Artificial light on display specimens

[papilio28570]

I imagine that probably everyone here has a specimen or two on display in their homes. What sort of artificial light can best be used to illuminate specimens that will not cause the colors to fade? I'm wondering if anyone has experience with these new LED lights.

[58chevy]

I'm not an expert on the subject, but LED lights have a low UV output so they should be OK as far as not causing colors to fade. I don't know whether they're any better than conventional incandescent bulbs in that respect.

[leptraps]

Every light bulb ever made, incandescent, Flouresent, High Intensity Discharge (HID), Halogen, LED's and I can go on and on. All produce light and UV, some more than others. When you place specimens on the wall it will be exposed to light. And regardless of the type of light, the specimens will be subject to fading. Either long term exposure or short term exposure, fading of colors will occur.

[luehdorf]

Just use special glass that is completely UV light proof.

[leptraps]

Let me know when and where you find that glass.

Some claim to be UV Retardant, or UV Suppressant. However, I have UV bulbs and light meters. I know there are specialty glass manufactures, but nothing available commercially.

We no longer make/manufacture things in this country. I am one of the few people with a basic understanding of UV light. There are some who think they know, but what they know is rather limited.

[papilio28570]

quick internet search:

Why does UV light not pass through glass?
Glass that is transparent to visible light absorbs nearly all UVB. This is the wavelength range that can cause a sunburn, so it's true you can't get a sunburn through glass. However, UVA is much closer to the visible spectrum than UVB. About 75 percent of UVA passes through ordinary glass.Dec 4, 2018.

also:

windshields are specially treated to block UVA as well, but a car's side and rear windows allow UVA to penetrate.

and:

How much UV do LED lights emit?
LEDs do produce a small amount of UV, but they emit even less. That's because the amount that is produced is converted to white light by the phosphors inside the lamp. Mostly because UV radiation occupies that part of the electromagnetic spectrum that forces us to slather on sunscreen in periods of peak sunlight.

Lastly:

An additional concern with UV output is color degradation. CFL and HID lamps have been known to cause damage to shades, carpets, painted surfaces, and more due to UV emissions. This has been another motivating factor for places like museums to retrofit to LED.

[lordpandarus]

I have butterflies on the wall for decades

Windows completely blocked..that's critical

You can light the room with a small lamp (40 watts incandescent or LED equivalent) not pointing directly at the specimens and they won't fade. You can light more lamps if you want to look at the specimens for a short period of time (When I want to look at the specimens I have this really cool lightbulb I found. it's called GE REVEAL 19 WATTS Fluorescent Hybrid Technology. Brings out the colors in a really cool way. Only works with fluorescent version of the bulb which seems to be discontinued)

www.ebay.com/p/GE-Compact-Fluorescent-Bulb-A21-Reveal/1800581404?iid=283415866141

Haven't noticed any fading over the years


But I also noticed some species fade even in complete darkness( like the pink hue on Vanessa or red on Cethosia and Heliconius)

[luehdorf]

leptraps there is Schott Glass, German specialty glass manufacturers they have this kind of glass. It’s called Schott Mirogard:
www.schott.com/architecture/english/syn/architecture/products/anti-reflective-glass/mirogard-protect-ultra.html

Also antireflective, ultra thin just 3mm, and filters 99.9% of UV light, it’s used to protect oil paintings. I have seen this glass in reality, the anti reflection is extremely impressive, you almost can’t see the glass.

It’s for sure possible to buy some from them directly even in a small quantity, its not cheap for sure, but if you want to have a rare and favorite specimen in the wall, I’d say that’s the way to go.

[luehdorf]

Or just tell them you need some samples, in the right size that you want for your display boxes, then you just need to pay a small sample fee if at all, easy peasy.