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Old 17 November 2019, 10:26 AM   #1
daOnlyBG
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Does UV damage chromalight?

Hello all. I've tried to look on the forum for any discussion about whether UV rays from a flashlight will damage the chromalight, but haven't found anything, hence why I'm asking here.

So... does excessive UV charging (i.e., charging the chromalight via a UV flashlight for 30 seconds periodically) damage the chromalight material?

Thanks in advance.

p.s., no, I'm not paranoid- I just don't want to get in a bad habit.
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Old 17 November 2019, 10:31 AM   #2
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UV damages pretty much everything to some extent, so I guess yes. I doubt it should have any noticeable impact though. Also, why 30 seconds, the UV flashlight should be able to charge it in 1-2 seconds.
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Old 17 November 2019, 11:05 AM   #3
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the UV flashlight should be able to charge it in 1-2 seconds.
That's been my experience as well. I have a 395nm UV flashlight. Just a couple seconds exposure has my Sub's lume glowing as brightly as it can possibly get; duration of glow doesn't increase with longer exposure, either. 30 seconds is unnecessary.

On a related note, the lume charges just as quickly and effectively using 415nm visible spectrum blue light (as found in an LED face lamp), so technically UV isn't even necessary. Moreover, I'm not convinced that the charging that happens with a UV light isn't from the visible emission from the bulbs, rather than the UV itself, but that's just speculation on my part. Regardless, easily portable flashlights in the 415nm range are neither easy to come by nor affordable, so they aren't a practical alternative to UV flashlights for the purposes of charging lume. (Geek side note: light in the red spectrum above 530nm has zero charging capability, so we can surmise that lume is sensitive only to certain parts of the visible spectrum, not all of it.)

Regarding OP's primary question, I honestly don't know. However, I figure going outside on a sunny day is going to expose the watch to just as much if not more UV than a couple seconds under a barely sub-visible flashlight, so I'm not too concerned about it.
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Old 17 November 2019, 11:07 AM   #4
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But damaged lume might sell for a premium as “patina”

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Old 17 November 2019, 11:41 AM   #5
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What about the uv from that big bright thing in the sky?.
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Old 17 November 2019, 01:49 PM   #6
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From what I’ve read, over time the more a watch’s lume is subjected to UV exposure, the less the lume charges. But we are taking over many years, and I don’t know if it’s as relevant with Chromalite as with some of the older materials. I doubt the occasional charge from a flashlight is doing any sort of damage.

I guess hypothetically in 20 years it may not charge as long as today, but again that’s only been what I’ve anecdotally read not actually experienced.
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Old 17 November 2019, 01:57 PM   #7
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What about the uv from that big bright thing in the sky?.
Exactly..

A flashlight isn't going to do anything unless you hit your watch with it.
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Old 17 November 2019, 06:38 PM   #8
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What about the uv from that big bright thing in the sky?.
Hey, that's a good point. The sun isn't something I can control, unfortunately- and as is, I live in Chicago, where sunlight in the winters is rare to come by.

I've charged the chromalight by holding the UV light directly above the watch, so with very close proximity. I wonder if that has damaged anything, but I'm not particularly worried at the moment.

Yes, 1-2 seconds with a UV does light up the chromalight. However, that "charge" barely lasts an hour; when I use the UV light for 30-60 seconds, the charge lasts substantially longer (or, at least it seems that way).

Going forward I'll probably just stick to conventional lights.
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Old 17 November 2019, 07:00 PM   #9
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What about the uv from that big bright thing in the sky?.
Exactly.
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Old 17 November 2019, 08:21 PM   #10
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Going forward I'll probably just stick to conventional lights.
The lume on my 16800 has been zero for about 20+ years. Rolex may be the greatest watch company on the planet, but their lume is worse than Invicta.
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Old 18 November 2019, 04:20 AM   #11
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The lume on my 16800 has been zero for about 20+ years. Rolex may be the greatest watch company on the planet, but their lume is worse than Invicta.
https://lmgtfy.com/?q=tritium+half+life
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Old 18 November 2019, 04:24 AM   #12
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You are literally the third person I know in my life who uses lmgtfy. I thought we were far and few in between.
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Old 18 November 2019, 04:31 AM   #13
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You are literally the third person I know in my life who uses lmgtfy. I thought we were far and few in between.
It's trite and snarky, but seeing as how JC just came into a thread about Chromalight and disparaged the whole of Rolex lume by citing the performance of a 30-40+ year-old, tritium model, I thought it was apt.
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Old 18 November 2019, 04:41 AM   #14
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From my POV there is literally no reason that Rolex can't use tritium and replace exhausted dials. I love the tritium glow on my Ball. The dial is replaceable. I realize that the tritium pipes aren't beautiful and are only made my a single company but with all the resources Rolex has they should be able to overcome that issue.
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Old 21 November 2019, 05:16 PM   #15
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Update: called the Rolex Service Center in Dallas and spoke to a very helpful customer service rep who told me that (1) the dials are actually UV-protected (and said this extends to the hour markers) and (2) the crystal's anti-reflecting property should prevent most UV-rays from even making it through.

The vintage Rolexes are a different story.

So for now, nothing to worry about here, folks.
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Old 21 November 2019, 05:20 PM   #16
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Update: called the Rolex Service Center in Dallas and spoke to a very helpful customer service rep who told me that (1) the dials are actually UV-protected (and said this extends to the hour markers) and (2) the crystal's anti-reflecting property should prevent most UV-rays from even making it through.

The vintage Rolexes are a different story.

So for now, nothing to worry about here, folks.
So how does a UV light mange to penetrate this UV-protection and charge up the lume?
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Old 21 November 2019, 05:25 PM   #17
daOnlyBG
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So how does a UV light mange to penetrate this UV-protection and charge up the lume?
It doesn't.

What charges the lume (theoretically, anyway) is the UV light's wave, as opposed to the actual gamma rays emanating from the UV light. Same applies to sunlight.
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Old 21 November 2019, 06:26 PM   #18
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I know how it works.

I design RO water production, UV water sterilisers, UV ink curing systems, ozone generators etc.
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Old 22 November 2019, 02:34 AM   #19
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At least there is some science in this is it safe thread.
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