UV LED flashlights

[markjfisher]

Has anyone else tried using UV LED flashlights as collecting lights? I picked one up on amazon that is pretty bright with 100 LEDs in it, and it seems to have worked decently well. I haven’t been in terribly productive areas for Black lighting so it is hard to tell how well it is actually working. They are terribly convenient to carry around, being completely self contained and relatively durable. Any other thoughts/comments?

[AlexW]

On 6/25/2018 at 10:56 PM, markjfisher said:

 Any other thoughts/comments?

Seems like a good setup; in the right places I have seen giant moths and fancy beetles flying to white and even yellow wall lamps, so a UV should not disappoint 

[Peter Clausen]

I have one of those lightsabers. Pink was the only color available when I got mine. Flashlights are good for lighting up things like scorpions but these aren't as effective for bringing in beetles and moths in my experience.

[JKim]

I just happened to read this post while searching other stuffs, and decided to participate in this old post.

Any light can attract insects. Smartphone LED Flash can attract insects, just the brightness of the phone screen can attract some insects. However, that's just couple specimens right next to you. You won't be able to ACTUALLY attract anything far from your location. LEDs that states it is a blacklight is usually a fake, especially in forms of flashlight. They are just blue-purple colored LED bulbs, imitating the blacklight. The BLACKLIGHT is not about color of light. It is about the wavelength it emits. If I remember correctly, anything that emits wavelength between 200 nm to 400 nm are considered UV, and the wavelength that attracts most insects is somewhere 360 nm (can't remember the exact number).

LEDs generally do not emits any UV at all, so using an LED light to collect insects is simply a waste of money. Now days, there are some insect attracting LEDs available in the market, but according to what I read, it is so terrible compared to light traps used with HID lamps. SO I think an insect happened to fly around that exact spot sat on the light and sheet, instead of actually attracting insects far from the trap. If you cannot afford HID lamps, portable generator, and all other necessary setup, just try using battery-powered fluorescent lamps with blacklight tubes replaced. Use that in heavily forested land where no lights are within the radius of a mile. That should do so much better than that 100-leds flashlight you have.

https://ebay.com/itm/270415596824
This is not a bad choice of selection. I used two of this with one replacing the tube with blacklight tube. This is battery operated, and very light that you can carry in a hand or in a backpack.

[Oak]

@JKim

What does your set up look like with the fluorescent lamps? And where can I get the blacklight  tube? 

[JKim]

3 hours ago, Oak said:

@JKim

What does your set up look like with the fluorescent lamps? And where can I get the blacklight  tube? 

@Oak 

The setup I mentioned in the previous post is from very long time ago, over 10 years. That's when I was a high school teenager. That setup however, attracted about 400 specimens of Euetheola rugiceps, away from any street lights. Two lights alone attracted that many specimens with about that many Cyclocephala lurida. By the way, that is the largest number I ever collected compared to any street lights I have ever been to. Nowadays, I just don't go collect any of those two genera, so I haven't collect much more than 100 time to time, but that huge number in the past is thanks to the battery powered lamps in that link.

Sure, E. rugiceps and C. lurida are VERY common, and abundantly occur in the State Louisiana. But I never saw such a huge number in a single street light. I can assure that I could collect other larger scarabs with those if I go to a right place where they occur.

This image above is an over-exposure image for your reference, of my current setup.

One 400-Watt metal halide + Three 18-Watt UVB operated with 1000-Watt portable generator.

I purchased UVB tubes in bulk from Amazon (manufactured by GE). It has been out of stock for the past couple months, so I don't really know where else to look for. This white, real UVB tubes aren't usually available in local hardware stores simply, because they are not a everyday tubes being used. Your only luck would be Amazon from other manufacturer or elsewhere in eBay, light bulb online retailers, etc.

A metal halide is HID light, so you need a power ballast connected to it in between a bulb and a power source (a portable generator in my case). In case of UVB, unless you diy it, a fixture will already have that ballast inside for you.

[Goliathus]

3 hours ago, Oak said:

@JKim

What does your set up look like with the fluorescent lamps? And where can I get the blacklight  tube? 

I get my white UV tubes from here - 

https://www.lightbulbs.com/product/sylvania-24922

Specifically, you'll need a type T12 shop light fixture for these tubes.  You should be able to find a suitable fixture at most large hardware stores.  For example - 

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Lithonia-Lighting-1233-Linear-Shop-Light-Common-4-ft-Actual-5-5-in-48-in/1000410165

By the way - best to wear some standard polycarbonate safety glasses when working with UV lights.  The longwave UV output from regular insect-attracting UV tubes isn't very intense, and not likely to affect skin very much with only occasional exposure, but I always protect my eyes anyway, which are more sensitive.  Definitely use the glasses if working with MV lights, since they emit more hazardous shortwave UV rays.  MV bulbs are enclosed in borosilicate glass (a safety feature that prevents the majority of the shortwave UV radiation from getting through), but again, best to wear polycarbonate safety glasses just in case.