thank you Erick for your detailed reply! I would love info about some samples also....
Pati 'Good friends are like stars... You don't always see them, But you know they are always there. -----Original Message----- From: Erick Westcott <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Sat, May 8, 2010 2:00 pm Subject: RE: NailTech:: UV "output" The figures I provide are generalizations. No two bulbs or two lamps are exactly the same, but the following are general guidelines: A 9w UV bulb is putting out about 1.5 watts of UV energy. You cannot see UV energy. The blue light you see is in the visible spectrum above 400 nanometers and is not effecting the curing of the product at all. Just as important as the bulb, if not more so, is the enclosure (It is confusing, but bulbs are actually called lamps and lamps are called fixtures). More important than how much energy the bulb is putting out is how much is reacting with the enhancement. You need to be concerned with the watts per square centimeter at the location of the curing point. Most people will not be able to give you this figure, because they have no way of measuring it. With us, we consider it a trade secret. Different gels cure differently, so we have tolerances that we stay within when analyzing the available equipment and raw materials. If the final product is within tolerance, then we know it will cure. Otherwise we need to change the product or the equipment. If you are using a UV gel that is out of the tolerance for the lamp you are using, it won't cure properly. The emission from the lamp will change over time and will eventually drop below tolerance. The life of the bulb can be extended by cleaning it, or flipping it over. The tolerance of the lamp can be maximized by keeping it clean. Dirty bulbs and a dirty lamp will affect the curing, because the dirt will absorb the energy instead of reflecting it to the nail. There are lamps that have 8 9w bulbs, however I always discourage people from using them, because they are generally not designed properly. The chamber is too large for the UV energy to effectively reach the nail with normal use. Some of the smaller 9w lamps with only one bulb have the same problem, you need to position the nails properly under the bulb. There are other factors such as reflector and socket position as well. The Chinese factories don't innovate when it comes to UV lamps, they duplicate. An engineer needs to design and test a lamp to cure a particular product. Then it can be made for pennies on the dollar in China. On the other hand you can get an off the shelf lamp and design a product to work with it. Some generic lamp designs are just flawed to begin with and won't cure anything. If you buy your lamp and bulbs from the manufacturer, then they are guaranteed to work. Not to say that a different brand will or won't. It very well may, but then it may not. We just can't test everything out there. A compact florescent bulb may have an estimated life of 8000 hours before it fails. But failing is not the same thing as not emitting enough UV to cure a product. Over time the intensity of the bulb will drop, as the gas inside the bulb is reacted. Once the bulb stops emitting enough UV energy at the position of curing, you need to change something. 1. Move the position of curing to a place of higher intensity 2. Change the material you are trying to cure. 3. Perform maintenance on the lamp and bulb to attempt to increase the energy at the cure point to within tolerance. Or 4. Replace the equipment. Without testing equipment you should replace your bulbs according to manufacturer instructions. With some products UV bulbs will fall out of tolerance for that product in 200 hours. With our product, the time is closer to 500 hours. The general guidelines I use are to replace them every 6 months if you are using them every day and once a year if you use them every once in a while. Hope that helps. Erick Westcott, CEO Gelousy Gel Nail Systems 1745 W Deer Valley RD STE 124 Phoenix AZ 85027 602-493-9043 Fax: 602-493-2544 [email protected] www.gelousy.com On May 8, 2010, at 9:53 AM, [email protected] wrote: > Can anyone actually tell us what exactly the output is in the CND > lamp? Or any other company want to tell us the output of their bulbs/ > lamps? > I have started to dig into researching this and for nails there is not > much I am finding. I need more time and will hopefully find out the > answer. > BUT- what I HAVE found is this output thing really has to do with > water sterilization and not nails. > Also, BIGGIE here-- 9 watt bulbs have an 8000 hour life. And that is > every site I looked at. NOT sites selling bulbs; sites explaining > bulbs. > SOOOOOO, anyone want to tell me how if these bulbs have that much > life- why do we need to change them so often. IF they are kept free of > dust, then they will last for forever! The UV will absorb into the > dust on the lights, making them less effective. Soooo, if we keep our > vulbs clean, we never should have to purchase new bulbs. > I want to know what the output for Creative's lamp is. I just pcannot > accept that it "just is." > Buenos dias, > Lynnette > http://www.facebook.com/nailtech Sent via BlackBerry from T- > Mobile > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google > Groups "NailTech" group. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected] > . > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/nailtech?hl=en > . > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "NailTech" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/nailtech?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "NailTech" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/nailtech?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "NailTech" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/nailtech?hl=en.
