Black light bulbs are a must have when it comes time for Halloween, or really any time of year they can be a lot of fun for kids of all ages. While my experience with black lights was always on the ‘fun’ side of things, apparently there are a lot of useful uses for them as well. And here I thought they were only about making those crazy posters light up at night!
In fact, there are many things beyond just the paints and inks used on those posters that glow very strongly under a black light, and for that reason, these ‘play things’ come in handy for many people in many different situations. For example, did you know that urine glows brightly under a black light? And no, I’m not talking about some kind of weird Halloween party gameĀ I’m talking about the fact that you can use a black light to help detect areas of urine, such as where your dog, cat or child has perhaps made a mess but you’ve been unable to put your (figurative) finger on exactly where the accident happened.
Actually, if you ever watch any of the many CSI type crime shows that are all over television programming these days, you’ve probably also seen that a black light can be used to make other bodily fluids such as semen or blood glow, too. This is extremely helpful to the crime scene investigators in their efforts to figure out what happened.
On a lighter note, getting back to the fun, party frame of mind, there are a few things that you might be surprised at how brightly they glow when exposed to a black light. For example, did you know that petroleum jelly (in other words, Vaseline) will glow a bright blue color if you put it under your black light bulbs? You can probably have some fun with some ‘greasy face paint’ for your next party! And if you want to serve some fun drinks (adult drinks), know that tonic water, because of the quinine in it, will give off a great blueish-white glow for you.
Not surprisingly, tooth whiteners contain substances that will glow very brightly under a black light. You can see this in many toothpastes, often even if they are not designated a “whitening” toothpaste. Just put some of it under your black light bulb and you’ll be amazed at how brightly it glows!
If you’re in the market to purchase some black light bulbs for your next party, or even just for your room (oh, and I hear that Legos glow really well!), you might want to take a look at some compact fluorescent black light bulbs. Just because you’re having fun with your light bulbs doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take advantage of the longer life of compact fluorescents and the fact that they use considerably less energy than your typical incandescent black light bulb. Consider the fact that you’ll only be using 13 Watts rather than the typical 60 Watt incandescent equivalent. Now add to that the fact that you shouldn’t need to replace the bulb for 8000 hours of use, and that makes it one pretty “green” black light bulb!
Plus, with today’s fluorescent instant on, no flicker bulbs, including the black light bulbs, there’s really no good reason to avoid them anymore.