@pbarber: Completely forgot the dental industry uses UV curing for fillings 
Problem solved 
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Our Reflex UVB bar (310nm/375nm) passed UL exposure testing and was deemed completely safe to work under.
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As far as whether you should have UV in your grow room, we definitely say yes. There have been many studies that show UV not only increases quality and flavor but can increase growth and yield as well.
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Indeed—just had a filling last week and chuckled because I was being exposed to a market that I should be addressing better….lol
Dr. Peter Barber, MBA
Product Marketing Manager
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In addition to increasing THC, resin and oil production it’s known that UVB is very effective in eliminating Powdery Mildew too. The question becomes how much UV is necessary to optimize these conditions without plant oversaturation of these spectrums. For that we need to determine the optimum dosing levels and not exceed them.
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UVB slows the formation / prevents powdery mildew. To kill it, you would need exposures that would hurt the plant.
Cleanlight has a patent on the radiation of plants to prevent mildew with UVC light. They found out that you can stop the production of mildew in the stage between the spore and the full fungus. At that stage it is sensitive to a certain amount of radiation, that doesn’t hurt the plant. It is used in horticulture for many years already, on booms, on gates and robot carts between the crop. www.cleanlight.nl
Talking about automation… six years ago I took Ed to an installation:
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In another facility (Flower Field in Austria) they have extensive experience with the use of plasma light and powdery mildew. This video was also shot about 6 years ago, they were one of the early adopters. Alex only misspeaks when he talks about UVC from the plasma lights, he means UVB. As they grow only mothers infections can be disastrous. Many other growers, including Colin Gordon from Ethos Collective, have experienced much less or complete absence of powdery mildew using plasma lights.
As for the protection: the shorter the wavelength the more dangerous the radiation. UVC is not something to play with, it is extremely dangerous. Most UVB/UVC sources a have a way too high power and intensity be allowed in an application under which you work, as on short distance the intensity is extremely harmful. It’s also why you have the ANSI /O standard, which describes that you need a double glass jacket around a MH lamp to prevent high dosage of UV when one of the balloons breaks, and to prevent damage from arc tube explosions.
Venture lighting has a good document about it: http://hid.venturelighting.com/TechCenter/ANSI_Type-O_v092407.pdf
Some lighting manufacturers say they have UV, and indeed, they have 380 nm, the blacklight that just get into the UVA range used in aquarium fixtures to pop corals. Where it really becomes interesting however is UVB, and UVB LEDs are either very expensive and/or have a very short life. The good ones are made of glass and specifically used in for example medical equipment.
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There was a really good thread on ICMAG about UVb a couple years ago, but the consensus was that you’d need a 2’ UVB bulb over each 16 SQ ft of canopy, 2 hours before lights on and limited benefits to doing so after lights off.
Ah found the thread, it’s very long but tons of good info here:
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Currently there aren’t any “OSHA” style regulations for light radiation that I am aware of. This is exactly why UVPPE was created. Regulations will definitely catch up to these new working conditions in regards to radiation exposure. But the science is already there showing what the negative health effects are, we just need to be proactive as an industry.
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The problem with safe limits is they are so short they’re useless. The rule would be no employees in the flowering room for the couple hours the UVBs are on before the main lights turn on. Eye exposure is the worst, but you can easily get sunburned on any exposed skin in minutes. Not worth risking skin cancer for.
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Thanks to California Light Works. The only technical paper I have found on the subject was done at the U of Md. some time ago. If I am remembering correctly, that guy irradiated his plants with sunlight level UVb. I’ll read it again to make sure.
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This is no longer the case. Our products were created to protect workers from this exact scenario. All our fabrics are tested over 50+ UPF and reduce up to 99% of visible light transmission, while significantly reducing IR exposure. UVPPE was founded specifically to protect growers in these hazardous work environments.
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Do you have any references you could share on that subject? It would be much appreciated!
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