Was 65¢ each NOW 3 for 99¢. 5mm Ultra-violet LED. Emits blue 395nm UV light. Water-clear lens. 3.7 Vdc, 20 mA. 30 degree beam pattern. Ideal for counterfeit bill detection, detection of fluorescence in minerals, black-light light poster lighting.
Really lights up the 5s, 20s, and 50s, not so much the 10s and barely shows at all on fairly crisp 100s, nothing at all on worn ones. Seems like the wavelength for these is just out of range.
It is still a fairly good toy, makes florescent highlighters really pop and makes your white shoelaces stand out, but if you really want to make your money shine, keep looking for something with a shorter wavelength.
4 of 5 people found this review helpful.
Do you?YesNo
Longevity: Typically, UV LED that are not encased in silicone resin or mounted behind a quartz lens will have a life span of around 2000 hrs (the 50% output point). This is because the UV photons ionize and thus break down non-silicone resin. LEDs that are encased in silicone resin are more expensive (typically around $5 in quantity), so I doubt these are such. Quartz lens LEDs are even more expensive (more like $10 each). I Have some of both and they have been running continuously for years. Where as, the non-silicone LEDs that I have tested only ran for about a month before they were visibly dimmer. These are best for intermittant use, like counterfeit bill detection.
Algae: To control Algae you need a shortwave UV source. This, and all other UV LEDs are longwave and thus will have no effect.
Regarding use with florescent minerals, this LED will only work on minerals that fluoresce under longwave UV. But, there are some very pretty minerals in that category!
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.
Do you?YesNo
UV disinfection
Reviewer: A viewer
from Huntington Beach, CA
To the person who asked about using these to stop algae: The UV must be strong enough or this won't work. You can try but I wouldn't bank on it. I'd get a real disinfecting UV lamp or find out how much output they have and get a similarly powerful black light.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.
Do you?YesNo
risistance
Reviewer: A viewer
from NJ
perhaps the first poster had a problem because they didn't use the right resistance. use V=IR use for V voltage to be dropped. so 5-3.7+1.3 so plug 1.3 in for V 1.3=.02R R=65 ohms that would help make your led a bit brighter.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful.
Do you?YesNo
Awesome
Reviewer: A viewer
from MILFORD, NJ US
I have an old car (1987 Plymouth) and the dashboard lights are all incandescent and rather dim (or burnt out). Since I drive home at night fairly often, not being able to clearly see my speed has been a problem (haven't been pulled over yet, thankfully :). I had modified the bulb holders with a resistor and an LED in each, but that didn't prove to work so well. This time I surrounded the perimeter of the gauges with the UV LEDs and went over the white letters in orange highlighter. The effect is simply amazing. I am using 5 of them in series-parallel straight off of my car's 13.8v. When they're working you'll know it. They produce a fairly bright purple when lit, but if you stare into it it'll feel like its much more powerful, leaving behind a spot in your eye.
Great LED!
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.
Do you?YesNo
(13 Reviews)
Write a Review
