Hydroponic lamp for UV printing light source?

[adelorenzo]

I've been planning to build a UV light source based around 24" T5 flourescent tubes. Conventional wisdom is that you need to cram the tubes pretty close together to get even light distribution.

I've also been looking at these pre-made hydroponic grow lights that look like an inexpensive ready-made solution, like this one for example. The tubes are spaced out more but they have a reflector surrounding them.

Anyone tried one of these units? I wonder if it would work or if you would get uneven lighting.

[adelorenzo]

Anyone have thoughts on this? Still trying to figure out if I should buy one of these or order all the parts to wire my own so I can get closer spacing with the tubes.

[onnect17]

You should explore using an array of LEDs as UV sources. You can easily find them in the auction site from 1w to 100w.

[adelorenzo]

I'm interested in LEDs as light sources but honestly I can't come even close to figuring out what to buy or how to put it all together.

[Jody_S]

The ones I've seen have been built around 1000W LPS (low pressure sodium, aka 'orange' street lights) lamps & ballasts. These are completely unsuited to UV alternate processes. I can't tell you offhand which fluorescent lamp has the best UV output, but for all of them the UV output is considered as 'waste', a loss for normal lighting. That doesn't mean it isn't there, to filter out UV output requires some ingenious engineering.

[adelorenzo]

There are a lot of options in flourescent tubes. I plan on using high output super actinic aquarium tubes that peak around 420 nm. Apparently they print a little slower than the black light tubes but with more contrast, at least according to this source:

http://unblinkingeye.com/Articles/Light/light.html

So I know the tubes I want but I'm trying to figure out if a pre-made fixture can give even light or if I need to do a custom unit so I can wire the tubes up closer together.

[hmf]

There are a lot of options in flourescent tubes. I plan on using high output super actinic aquarium tubes that peak around 420 nm. Apparently they print a little slower than the black light tubes but with more contrast, at least according to this source:

http://unblinkingeye.com/Articles/Light/light.html

So I know the tubes I want but I'm trying to figure out if a pre-made fixture can give even light or if I need to do a custom unit so I can wire the tubes up closer together.

According to the referenced material, the super actinic aquarium tubes print with more contrast and are faster for pt/pd.
"4) the Super Actinic (SA) aquarium tube that peaks at around 420 nm. SA tubes produce images of slightly greater contrast, and many reports suggest they are faster than BL and BLB units in platinum printing."

[mdarnton]

adelorenzo, got a link for those lights? I was thinking the same thing, but haven't found as nice of a setup as that. You buy them, and tell me if they work. :-)

I'm guessing something like this doesn't have the moxie for the job: http://www.tmart.com/14W-225-LED-All...el_p96176.html

I've read people say "use LEDs", but haven't yet seen a DIY plan that promises to work.

[Vaughn]

The unit pictured may work fine -- one would just have to keep the light fixture a little father away from the contact printing frame than if the bulbs were closer together. The distance we are talking about should not significantly increase the exposure time.

[adelorenzo]

OK, I'll give this setup a try and let people know how it works.

In terms of bulbs, for that particular fixture I'm going to use T5 HO Super Actinics. I'm just googling aquarium supply stores in Canada to find a supplier.

Basically the cost of the fixture and bulbs is about $200 with shipping for something that will print up to 11x14.

I don't think I could do an LED light source that size for anywhere near that price? Although you can buy super actinic LEDs on eBay...