# Can you see laser beam/dot through laser glasses?



## DoubleA (Sep 20, 2015)

I don't have a laser yet, but have been looking into what to get.
I keep hearing about how important it is to have laser glasses. I've heard that even looking at the dot will hurt your vision if you don't have protection. Then I saw a video where laser glasses were being tested by shining a laser directly into them to see what emerges beyond the glasses. If no dot appeared beyond the glasses, they were deemed to be good. But doesn't that mean that if you were wearing them, the beam and dot would become invisible to you? What fun would _that_ be?


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## DoubleA (Sep 22, 2015)

Well, it's been a few days since I posted this thread. 88 views and no replies? Doesn't anyone here actually use safety glasses? I'm sure anyone who uses a laser with safety glasses would know the answer to my question. Is the laser beam and dot visible when you're wearing laser safety glasses?


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## FRITZHID (Sep 22, 2015)

You can still see the dot itself on a surface, seeing the beam in air, not so much. If you were to shine the laser directly in your eye (with the glasses on of course) you'll see the surface brightness of the emitter and it will still be very very bright (not recommended!) Prolonged exposure will still cause harm however.


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## DoubleA (Sep 22, 2015)

FRITZHID said:


> You can still see the dot itself on a surface, seeing the beam in air, not so much. If you were to shine the laser directly in your eye (with the glasses on of course) you'll see the surface brightness of the emitter and it will still be very very bright (not recommended!) Prolonged exposure will still cause harm however.



Thank you! It's something I became curious about lately. If I end up getting a laser someday, I'll definately get the glasses too, assuming they don't cost too much. I mainly wanted to get it to scare away nuisance birds near my house, but started thinking that seeing where the dot strikes leaves and branches on the trees could hurt my eyes.


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## FRITZHID (Sep 22, 2015)

I think you'll find that a laser isn't as effective as you'd like as a bird deterrent.


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## more_vampires (Sep 22, 2015)

Laser glasses come in different "darknesses (OD)," I guess you could say. Not all of them rated for a certain wavelength are suitable for all lasers of that wavelength as they have different power.

http://noirlaser.com/lasershields?wavelength_type=310


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## DoubleA (Sep 23, 2015)

FRITZHID said:


> I think you'll find that a laser isn't as effective as you'd like as a bird deterrent.



What if it was a 1 watt? I was thinking of going to that to make sure it had enough power. Plus it would be fun for other things.


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## DoubleA (Sep 23, 2015)

more_vampires said:


> Laser glasses come in different "darknesses (OD)," I guess you could say. Not all of them rated for a certain wavelength are suitable for all lasers of that wavelength as they have different power.
> 
> http://noirlaser.com/lasershields?wavelength_type=310



Man! Those are some pretty steep prices! Aren't laser safety glasses pretty much the same thing as sunglasses, except they filter out a different wavelength of light? I can buy sunglasses that cost $5-$10 and work fine for their purpose. Why laser glasses cost so much more just because they're a different color for a specific purpose is beyond me! Is there more to them than that?


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## more_vampires (Sep 23, 2015)

FRITZHID said:


> I think you'll find that a laser isn't as effective as you'd like as a bird deterrent.


I agree with Fritz, wrong tool for the job.

Perhaps a Gamo Viper Express Air Shotgun? You could mount your laser on it, even. Besides, those are a lot of fun popping balloons at long range.



> Man! Those are some pretty steep prices!


Cheaper than new eyes.



> Aren't laser safety glasses pretty much the same thing as sunglasses, except they filter out a different wavelength of light?


No sir, they are quite different.



> I can buy sunglasses that cost $5-$10 and work fine for their purpose. Why laser glasses cost so much more just because they're a different color for a specific purpose is beyond me! Is there more to them than that?


A lot to it. There is a lot of testing. They must function as advertised as they are safety gear. NoIR would be roasted alive by lawyers if their product did not meet specs.

A lot of sunglasses really aren't even that good for blocking UV, which is what they're supposed to do. Sunglasses aren't enough for working with HID, for example. Sunglasses as laser protection = bad idea.


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## DoubleA (Sep 23, 2015)

more_vampires said:


> I agree with Fritz, wrong tool for the job.
> 
> Perhaps a Gamo Viper Express Air Shotgun? You could mount your laser on it, even. Besides, those are a lot of fun popping balloons at long range.



Currently, I use a Ruger 10/22 with subsonics. Can't seem to find those or anything else anymore. But I've been thinking of a laser as a way of silently dealing with them. Probably legally too.


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## more_vampires (Sep 23, 2015)

DoubleA said:


> But I've been thinking of a laser as a way of silently dealing with them. Probably legally too.


I wouldn't want the Humane Society to get hold of you. Speaking of that, why not adopt 8-15 cats? Problem solved.

A 1 watt laser isn't going to make birds go up in a puff of smoke, you know. That's sci-fi.


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## DoubleA (Sep 23, 2015)

more_vampires said:


> I wouldn't want the Humane Society to get hold of you. Speaking of that, why not adopt 8-15 cats? Problem solved.



I wouldn't want ANY of the authorities to get ahold of me, but that's part of the reason to use something silent instead of something that goes "bang". BTW, the cats wouldn't be able to do anything against the birds up in trees making the noise, or the woodpeckers putting holes in the side of my garage.



more_vampires said:


> A 1 watt laser isn't going to make birds go up in a puff of smoke, you know. That's sci-fi.



Maybe not, but at least it would be visible in daylight. That's when the birds are active.


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## more_vampires (Sep 23, 2015)

http://pestcontrol.about.com/od/diypestcontrolprevent/a/Controlling-Pest-Birds.htm

This link says lighting to repel birds doesn't work.

http://www.bird-x.com/
Note there's no lasers carried by Bird X.


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## FRITZHID (Sep 23, 2015)

You don't want to mess with a 1 watt as an anti-bird device.
Imagine if you inadvertently shined past your target and hit an unseen aircraft, person, etc, and at 1 watt, dry leaves can ignite. Just generally not a good idea.

As far as the glasses go....
Laser safety glasses are very specifically tuned to protect (as much as they can) at the freqs they were intended for... In doing this, they absorb the laser light, in a reflected/refracted situation, this will/should provide adequate protection however, I know from testing a direct beam can and will actually burn thru them, quite easily I might add, due to the very fact that they are absorbing that power. If they are not rated for specific freqs of the laser you're using, damage can readily occur, often without the user even noticing until it's too late. Some glasses may protect the eyes from the 532nm green beam but pass the 880nm IR with ease and THAT will mess your eyes up in a hurry. Even reflected off a white surface that beam can cause damage without proper protection.
Just generally not a good idea to mess with those high power lasers without proper protection and training.


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## DoubleA (Sep 23, 2015)

more_vampires said:


> http://pestcontrol.about.com/od/diypestcontrolprevent/a/Controlling-Pest-Birds.htm
> 
> This link says lighting to repel birds doesn't work.



I've seen youtube vids where people used laser pointers to scare birds. Don't have time to find it right now, but go there and type in "dragon laser 150mw birds".


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## more_vampires (Sep 23, 2015)

I agree with Fritz, I think it's irresponsible.


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## Str8stroke (Sep 23, 2015)

Some of those air rifles are almost as loud as a Subsonic. Once a projectile breaks about 1200fps it is going to make a good crack. Not to mention the air charge being released. 

Of course you can muffle it some. However I suggest checking your local laws for that.

I would also advise against playing laser tag with the local bird population. 

What are they attracted to on your property? Can that be removed? 
Can you talk a neighbor a few houses down to start feeding them. That could attract them away from your property. 
Buy some plastic owls and place them in the high activity areas. Obviously a few cats would assist too.


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## FRITZHID (Sep 23, 2015)

Mock owls and cats are very effective, as are "bird clackers/noise makers", etc. They're plenty of passive, cheap anti bird options available. Just Google the bird type and like for their deterrent.


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## NoNotAgain (Sep 24, 2015)

Fritz, 
I've got one of the plastic owls mounted on a pole close to my work shop. When I was installing the Sheetrock I kept hearing this slight banging noise. Looked outside to see a woodpecker banging away on the plastic owl.


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## more_vampires (Sep 24, 2015)

NoNotAgain said:


> Fritz,
> I've got one of the plastic owls mounted on a pole close to my work shop. When I was installing the Sheetrock I kept hearing this slight banging noise. Looked outside to see a woodpecker banging away on the plastic owl.


Lol! Anyway, you have to move the decoys occasionally or the birds adapt to their presence. It's why lighting is ineffective. Decoys only work if you go move them occasionally.


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## more_vampires (Sep 24, 2015)

Str8stroke said:


> Some of those air rifles are almost as loud as a Subsonic. Once a projectile breaks about 1200fps it is going to make a good crack. Not to mention the air charge being released.
> 
> Of course you can muffle it some. However I suggest checking your local laws for that.


Pest elimination is legal 24/7 in my state. Can't say for the OP. Another technique to quiet an air rifle is to move to a heavier pellet until you no longer hear the crack. With the Gamo Viper Air Shotgun, you have only one choice for the shot load. I don't recommend solid pellets due to down range hazard if you're launching them in the air. Same with the laser. Downrange hazard. I understand there is a massive rimfire shortage in the US and I won't go into that. However, you have always been able to get airgun ammo all day for next to nothing.

Shot smaller than about #6 when fired upwards loses almost all meaningful energy by the time it comes back down to earth. Won't retain enough to matter.


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## NoNotAgain (Sep 24, 2015)

more_vampires said:


> Lol! Anyway, you have to move the decoys occasionally or the birds adapt to their presence. It's why lighting is ineffective. Decoys only work if you go move them occasionally.




Found the pic on my phone. https://www.dropbox.com/s/tum9w28gmyghokw/owlwoodpecker.JPG?dl=0


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## more_vampires (Sep 24, 2015)

NoNotAgain said:


> Found the pic on my phone. https://www.dropbox.com/s/tum9w28gmyghokw/owlwoodpecker.JPG?dl=0


That, sir, is loltastic!


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## SemiMan (Oct 5, 2015)

DoubleA said:


> Thank you! It's something I became curious about lately. If I end up getting a laser someday, I'll definately get the glasses too, assuming they don't cost too much. I mainly wanted to get it to scare away nuisance birds near my house, but started thinking that seeing where the dot strikes leaves and branches on the trees could hurt my eyes.



Blinding an animal is a very cruel way of dealing with a nuisance animal. Not cool at all.

Using a far less bright light source that flashes would be just as effective.

You are worried about the reflection off leaves and branches damaging your eyes, but completely okay with shining that into a birds eyes leaving it essentially crippled but not dead ..... give that some thought.


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## more_vampires (Oct 5, 2015)

SemiMan said:


> Blinding an animal is a very cruel way of dealing with a nuisance animal. Not cool at all.
> 
> Using a far less bright light source that flashes would be just as effective.
> 
> You are worried about the reflection off leaves and branches damaging your eyes, but completely okay with shining that into a birds eyes leaving it essentially crippled but not dead ..... give that some thought.


We agree, sir. Well put.


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## Toddmanning420 (Sep 18, 2021)

DoubleA said:


> Thank you! It's something I became curious about lately. If I end up getting a laser someday, I'll definately get the glasses too, assuming they don't cost too much. I mainly wanted to get it to scare away nuisance birds near my house, but started thinking that seeing where the dot strikes leaves and branches on the trees could hurt my eyes.


Contrary to what others have said, a green laser is excellent to repel birds, especially geese. They view it as a predator and will not adapt to it.


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