day glow UV body paint. Will your black lights work for this right now? 

We're happy to confirm that our UV-A realUV™ LED products, such as the realUV™ LED Strip Lights and realUV™ LED Flood Light products, work well with fluorescent paints.

If it proves to be useful, here is a link to a blog post from our website, which explains the ultraviolet blacklight products in further detail: https://www.waveformlighting.com/tech/top-4-things-to-consider-before-buying-uv-blacklights

356 nm UV LED Strip Lights for Cyanotypes Application

I am trying to make a UV lightbox for making cyanotypes. I want to make a box that will print up to 16x20, Will 9 strips at 20" long spaced to fit the 16" wide box be enough to print cyanotype? That would be using your largest roll. 

Our UV LED strip lights sound like a great fit for the cyanotype application. Unfortunately, however, our experience and data on cyanotype exposure are limited, and we would not be able to provide any definitive answers about whether or not a certain amount of UV exposure would be sufficient for your needs. If you do have any data on UV exposure values (typically measured in mW/m2, for example) we would be more than happy to assist in calculating this for you.

On the other hand, if you have any previous experience with fluorescent UV bulbs, that may be a good starting point for estimation purposes. Our UV LED strip lights emit approximately the same amount of UV as a fluorescent bulb on a per-foot basis. Therefore, if we calculate out the 9 rows of 20 inches, that works out to approximately 15 feet, which would be around the same amount of UV output as four 4-foot lamps.

We see that you've settled on the 365 nm wavelength, which is most likely the most effective wavelength so that certainly sounds like a good choice.

Will the UVC wavelength go through a clear or diffused PC cover?

I have an application for some UVC lights in a linear track light. Will the UVC wavelength go through a clear or diffused PC cover?

Based on our understanding of polycarbonate materials and their performance with UV-C wavelengths, we would not recommend their use with our UV-C LED strip lights due to their tendency to absorb these wavelengths.

What do you recommend?

The only material we are currently aware of that would work well is quartz glass.

cleanUV UV-C LED Flex Strips for Aquaculture Applications

Interested to hear about the applications of the UVC LED strips. We are an aquaculture research unit - both marine and freshwater with multiple UV sterilizers in every room for in and outgoing water. Do you have any installations in similar water treatment - aquaculture or potable water sterilization?

While we would love to provide additional assistance, unfortunately, we do not have any data or additional metrics on water sterilization at this time.

Our data is unfortunately limited to surface sterilization applications, for which additional literature can be found here:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/datasheets/BP_7026_EXPOSURE.pdf

Reducing the Visible Light Output of realUV LED Light

I was hoping the 365nm realUV product would be somewhat invisible to the human eye considering the extra expense. It casts less visible light than some other products I've purchased in the past, but it is still bright enough to cast shadows in a dark room. Can I dim the LEDs somehow or is there a product with less spread into the visible spectrum?

Unfortunately, we currently do not have a way of reducing the visible light output as this is a part of the small residual amount of visible wavelength energy that "leaks" beyond the threshold of UV wavelengths.​A LED strip dimmer may significantly help reduce the amount of overall brightness. While this will certainly help reduce the amount of visible light, this will also unfortunately reduce the amount of UV output as well. If, however, you are seeing that you can accept a lower amount of UV energy, this may indeed be a great workaround solution for your situation.

385 nm UV light for Curing Finishes

I am looking for an inexpensive way to cure some finishes. The finish I am using says natural sunlight or UV light at 385 nm. What would be your recommendation?

We, unfortunately, do not have any products that emit at exactly 385 nm, but we do have two options at 365 nm and 395 nm. I do strongly suspect that at least one, if not both, wavelength options would work for your needs.

Our UV flood light might be a great option for you: https://store.waveformlighting.com/products/realuv-led-flood-light

​We do offer a 30-day free returns policy, so we would recommend testing out both wavelengths to see if they are sufficient for your needs. If not, we'd be glad to pay for return shipping and provide a full refund.

Black Light LED Strips for Industrial Applications

Looking for a fixture manufacturing that is making linear LED black lights for industrial applications

We don't have any "linear" fixtures, but a close alternative product may be our UV flood lights. Below is a link to our realUV LED flood light, available in 365 nm and 395 nm. Please let us know what questions you have and we'd be glad to assist further!

Do you have a UVC LED 12v or 24v or 110v DC 60-watt strip?

We currently offer a 12 volt LED strip light that operates at 14.4 watts per reel.

​Multiple reels can be linked together to reach the 60 watt level as needed. Please see below for the product link:

clean UV LED for Air Disinfection Application

I would like to install a UV-C light system in my home HVAC. Can you give me guidance on how to do this with the Clean UV LED product? How can I know if the dose is enough to disinfect the air, relative to the size of the duct and the airflow CFM? 

Unfortunately our UV-C products are not designed for air disinfection applications​, and all of our data and product specifications are based on surface decontamination. 

For further information on how this can be calculated, please reference our articles below:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/uv-c-led/how-to-determine-uv-c-irradiance-requirements-for-disinfection-applications

cleanUV™ Ultraviolet LED for Food Container Interior Sterilization

Your info on cleanUV™ Ultraviolet LED Technology mentions that "Additional form factors are in development and will be released soon." I am interested in a form factor that could be used to sterilize the interior of food containers.

We are indeed working on a few MCPCB form factors that are 6 x 6 inches as well as 2 x 12 inches. We do not have an ETA at this point, but do hope to have this available in the near future.

Unfortunately, we don't have any application-specific advice or recommendations that may apply to the food container sterilization application.

realUV LED Flood Light Safety Risks

Can you tell me if there are any safety risks with working around the UV flood lights? Other than looking directly into them that is. Can prolonged exposure to the light result in any damage? If so, what is the safe time frame? 

Each application will entail different levels of safety risk and we recommend performing some rigorous analysis prior to any installations.

We are aware of the following guidelines published by the ACGIH which you may find helpful:

For the UV-A or near ultraviolet spectral region (315 to 400 nm), exposure to the eye should not exceed 1 milliwatt per square centimeter (1.0 mW/cm2) for periods greater than 1000 seconds (approximately 16 minutes).

For direct comparison of these exposure limits to our flood light UV irradiance values, you will want to reference our UV irradiance charts below:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/photometrics/BP_7022.pdf

Technical Specifications for cleanUV UV-C LED Strip Light Product Line

I am interested in purchasing your cleanUV LED product line. First, I am curious where do you obtain your UV-C LEDs from, or do you make them in-house? In my experience, UV-C LEDs still have large heating, efficiency, and life issues. I would like to have a bit more technical information before I purchase these strips.

1) What is the lifetime of the UV-C LEDs?

We are still testing to extrapolate out an estimated lifetime, but do have enough initial test data to confidently back our 3-year warranty.

2) How efficient are the UV-C LEDs? I know that the external quantum efficiency of even the most cutting edge UV-C LEDs is still <20%.

The overall efficiency of our LED strip light is approximately 1%. (Radiometric output divided by wall plug electrical power).

3) How hot do the UV-C LEDs get during operation? Is there a dependence of heating on time of operation?

Temperature rise of the LED strip light and LED case is typically 20-40 degrees Celsius over ambient. Generally, temperatures enter equilibrium within 30 minutes of operation.

4) Is there a way that you package the UV-C LEDs in order to mitigate the detrimental impacts of questions 2 and 3?

The LEDs are not packaged in a specific way that particularly addresses any thermal concerns.

What do I need to connect the 365nm UV LED 16 ft strip to a spare battery in the trunk of the sidecar?

I want to mount these in the sidecar of the motorcycle. What do I need to connect this to a spare battery in the trunk of the sidecar? Can my alternator power it? I do have a 12V receptacle. The strips are DC powered, so I don’t see why I would hook it up to your AC transformer.

It is correct that the LED strips operate on DC 12 volts, so if you have an existing 12-volt battery source, such as an automobile battery, you can go ahead and skip the AC power adapter altogether.

Our LED strips come with DC barrel jacks mounted on each end. We may be incorrect, but we assume you have a 12-volt receptacle that is the size of a traditional cigarette lighter. While we don't sell any adapters, a third-party adapter such as the one below may work to connect the LED strips:

If you do intend to connect an entire 16.4 ft length, be aware that the high power draw may be an issue for battery capacity as well as the wires and components used in any third-party products.

Can you give me an idea of the amperage needed to power the whole 16 feet?

The LED strips draw approximately 0.4 amps per foot. So, for an 8 ft section, that would be approximately 3.2 amps.

Ultraviolet B lights for Rabbit Shed Lighting

It was recommended to me to get Ultraviolet B lights for our rabbit shed to help with their vitamin D. Would it have the same effect to use the ultraviolet A strips you have?

Unfortunately our UV-A LED products emit strictly UV-A wavelengths, so they would not have any benefit for applications that require UV-B wavelengths. We would perhaps recommend seeking fluorescent UV lamps as an alternative product, as they emit a wide range of UV wavelengths, including both UV-A and UV-B.

Difference in R12 values of NorthLux 5000 bulbs and the Absolute Series 5000 strip

I was interested in purchasing a high CRI solution for a studio and noticed that there is a really big difference in R12 values between the NorthLux 5000 bulbs and the Absolute Series 5000 strip. Why is there such a big difference and what wavelength does R12 correspond to?

Depending on the underlying technology used, the R12 value can vary quite significantly.

​The R12 value corresponds to wavelengths centered at approximately 460 nm. The reason our 95 CRI products (such as our NorthLux lamps) have a lower R12 value is that they utilize a blue diode as its light engine, which creates some distortion at or around the peak blue wavelength around 450-460 nm. On the other hand, our ABSOLUTE SERIES LEDs use a violet diode as its light engine, which does not create as much distortion in the blue wavelength range as it has a peak violet wavelength of approximately 420 nm.

​We generally do not find that R12 is as critical of a color metric as R9 is, but for a color-critical studio application, the added color rendering benefit may be of interest to you.

For further reference, we would recommend the following resources:

Are there any issues with UV light from using the violet Diode?

Based on a strict definition of "UV" being wavelengths less than 400 nm, our ABSOLUTE SERIES LEDs do not contain any UV.​From a purely technical perspective, however, the violet wavelengths do contain a higher amount of energy, and may present a slightly higher risk. Depending on how sensitive the artwork pieces and materials are, you may want to keep that in mind.

How do I daisy-chain the realUV™ 365 nm LED strip light?

I'm looking to purchase the realUV™ 365 nm LED strip. What exactly do I need in order to cut the strips and daisy chain them?

As you mention, our realUV™ 365 nm LED strip can be cut to length in 1-inch increments and is a great option for a wide variety of UV applications.

You may be interested in our PN 3071 LED strip-to-strip connector, which will allow you to reconnect any cut segments back together (i.e. daisy-chain). Please see below for a connection diagram showing an example of how this can be accomplished:​

https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4C?px=-5247.758879792562&py=-1572.6183425460667&s=0.45241870901798

Do you offer UV-B LED strip lights?

I’m working on a project for my reptiles and am looking for some UV-B LED strip lights. Do you offer any UV-B LED strip lights that emit at 280–315 nm?

We currently offer UV-A (365 / 395 nm) and UV-C (270 nm) LED strip lights, but unfortunately do not have any UV-B wavelength products.

We are continuously looking for new product opportunities and hope we can address this market in the near future!

Building a 365 nm UV curing box

I would like to build a curing box, and am thinking of using your 365 nm LED strip lights. My thought is to run four rows of the 3.2 ft reels along the inside of the box. Can you tell me what components would be needed to make this work?

The easiest set-up would involve using our 365 nm UV LED strip light reels, and daisy-chaining them using our PN 7096 connectors. All four of the LED strip sections can be powered from a single power supply unit (PN 3091). Below is a layout diagram along with a parts list showing how this can be accomplished:https://www.waveformlighting.com/layoutmaps/7021_4B Please keep in mind that the maximum daisy-chain length is five reels of 3.2 ft each, or 16.4 ft in total! 

Are your realUV™ LED strip lights waterproof?

Our realUV™ LED strip lights are not waterproof and should not be used outdoors or any location where they may potentially be exposed to water or moisture.

Some of our customers have opted to create their own waterproof sleeve / tube to house the LED strip lights. This can indeed be a viable solution, as long as the sleeve or tube material allows ultraviolet to pass through. Since many plastic and commercial-grade glass materials block UV wavelengths, we recommend a specialty solution such as quartz glass.

As an alternative, our realUV™ LED flood lights are IP65 rated and may be an effective option for a directly waterproof lighting solution.

realUV™ LED strip light grid array spacing for even exposure

I'm building my own UV LED strip light array for emulsion exposure with a panel size of 30" x 15", and am thinking of using 10 rows of your realUV™ LED strip lights in 365 nm with each row being 15 inches in length. The LED array will be approximately 3 inches from the exposure surface. How far apart can the LED strip rows be without any gaps in UV irradiance?

The LEDs emit the UV radiation at a 120 degree angle. This generally means that the LED strips should not be spaced farther apart than the distance away from the irradiance surface. In other words, if the exposure irradiance surface is 3 inches away, the LED strip lights should not be spaced farther than 3 inches per row, on center.

Based on your proposed UV LED strip array panel size, dividing the 30 inch length by a total of 10 rows will ensure that the distance between the LED strip rows will remain less than 3 inches each. Since we are within the 3 inch limit, there should not be concerned about uneven UV irradiation.

Thermal concerns with UV LED strip light exposure box?

I'm building a UV exposure box with your realUV™ LED strip lights. I plan on placing the UV LED strips in an array, with each row placed immediately next to one another. Will there be thermal concerns with this installation, causing the LED strip lights to overheat and burn out?

Our LED strip lights do warm up somewhat during operation, but they have been designed to stay within their thermal limits without the need for any special thermal management techniques commonly used for LED lamp and fixture design.

Placing the LED strip lights without any spacing will definitely add a bit more thermal concentration, but this should not cause it to exceed any thermal limits for the LED strip lights themselves. An absolute thermal limit based on LED strip circuit-board temperature is 185°F (85°C), so if there are any concerns, this would be the way to measure and determine if you are within those thermal limits.

‹   Knowledge Base Home