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Bugs and LEDs

J

jives

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Hi all:
20 feet up in the center ridge of my garage sits 3 HID high bays, and all the fixtures are filled with dead bugs. Cleaning them is major and dangerous undertaking. At some point they will be replaced with LEDs, but I am curious if there are some fixture features that are more bug-proof than others. For instance, are the covers for UFOs better than linear fixtures?
 
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C

cybrdyke

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Some UFO's have a sealed lens over the LED array. Others dont. Either way, bugs cant get in. Although they seem to be very good at getting into places where you think it would be impossible. :) Most UFO's are rated for outdoor use, so there's no openings in the body for bugs to enter.
Linear LED highbays are rated for indoor use, and most often have vent slots in the body thru which the bugs have no problem getting in.

There have been hundreds of studies on LED's and bugs. What they determine is that there are so many different kinds of bugs, that there isn't one determining factor of why they're attracted to light. Alot of species are drawn to the UV light emitted from the source, which is why bug-zappers use a UV light source. Other species are drawn to the warmth of the lamp. Others are drawn to the light simply because all the other bugs that they eat are in that vicinity. LED's emit almost no UV light, so that can greatly reduce the amount of bugs drawn to it. And they dont really get that warm, so that might also reduce the amount of bugs drawn to it. But there are still going to be plenty of species of bugs that are drawn to the light just because it's there. In my area, the amount of bugs circling my outdoor lights on a warm summer evening is probably only 10% of what it used to be.
Depends on your area.
Good luck,
CD
 
C

cybrdyke

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nadogail said:
My bug zappers have LED lamps and they have reduced the number of flying insects in the house.
Click to expand...

Yeah, to elaborate, there are specially made LED lamps that emit UV light for various reasons. You can get LED UV lights for disinfection purposes. They're used by hospitals, schools, first responders, etc. Also in water purification and air handling ducts.

CD
 
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TuxThePenguin

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MA
cybrdyke said:
Yeah, to elaborate, there are specially made LED lamps that emit UV light for various reasons. You can get LED UV lights for disinfection purposes. They're used by hospitals, schools, first responders, etc. Also in water purification and air handling ducts.

CD
Click to expand...

None of that is true.

A sterilizing light is UV-C. You cannot do UV-C from LED.

You cannot get a LED sterilizing light. At all. You might be able to find someone selling UV-A LEDs and calling them sterilizing. You would have been swindled if so. Some sellers on Ebay are even selling purple, non-UV-(not-even-UV-A) LEDs as "sterilizing."

Sterilizing lights are all gas-discharge tubes.
 
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C

cybrdyke

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