black light phosphate test

[retrogirl]

Sorry if I wasn't clear. There are 4 samples in my picture. I don't have any detergents with phosphates, just the TSP. I have edited the photo to add labels. The 4th one is the TSP, I circled it because you can't really see it. The few glowing specks inside the circle are stray granules of the oxy cleaner, not TSP.

So optical brighteners causing a glow makes sense to me. But what about the dishwasher detergent (not pictured)? They don't contain brightners, do they? The 2 dishwasher detergents I tested are Cascade Platinum pacs, and Oxy Clean powder.

Anyway, I think I can safely say that the notion of a blacklight being a reliable test for phosphates is busted.

 

[tolivac]

BL poster inks--the printing inks in your poster are UV ones-they will flouresce under UV light.This is common.Also on product labels--this makes them "stand out' under flourescent and HID store lights-these put out UV light along with visible light.Yes,I have shined my portable UV lamp in the hotel room-what I saw made me put a plastic sheet over the beds one!Drather sleep on THAT than the hotels "sheet"You don't know WHAT slept on that before!!!And now we have to worry about BEDBUGS--at this stage the GROUND may be a cleaner place to sleep on then the motels bed!

 

[mrboilwash]

Woolite and Mas detergents don`t contain OBAs, would be interesting to see if they glowed as well.

 

[retrogirl]

More OT fun with black lights

No I don't bring my black light to hotels, I don't want to know. I mean, I already know, but I don't want to think about it or I wouldn't be able to sleep. Hasn't killed me yet.

Last night when I had the black light out I noticed a tube of sun block was deep purple. So I put a little on my hand, yep a stripe of dark purple showed up. This makes sense, after all it's designed to block UV rays. So I decided to check my face primer which has SPF, yep slight purple. I guess it's a good thing I don't hang out in bars anymore because I don't think I own any makeup that doesn't have some level of SPF these days. Do bars even still use black lights?

One more random black light tip. If you're a gardener and trying to find hornworms on your tomato plants, if you go out after dark with a black light the horn worms glow and you can easily find them & pick them off.

Virginia

 

[mamapinky]

I haven't

Done my larger test yet as my son was admitted to hospital ..I will get to it soon.
I do have liquid ecover and nellies washing soda which are both ob free I think..I will also test stpp.
After reading some on the net I am thinking ob's will glow. Wonder if there's another way to test for phosphates. ..I think pet stores sell a test to check phosphates in fish tanks..wonder if that would work.

Thank you everyone for your responses...and thanks Retrogirl for sharing your results..Cheryl

 

[tolivac]

Scorpions glow under UV light.Prospectors use their UV lights not only for mineral prospecting-but for watching out for scorpions,too-the proespectors operate at night when the UV light is most effective.Good to know about the hornworms-another insect that flouresces under UV light.The things are gross enough-around here its tobacco worms which are pretty much the same as tomato hornworms.those things just gross me out!Esp if you step on one!!!

 

[gansky1]

Black light fun!

I pulled mine out the other night after reading this thread just to see how things sparkle and glow.
What fun.

Pic 1 is the wall of vintage boxes

Pic 2 is looking down into my box of Rosalie's. There are no phosphates in this, Jon thought it could the zeolites (in most dets to protect machine parts)

Pic 3 is my "dosing station" with all of the daily-use stuff scattered about. Kirkland pods are in the jar.

Pic 4 is the jar of pods

Pic 5 is looking into the container of STPP

Pic 6 is the Kenmore panel glow

 

[frigilux]

Gansky-- Is Rosalie's detergent on the market or are you one of the lucky insiders?

Here's a video from YouTube showing Rosalie's at work in a Philco washer. I keep expecting the agitator to start oscillating, LOL.

Rosalie's is the one remaining detergent I'm excited to try!

 

[tolivac]

Will have to get out my UVP SW/LW UV lights and go for a stroll thru my place at night!Haven't done that in awhile.The UV light I have emits both Long Wave and Short Wave UV light.Short wave is used mostly for mineral prospecting.Long Wave is the more common "Black Light" for paints,inks(Detergent and other product boxes)urine,semen testing.My lamp uses a quartz argon/mercury tublar bulb-a flourescent bulb on one end that emits the LW light thru a filter-then the other half of the tube that is clear quartz that generates the SW light.The lamp I have is essentually an older mineral prospectors light.Like for looking for Uranium,Tungsten, and Calcite.Of course Uranium prospectors also had their Geiger testers.Uranium ores generally made greenish light under the SW lamp,and tungsten made a light blue color.Calcite-bright red or pink.If you have a SW UV lamp use it carefully-the radiation can damage your eyes and sunburn skin.Keeping your skin covered will prevent the burns,and wear glasses over your eyes-regular glass and most plastic glasses block the SW UV.Yet you can still see the effects.

 

[jetcone]

Rosalie's glows

under UV due to the soap powder I am using and the proprietary anti-foam. Its not the zeolites like I thought. I never would have suspected plain soap, soap only glows slightly but the antifoam is bright.

 

the antifoam is similar to Gas Ex its not medical nor food grade by any standard.

 

 

 

[mamapinky]

interesting

I still have been unable to check all the detergents I have..I've been at the hospital a lot as my son has a pulmonary embolism. .so when I get a day to myself I shall check all of mine.. i know a few of mine that I did check glowed very white bright and some a bluish glow that the glow faded within seconds. Take care