What is UV radiation?
UV radiation is a form of electromagnetic energy. It comes from the most natural source we know, the sun. We also have managed to create artificial sources of UV light, such as lasers, tanning beds, and UV Lamps.
We classify UV lights by their different wavelengths. This is how we tell them apart from each other.
UV-A is the longest wavelength, UV-B is the middle wavelength, and UV-C is the shortest.
The key difference between tanning beds and UV Lamps is the different wavelengths.
Pre-Summer Tanning Beds
Come a bit before summertime and the tanning bed malls fill up with soccer moms and high-school girls and type A need to keep up appearances fellas.
They sit under the tanning bed receiving UV-A light, a wavelength long enough to penetrate the skin's second layer for that sweet orange glow.
It plays roles in aging and wrinkling and contributes to some sun damage. But it's not powerful enough to disinfect. It doesn't inactivate viruses. It can do some work on the mildew on your sidewalk, but you'll see the mildew come right back after a rainy day.
Dozing Off By The Pool
UV-B, the reason you put on sunscreen and regret falling asleep by the pool. This tends to damage the top layers of the skin. Intensity varies by season, and you'll see this light coming from the sun.
They're partially absorbed by the ozone layer but they still reach the ground level. They are more powerful for disinfection but it still doesn't have the effects we need to clean up and stay safe. It's middle ground sunlight, not even penetrating through windows.
Smart UV's UV-C Light
UV-C light is too short to go past our ozone layer. It's found in man-made sources such as UV disinfection, black lights, or HVAC - (sometimes included in ventilation systems for mold).
Old school tanning beds used to use this type of light too. We abandoned this. Instead, the medical world started using UV-C light back in the late 1800s. It's the most powerful disinfection light and has been killing bacteria around the world for decades. We use this type of light in Smart UV.
Smart UV leverages UV-C light to disinfect rooms (not for tanning) and keep you safe. When using Smart UV, don't leave it by the hamster.
