# UV Curing light for Headlight Restoration



## Ilikeshinythings (Feb 28, 2010)

I am starting a business doing Headlight Restoration and I have narrowed my search for a quality UV headlight sealant to Solaray 21013 spray. This coat requires a UV light to cure. At 32 dollars for 7 ounces, the stuff is NOT cheap. However, they want to charge $220.00 for the "special UV curing light" from Solaray. 

Seeing as how I have been on CPF for 5 years, I know better than to spend $220.00 on a "special UV curing light". However, I don't know where to find the right supplies for a light of this application for cheap, or what supplies I need to buy.

Anybody happen to know where I can find these supplies? Thanks!


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## Ilikeshinythings (Mar 2, 2010)

Did I post this in the wrong forum or does really nobody know? I feel like somebody on here would know...this is CPF.


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## EndOfTheTunnel (Mar 2, 2010)

I found this quote on a site selling the SEM product:
*allow 2nd coat to flash 5 minutes before exposing to UV light. cure at a distance of 1-2" for 2 minutes. *

And another:

*Salesman Note:* Solaray Headlight Lens Clear Coat is designed to be used with a U.V. Cure lamp. Although, I have used this product to restore a headlight lens and allowed the lens to stay out on a bright sunny day and it cures out just fine. However, Use of this method is the sole discretion of the purchaser and is in no way warrantied by the manufacturer or seller.


Seems to me you could build your own curing 'table' using whatever UV bulbs you can get at Home Depot, or your local hardware store. You might need to experiment a bit with getting the right amount of UVA, UVB or UVC light, or at least copious amounts of each.


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## Ilikeshinythings (Mar 2, 2010)

For my application a table won't be useful because I am doing work with the headlights still on the car. I'll just keep fishing around until I find the right setup. I don't even really know anything about the properties of UV lights or how much light is required to cure.


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## Apollo Cree (Mar 2, 2010)

Some other posts about other UV cure adhesives have indicated that they may be picky about the wavelength. Since LED's tend to have narrow spectrum widths, a UV LED may not work when another one will. 

I wonder if you can find out the correct wavelength for the solaray stuff.


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## 65535 (Mar 2, 2010)

$220 isn't bad for something that is guaranteed to work.

I've seen some single high power UV LED's go for well over $100. 

Most of the time you can get away cheap, but you take a risk with UV.


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## Ilikeshinythings (Mar 3, 2010)

Thanks for the information guys! Perhaps I should just fork out the money when I'm ready. In the mean time I will simply advise people to wax their headlights when they detail their cars or every 6 months (whichever comes first).


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## Apollo Cree (Mar 3, 2010)

OK, I misunderstood. You're not gluing the light back together, you're coating the entire surface of the lens. That's probably going to be hard to do with an LED.


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## Ilikeshinythings (Mar 3, 2010)

Apollo Cree said:


> OK, I misunderstood. You're not gluing the light back together, you're coating the entire surface of the lens. That's probably going to be hard to do with an LED.



Exactly. Headlight restoration involves wet-sanding with two to four different grits of sandpaper, compounding and polishing with a rotary polisher, and finishing with a form of sealant.

At this stage of the game, I will be using Finish Kare 1000P which is known for out-lasting even carnauba wax which is supposed to be the longest lasting form of wax. I am going to advise my customers that proper maintenance is necessary to ensure their headlights stay shiny--IE waxing the headlights when your car is detailed or every 4 to 6 months.

Headlights are coated with a baked on UV protection from the factory and when you see headlights peeling and degrading it is typically this UV protection that is beginning to disappear. The solaray spray and UV curing lamp provide a layer very similar to the UV protection you see from the factory, as does the Finish Kare, but the spray on protection should last longer. Unfortunately, at $30.00 per 7 oz. spray can, it is VERY expensive. I don't know how many applications 7 oz. will give you, but I only charge $80.00 for a full restoration.

That said, I am looking for alternatives to the Solaray spray. I have found this:

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...eadlight-restoration-new-uv-sealant-idea.html

It is quite popular on Google as it is the first website that comes up when you enter "headlight sealant". I have considered this method, but would like more proof that it does not "amber" or "yellow" over time like Spar-urethane is known to do.


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## DM51 (Mar 9, 2010)

You've had some replies, but you posted this in a section that is basically a parent sub-forum containing at present just the Dive Lighting section. 

I can move the thread somewhere more appropriate if you indicate the main thrust of the topic - is it the LED type/wavelength that is the most important factor?


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## Apollo Cree (Mar 9, 2010)

What happens if you don't cure the spray? Does it dry out without UV? If it's dry but uncured, what happens if it gets wet? 

Unless rain damages it, or bugs stick in it or some such, wouldn't it eventually cure from sunlight exposure? Or is there some sort of "threshold" UV intensity that is required to cure? i.e. Does a low intensity UV eventually cure the material over a few days?


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## Superdave (Mar 9, 2010)

find out what wavelength it likes and go from there. 


you should be able to build a custom rig with a good florescent bulb inside for this. I doubt the standard black light bulbs will work, you may have to look into germicidal lamps like the ones used in Eprom erasers.


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## FA5Si (Mar 10, 2010)

One thing about sunlight is that it should contain the full UV spectrum, but the intensity may vary. I happened across the spar varnish link previously and it does appear that the stuff has been working for nine months now, with anecdotal evidence of around two years or more, but the idea of having to sand it off means that it does have a finite number of possible applications before the headlight assembly is trashed.


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## Elemental LED staff (Mar 15, 2010)

If you're still looking for some inexpensive UV light for curing the sealant, here's a link to Ultraviolet LED strip lighting, which you can get by the foot for $14.99. Hope this helps!


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## csshih (Mar 15, 2010)

what wavelength? I've had some very good results in curing norland with a blb. -- the wavelengths should be similar?


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## Yucca Patrol (Mar 15, 2010)

Sunlight is a great UV source and is pretty cheap if it is possible to let the stuff cure outdoors during the day


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## albertzhang (Mar 22, 2010)

Maybe you can seek it from china,i am not really sure what kinds of UV headlamp you want?
We had make the headlamp before.it is make up of normal LED.
If you want to get the correct UV headlamp,you must let them know where you use it for , and the wavelengh.How long the light distance you want ,and so on.


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## Ilikeshinythings (Mar 22, 2010)

Wow I haven't checked this thread for some time..I didn't realize so many people responded. Thanks for the responses. I'm still _open_ to the idea of using a UV sealant spray of some kind, but I have opted to use Klasse All In One Acrylic glaze followed by Klasse Sealant Glaze after I finish headlights. The AIO is supposedly good for a year, while the sealant glaze is supposedly good for 4 to 6 months. I assume the combined protection should be good for about a year, so I always recommend that my customers wax their headlights every 4 to 6 months for extra protection. It's all explained on my website which can be found at www.shinyheadlights.com

The spray that I was, and I guess AM still sort of interested in is the Solaray UV spray. I'm not sure what the output of the provided light is, so if I am going to use the solaray UV spray, which I have not decided on yet, I will probably charge extra for it, and I will find the right light source. The LED strips shown before are quite interesting, but I'm not sure they would provide enough raw power. I'll look into it further and see what I can find.


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## Apollo Cree (Mar 23, 2010)

I wonder what something like a Stanley HID spotlight would do?


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## bshanahan14rulz (Mar 23, 2010)

Here's hoping the Stanley DOESN'T cure UV-sensitive materials :thumbsup:


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## AnAppleSnail (Mar 23, 2010)

Apollo Cree said:


> I wonder what something like a Stanley HID spotlight would do?


Supposedly, the bulb and glass are both UV filters...but then again, my eyes sometimes itch after using the thing around shiny things.


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## Apollo Cree (Mar 28, 2010)

AnAppleSnail said:


> Supposedly, the bulb and glass are both UV filters...but then again, my eyes sometimes itch after using the thing around shiny things.



Well, someone tried shining a different HID light at their face for a while and got sunburned. It might be interesting to experiment with HID (of any flavor) vs. UV sensitive materials. Remember, UV filters are not necessarily 100% effective. I'll have to see if I can find some old photogray lenses and see what a Stanley HID does to them.


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## oronocova (Mar 29, 2010)

I think Nailbender was selling some P60 UV Drop-ins. If I recall, one of the LEDs he has/had was used for curing dental products. Just a thought...


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## Alaric Darconville (Mar 29, 2010)

How about a germicidal lamp, like one of those uncoated 18" fluorescent tubes? I think they put out a ton of UV-C.


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## Ilikeshinythings (Mar 29, 2010)

Apollo Cree said:


> Well, someone tried shining a different HID light at their face for a while and got sunburned.



Did they win a darwin award?


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## Ilikeshinythings (Mar 29, 2010)

oronocova said:


> I think Nailbender was selling some P60 UV Drop-ins. If I recall, one of the LEDs he has/had was used for curing dental products. Just a thought...



Cool! What would be the best P60 host? (FYI, I know there is a TON of threads answering this question).


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## Ilikeshinythings (Mar 29, 2010)

Alaric Darconville said:


> How about a germicidal lamp, like one of those uncoated 18" fluorescent tubes? I think they put out a ton of UV-C.



I wonder wher I could pick up a setup like this..maybe home depot?


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## Alaric Darconville (Mar 29, 2010)

On the other hand-- how much will you charge to do a pair of headlamps?

How prepared are you to deal with complaints if, three months from now, every person you've done that work for finds their headlights deteriorating again?

If you use that specific purpose device, you'll know that you've done it "exactly right".


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## Ilikeshinythings (Mar 30, 2010)

Well I currently charge 80 to do the headlamps. After I have compounded and polished them I use an All In One automobile acrylic which is supposedly good for 8-12 months of protection from UV and the elements, and then I use a Sealant glaze over that which is good for another 4 months of UV protection. I also offer my customers a 3 OZ. bottle (good for 3 years or more) of said acrylic for self application every 6 months for $5.00. It's easy to put on and you just wait 15 minutes then buff it out.


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## qwertyydude (Mar 31, 2010)

If you want really long lasting protection you can apply Collinite car wax, far and away the best wax protection, longer lasting than any synthetic sealant on the market, pretty much agreed upon by professional detailers for ultimate durability.


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## Ilikeshinythings (Apr 1, 2010)

Collinite wax eh? I'll definitely read up on it.


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## SemiMan (Apr 5, 2010)

I think if you calculate the volume that 7 ounces takes up and then calculate how much surface you can get with a thin layer, you will find you can do a reasonable number of headlights. Why not just offer it as an added protection at a higher cost. If people want the best, they need to pay for it..... and buy the bloody right light...  ... reputation is everything .... and time is money. The time you WASTE looking for an alternative could be spent on customers.

Semiman


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## Ilikeshinythings (Apr 5, 2010)

If I were to decide to use this product in my business it would be at a higher cost. As of now I give my customers a 1.5 ounce bottle of Klasse All In One to wipe on the lights every 6 months. This should be fine. When my business gets in the green I will consider adding more products like clear plastic films, UV clear-coats and possibly even tinting lights (fronts or rears). I will definitely keep you all posted when I do this. And I will most certainly just buy the light offered by SolaRay when I buy the spray-on UV protection. 

Another thing to consider though is overspray from the clearcoat--that stuff can really be nasty and the products required to cover up the car and surrounding areas are both expensive and time-consuming.


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## GLOCK18 (Apr 29, 2010)

If you get a chance go to the 2010 SEMA show you'll find dozens of manufacture from chine selling the product you’re looking for. At my friend shop the simply spray the headlight with PPG 2021 clear after sanding it, or the mix a bit of black in the clear to make smoked lights. 2021 clear is considered one of the best automotive clears.


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## Ilikeshinythings (Apr 29, 2010)

GLOCK18 said:


> If you get a chance go to the 2010 SEMA show you'll find dozens of manufacture from chine selling the product you’re looking for. At my friend shop the simply spray the headlight with PPG 2021 clear after sanding it, or the mix a bit of black in the clear to make smoked lights. 2021 clear is considered one of the best automotive clears.



Thank you Glock! I will read up on PPG 2021. I don't see any threads on Autopia about this product so I wonder if people on there even know about it.


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## ray6 (Apr 23, 2012)

Ilikeshinythings said:


> I am starting a business doing Headlight Restoration and I have narrowed my search for a quality UV headlight sealant to Solaray 21013 spray. This coat requires a UV light to cure. At 32 dollars for 7 ounces, the stuff is NOT cheap. However, they want to charge $220.00 for the "special UV curing light" from Solaray.
> 
> Seeing as how I have been on CPF for 5 years, I know better than to spend $220.00 on a "special UV curing light". However, I don't know where to find the right supplies for a light of this application for cheap, or what supplies I need to buy.
> 
> Anybody happen to know where I can find these supplies? Thanks!



The light I believe they're using is actuallya lamp for raising lizards!. They do produce UV, but lots of o0ther light too. These bulbs are expensive, about 45-60 each and do not last very long. 

It's an interesting topic becausemy company (Brite Lites) is developing a 
UV lamp product for use with some of our headlight restoration products. We have not launched yet, so don,t look for us. As far as the UV light, you need to know two things about the coating you will use.
1) What wavelength does it need (most likely UV-A at about 350 to 390 nanometers.
2) What dosage. This should be stated in watt-seconds or joules. It does get complicated. 

There is a minimum dosage required, but you can't over cure. After evaluating and measuring UV output from many manufacturers, we are going with 100 watt CFL UV=A bulbs. These bulbs are quite large, but product almost 20 watts of UV-A and cost about 35-40 ea and have a lifetime of 800 hours. The lizard bulb I metioned will probably require a few minutes to heat up.

There's nothing wrong with simply exposing to sunlight when you can. If your coating will cure in 2 minutes under the lizard lamp (150 watts) it willl most ceertainly cure in sunlight in 5. What they,re probably not telling you is that you will have to move the lamp around to cover it all and that would probably take more than 5 minutes.
Hope this helps.

Ray6


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## Norm (Apr 23, 2012)

:welcome: Ray

Interesting post, the thread you've responded to is a couple of years old, your experience is welcomed here but please avoid posting anything which may be viewed as advertising for your company.

Cheers Norm


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## CKOD (Apr 24, 2012)

even though the thread is old, good point on the lizard lights 

http://www.exo-terra.com/en/products/compact_fluorescent_bulbs.php

the repti-glo 10.0 puts out a bunch of broadband UVA and B. A sheetmetal reflector, and some edison base sockets would be a good start on a headlamp curing fixture. (or even use one of theirs, maybe with modifications if needed) 


The 2.0's are what I use in my snake cage, and they definitely give a good daylight color. They are pricy since they are specialized, but nothing too horrible.


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## ray6 (May 9, 2012)

Alaric Darconville said:


> How about a germicidal lamp, like one of those uncoated 18" fluorescent tubes? I think they put out a ton of UV-C.



Germicidal lamps may contain UC-C. Most UV cures want UV-B, around 290 to 390 manometers. Most common fluorescent UV lamps produce little UV /buck. You need lots of UV light or lots of time. Most cheap UV fluorescent bulbs produce less than .2 mwatts/cm2 as compared to sunlight at 6 mwatts (30 times more), so if a cure would take 5 min. under sunlight (common) it would take hours under common UV fluorescents.

There are porfessionally developed headlight coating products that cure by chemical reaction instead of UV. Expensive to buy, but per headlight costs are 50 to 80 cents. Cures in 5 minutes and no masking required. We warrant our restorations for 2 years.

ray6


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## andrewr (Apr 9, 2016)

ray6 said:


> Germicidal lamps may contain UC-C. Most UV cures want UV-B, around 290 to 390 manometers. Most common fluorescent UV lamps produce little UV /buck. You need lots of UV light or lots of time. Most cheap UV fluorescent bulbs produce less than .2 mwatts/cm2 as compared to sunlight at 6 mwatts (30 times more), so if a cure would take 5 min. under sunlight (common) it would take hours under common UV fluorescents.
> 
> There are porfessionally developed headlight coating products that cure by chemical reaction instead of UV. Expensive to buy, but per headlight costs are 50 to 80 cents. Cures in 5 minutes and no masking required. We warrant our restorations for 2 years.
> 
> ray6



Hi ray6,

I realize this is an old thread, but was wondering if you're still in the headlight restoration business? I'm considering starting business in FL and would love to hear what you have learned.

Would really appreciate if we could PM about this further.

Best regards,
Andrew


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## awed1 (Mar 15, 2021)

Ilikeshinythings said:


> Well I currently charge 80 to do the headlamps. After I have compounded and polished them I use an All In One automobile acrylic which is supposedly good for 8-12 months of protection from UV and the elements, and then I use a Sealant glaze over that which is good for another 4 months of UV protection. I also offer my customers a 3 OZ. bottle (good for 3 years or more) of said acrylic for self application every 6 months for $5.00. It's easy to put on and you just wait 15 minutes then buff it out.



I wonder why this is all so difficult to track down, and have been looking for the same kinds of answers that you are looking for. There seems to be a shroud of secrecy around the lens cleaning industry, and it has to do with how to protect the lenses after they have been polished or restored. Like you, I think the answer is ultimately in replacing the original hardened coat over the polished lens. However none of the products I've seen seem to do that. Even thes that require UV for hardening, don't seem to meet the same standard that the original OEM had.

Maybe just doing what you are doing is the best that we can expect. I thought about going to the guys who train people to restore lenses, but they are so secretive that it is difficult to even get good reviews of either their processes or of their products. Waxing or coating with ceramic or with sealant might be okay for someone who is DIY, but for a professional, it just seems too short-termed a solution to truly be viable.

The UV Lamp might do the trick, but you'd still need a stand. https://viruslights.com/products/36...yoYQulm5-NqyueMVZBghRLRe7MTxtXrIaAkinEALw_wcB the other problem would still be how to apply without dripping or streaking and how many coats would actually be adequate. 

For those of you who suggest sunlight, of course, you are right, it would and does work, however, One can hardly ask their client to wait a day before driving while the coating hardens, especially if it needs two or three coats. Also, giving an unhardened product back to the customer is asking for trouble. Both the person who restores the headlights and the person who pays for the service want to see the completed job and, as it were, sign off on it at the same time.

If you find a good answer, make a response so as to let me know. Thank you, B. an awed1


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## Andrew LB (Jun 1, 2021)

Talk about some serious necro-posting. I’d also like to point out that after removing surface of headlights through sanding, you MUST apply a few coats of 2k clear coat with UV additives or the plastic will rapidly degrade. 2k clear coat can be purchased ina spray can and it’s made by SprayMax. No need for fancy lights since 2k clear is a 2-part coating that is dry to the touch in minutes and can be buffed in under an hour. This process can be sped up by using a shortwave Infrared curing lamp. By using one you can buff them in in minutes after spraying. 

also, Paint sealants and waxes ARE NOT a substitute for a proper 2k clear coat. Those are only to be used AFTER clear coat is applied. The OP is essentially ruining peoples headlights and I guarantee anyone who paid to have their headlights done without a clear coat not be happy.


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## PhotonWrangler (Jun 3, 2021)

A shortwave infrared curing lamp? Are you referring to something in the near-IR range of 780-900nm? As opposed to longwave-IR which we perceive as heat.


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## albertj (Sep 14, 2021)

To OP: My information is for the UV cure, basically you're looking for a "UV-A" lamp of reasonably high brightness, 75-100W flood if incandescent, just divide by 9 to get the LED "wattage." This is why bright sunlight works, there's lots of UV unless you're in an urban area that still ahs a lot of haze. Simple metric - would you tan/burn that day? Yes? There's enough UV.


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