Q: What makes them glow?
A: They absorb light that hits them, and store it in their molecular structure by moving electrons to a different orbit. Over time, the electrons collapse back to their original orbits, and release the same energy in the form of light. There are many different compounds that do this, including inorganic sulfides and various aluminates. Our "Glow Powders" are nothing but the pigment itself, all other glow products simply add these pigment to paint/plastic/whatever.
Q: Are they safe? Are they radioactive?
A: In the "Bad old days", the complex chemistry required to make chemical compounds store sunlight as mentioned above wasn't known, so folks at the time decided to mix in a little of their own sunlight - In many cases, the toxic, radioactive element Radium. This led to MANY problems for the employees involved, some of whom licked their paint brushes to point them, others painting their nails with the paint. Since the 1960's or so, this type of glow paint has been illegal to produce or utilize, and all of our glow pigments are non-toxic and 100% non-radioactive, but inhalation of ingestion should be avoided for the same reasons you'd avoid eating or breathing sand. Our pigments are not FDA approved for any use in cosmetics or otherwise bodily uses.
Q: What do they look like when they aren't in the dark?
A: Most are white or off-white, if fully charged, they will look a more pale version of their glow color. In paint, they look only very subtly off-white.
Q: Can I make a glowing liquid by mixing them with water?
A: Unfortunately, no. These pigments are "dry" pigments, not dyes, meaning they will never dissolve, they will simply sink to the bottom unless you're using a very thick fluid. Again, think sand.
Q: So how do I make paint?
A: Glow pigment comes in two forms, a coated version which is waterproof, and a raw version, which can handle higher temperatures, but does not play well with water based pigments. We can get either kind, but our most common pigments are coated, and safe to use in water-based latex, acrylic, or other mediums, but here's a few things to keep in mind:
- The medium must be thick enough to keep the pigment from sinking, or be stirred well before use. We recommend a gel medium, but if you stir every time, any medium will do.
- The medium must dry translucent or clear, so that light can get to the pigment to charge it, and so that the glow can escape. The clearer the better, but translucent or white paints will generally work.
Q: What colors are available, and how long/bright are they?
A: Long answer, because we offer a lot of products!
| Color: | Brightness (1-10): | Endurance: | Particle Size: |
| Red | 7 | <20 Min. | <5µm |
| Orange | 6 | <20 Min. | <5µm |
| Yellow | 6 | <45 Min. | <10µm |
| Green | 10 | 12+ Hour | 45-85µm |
| Granular Green | 11 | 16+ Hour | 900-2000µm |
| Aqua | 9 | 12+ Hour | 45-85µm |
| LP Aqua | 10 | 16+ Hour | 900-20004µm |
| Blue | 7 | 6+ Hour | 45-85µm |
| Purple | 5 | 6+ Hour | 45-85µm |