UVC Light or Ozone as a Disinfectant?

In this video I test UVC light on a small scale to better understand its dynamics when used as a sterilizer. It turns out this has a lot of similarities to my current hobby of indoor plant growing. Honestly I am not surprised by how effective or ineffective it can be. The main take away is, do not be fooled by fake "UV" lights you might find online and also do not get a false sense of security when using a UVC lamp. There is limitations that are important to understand when it comes to using them.
Ozone Bread Experiment - • Sanitize Everything Wi...
How Effective is Hand Washing? - • Cleanliness Can Be Dec...
Liquid Soap vs Foam Soap - • Is Less Soap, Less Eff...
(Need to watch this one for comparison)
How Effective is Ozone? - • Ozone vs Common Disinf...
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Whatdafunk by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (creativecommons.org/licenses/...)
Artist: audionautix.com/

[@davidreimer9576]

As a microbiology graduate student, I can personally attest to the effectiveness of UV lights. Our Superpickle bio safety cabinet has one and we use it all the time to keep it sterile and sometimes for some of our dishes and tools prior to playing with our BSL-2 microbes. However, if used incorrectly, you can easily kill off the weaker microbes while allowing the more resilient ones to mutate and make unwanted results. Love your channel, watch it all the time!

[@kendrabonds5688]

Can it be used for sanitizing cosmetic packaging and supplies

[@rricd]

When you refer to "Used incorrectly", what did you meant?

[@nataliebean4416]

What would be the incorrect way to use it?

[@wadigkin95]

@@nataliebean4416 probably time exposure or set ups b4 the uv exposure/ turn on

[@Santuse]

I worked at a company that made biological products in the B2B space. The retards in the RG department left their product under the hood and someone thought they could turn the UV on with the product inside, which has DNA. Well not anymore. What does this have in common with my cat waking me up last night? A single point of failure. Imagine any action, no matter how ridiculous, will happen once. My cat learned how to operate a door knob. An employee went and nuked hundreds of finished products. Don't not do drugs kids.

[@MrMattomatt]

I've seen tons of videos about it by bigger and more professional channels yet this is by far the best in giving the informations and results needed.. props man!

[@marcustaylor6471]

I modified an old microwave oven by removing the magnetron, transformer and fan and installing a UV bulb. This gave me an enclosed turntable with timer for sanitizing masks or other small items. Thought this might be handy for some of your experiments. I did this back in March when masks were hard to get.

[@twentytwo138]

Hey, you seem to know what you're doing. Can you please tell me if UVC lamps can burn objects at close distance? For example, i want to use the germicidal lamp in my bedroom but i don't know how far the objects must be. The bed made from fabric, the monitor screen from the computer, the mirror on the closet.. Will the UVC cause any problems for those objects?

[@ha231]

Just want to add that nobody who doesn't know exactly what they're doing shouldn't even attempt this, microwaves are dangerous devices to mess with.

[@hillaryclinton2415]

I have something similar.. I call it sunlight. Patent pending.

[@hillaryclinton2415]

@@twentytwo138 quartz glass passes uv .. polished aluminum reflects it. Don't touch a potentially hot bulb to a surface.. other than that, go crazy.

[@simonlinser8286]

that's a really good idea, well done. i never would have thought of it but it makes sense you can still use the control board even with the transformer unplugged because it mainly uses temperature sensors to shut down in case something goes wrong, so it's not really sensing what the load is, per se

[@familywilliams4058]

My sister worked for an apartment management company. They liked to send her on move out inspections, since she has a rapid onset severe hay fever reaction to cannabis, and so they always knew someone had been smoking it (which was against their rental agreement, since it is still against federal law) if she came out with swollen, red, watery eyes and an itchy, runny nose, especially since she doesn't react like that to anything else. They would then need to run an ozone generator in the apartment before the next tenant could move in, and charged their previous tenant the associated fees for the clean up. My sister never had any further allergic reactions after they treated the space with ozone.

[@superkoopatrooper4879]

Sounds like an awful apartment management company, otherwise known as slumlords. You cannot make a decision if someone at somepoint smoked herb in the apartment based on sending someone with allergies in like a canary. That would never hold up in court and your company was probably taking advantage of less fortunate citizens who couldnt fight back.

[@savagesarethebest7251]

I just wonder how she got that reaction from the beginning? 🤔 Like no human reacts to Urshiol the first time.

[@familywilliams4058]

@@savagesarethebest7251 That's actually a false notion. Sometimes people are just allergic to things and will react, sometimes severely, to their very first exposure. That's why doctors want people to be so careful when introducing new foods to infants.

[@familywilliams4058]

Also, my mother is severely allergic to it and has the same reaction. I am also allergic to it, though not as severely. It does give me massive sinus headaches, but my hay fever is way worse with wild grasses than with marijuana.

[@Yarynaa]

Thank you very much for the video! An incredible job is done by you. Unfortunately, there are very few such videos on KZbin. Good luck with your further projects.

[@FenixJr]

been using a lot of the info from your videos to grow a Superpickle and tomatoes. excited to see the videos you make this year.

[@RileyBauer1]

Always nice when results support expectations. Refreshing like a fresh, crisp Superpickle

[@eliomarconde3146]

Hey Riley, how are you? I hope you are good. do you understand why it is obtained a result of 17min for the 2.5ft distance germ sample? I mean, that result is obtained in function of the 5min/8inch experiment, right? I am a little confused and could use a little help to interpret those results.

[@Bullfrog3.16]

Can't wait to grow some Superpickle this year! Thank you for all the insight!

[@giladgd]

Very interesting and informative, you covered the subject perfectly. Thank you!

[@jaysonmartinez2830]

This is exactly what I was looking for 👍🏼 Thank you for the knowledge

[@lindagroskopf3749]

Oooo! almost forgot about the superpickle - so glad I found my note, I was engrossed in the video.

[@rachaeltroyer5351]

Thanks for another incredibly informative video, superpickles and all.

[@middleway1885]

Fun info...🎉 can't wait to see more of your content! Cheers!

[@999kger]

Thank you so much for producing this very useful and very important informative video.

[@zachhoy]

hey great ep just found your channel while looking for this specifically to decide on a small uv-c setup for my dishes, subbed!

[@firstlast-pt5pp]

dish washing machine with heat dry will do. Oven and microwave will do too ( don't need to have them baking hot ).

[@deans2147]

Youve got me putting mine on in my room for over 2 hours each time now.. Thanks

[@Dr_Lucozade]

Why two hours? Most of the recommendations is 20 mins..should I up the time?

[@ovidiumarian6719]

Thanks for the demo. is very useful for me because I am using to sanitize my homebrewing equipment. Thanks a million times

[@williwonti]

I didn't see this video in my subs, so it's a good thing I remembered about the Superpickle

[@Wisechannel12]

Great stuff. I learned a lot from your work.

[@Xanderviceory]

This was a fantastic experiment, i really like this

[@Microscopy1]

Very nice and informative video! Subscribed!

[@karoshi2]

Actually this just never came to my mind. Now it's going crazy planning an automated disinfection of basically any stuff. Like it's on superpickle.

[@davidhart9106]

Cool video. Couple things: The shadows cast from the rack from which your CFL was suspended almost certainly threw off your readings. Ozone vs. UVC isn't a black and white comparison, it depends on factors such as the UVC source and the output of the ozone generator.

[@JC-kt5vd]

Ok we are SuperPickle day January 3rd 2021.It would be perfect for my place.Thank you for the generosity!!!:o)

[@justusmonger1141]

Great video & incredibly interesting results! Superpickle

[@maratshaydullin57]

Why is everybody mentioning that Superpickle? Who's that? 🤣🤣🤣

[@eliomarconde3146]

same from here hahaha.

[@enrico1174]

Nice Superpickle video good info happy new year

[@shaygold943]

Thank you so much 👌👌👌👌👌👌👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

[@patrikolas]

Excelent experiment!

[@GregoryEsman]

Thanks so much for your channel. It’s very helpful. Can you create a comparison between normal ozone machines and UVC ozone machines? Enerzen markets UVC ozone machines as the ones that can actually kill bacteria, while their 0-555/0-777 line doesn’t kill bacteria because it doesn’t have that UVC bulb. It would be interesting getting a comparison between these

[@jontanneguy4960]

Ozone will definitely kill bacteria. But UV does it a lot faster.

[@matthewleewillis]

I absolutely love your superpickle videos. Thank you for what you do!

[@destiniedj]

I love your videos and Superpickle!

[@Javinkay]

Great video thanks for sharing

[@izzeee3620]

Superpickle, thank for the great videos.

[@dienosorpo]

Awesome video man! Very very good. Btw, it must be kinda weird to touch with ur hands a petri dish

[@lovejoygratitude9457]

Love your channel as it is so unique compared to all of the other KZbin growing channels. Here's to a better 2021 which, hopefully, won't be a SUPERPICKLE like 2020.

[@jasonstephens3183]

I thought for sure the word was gonna be Marypickle, and just about died laughing when it was Superpickle

[@sheltman1]

I came across some mushroom spore prints (superpickle strain). I wondered if I ran this uv-c light over the print, would it kill or mutate the spores?

[@budmanzoom4441]

Great report!

[@quinxx12]

The contaminations you collected could be coming from the air since you're not working in a sterile area. Therefore, how long it took you to collect the spores could be the bigger factor for how much contamination you got than how effective the sterilization was.

[@GrowingAnswers]

No. I ran controls multiple times leaving Petrie dishes in open air for the same time that I collected bacteria and transferred directly to the other petri dishes. I never once had any growth on a petri dish unless it was touched with some thing. This is shown In the other videos in the series.

[@alishastapp6158]

You could grow some super awesome superpickle with that!

[@mannymoreno3328]

Awesome video SUPERPICKLE 🥳

[@twentytwo138]

Such a very well made video with proper testing and detailed information. Do you think those UVC lamps with ozone are good, and do they produce enough ozone to be effective? The UVC lamp i have is 65w and i use it for 30-60 minutes, it takes many hours for the ozone smell to disappear even with an open window. Is this a good indication there's enough ozone to sanitize every nook and cranny? And also, does the ozone really damage electronics and wires? Sometimes i turn on the AC unit while there's ozone to sanitize the AC as well, hopefully that's alright.

[@GrowingAnswers]

The ozone is probably enough to kill most micro organisms, but probably not enough to work on established mold, mildew, or fungus.

[@suzbrewer1766]

Do you recommend using UVC or P3 to disinfect a superpickle ?

[@danowen9142]

I'll check your channel but may I ask: Have you tried ozone in the water to see how that works as a plant disinfectant? How harsh is ozone, gas or in water, on leaves?

[@GrowingAnswers]

It does work in water, but my assumption is that it will cause harm to the plant. Microbes in solution and on roots are both harmful and beneficial. No way to target just the harmful ones.

[@mkmatto74]

Very cool. Was wondering how UVC light would work on water?

[@heresteven]

10 months ago I started with UVC. Now I use 100 to 300 watts in a room. The lamps prices are dirt cheap now. It is so much better to disinfect with a few hundred watts, the process is more thorough.

[@pixelpatter01]

Great demonstration, thank you. I picked up a few UV mercury lamps over 20 years ago. They were part of a homemade EPROM erasing device. Each lamp came with a ballast and a quartz tube cover. I'm not sure what band mine are radiating in but it looks greenish blue like yours. The only difference is mine produce noticeable ozone with only a few seconds of operation. You are saying your lamps don't produce the ozone smell?

[@GrowingAnswers]

No not the one I have

[@Lepardi]

@@GrowingAnswers but but... UV-C will always cause ozone.. it breaks down and is rearranging molecules and some of them turns to O3 aka ozone Edit: apparently you can tune the wavelength so that no ozone is being produced

[@realfortin]

1st of all, Superpickle. Thanks for making these vids. Would you like some of my powdery mildew to test efficacy of ozone and UVC? lol I'm trying UVC to help keep it in check.

[@ArtyMars]

My concern with UVC sterilising plant tissue cultures I want to grow in polypropylene tubs is that UVC can “usually” only penetrate the top surface of whatever media it hits, it can’t pass through Plastic or glass and it struggles to pass through almost anything including water and medias etc so I wonder if a UVC bulb would be more effective if it was submerged in the medium while it was being mixed somehow so the media passes close by the light as it mixes and hits the light more often, the same principal used in aquarium UVC filters to kill bacteria and algae blooms 🤔

[@lrousseau9888]

Been trying to grow a Superpickle for a while now any recommendations on how to get it to bloom?

[@BagoGarde]

Great instructional video

[@snowdogthewolf]

I noticed during the segment of the tests that involve using the rack to suspend the bulb, there was some shadows cast by the rungs underneath the bulb. I wonder if that had any effect. Anyway, excellent video!

[@joshh5808]

Superpickle. They are the best! Great video btw.

[@bodyshotjake7475]

What UV wavelength bulb where you using

[@andrewbee82]

Very very interesting. I watched till the and, also the other video about ozone. That uvc light would be killer to make a little sterilization box for masks and other stuff like that. With Mylar walls also better

[@BState]

That UVC light also generates ozone! Others generate even more, others none. It depends on the spectrum nm. I have that same light and it has a small spike in 185nm that generates enough ozone that I need to ventilate the area after use because of the strong smell. So it's a double action in comparison to just ozone, especially if you have a big bulb with high wattage.

[@GrowingAnswers]

The light in the video does not generate any Ozone. It makes absolutely no smell. The link in the description is for one that generates ozone because the one that I used is no longer available.

[@ArtyMars]

Yeah you can buy them with or witout ozone

[@Dr_Lucozade]

How long do you have to wait for ozone to dissipate? Is opening the windows enough?

[@BState]

@@Dr_Lucozade It depends on airflow. If there is enough of it, it dissipates in a couple of minutes. If you only open a window, even if there is high airflow outside, it will take a while until you stop sensing it. If your option is only a window then use a fan and make sure you use it with thermodynamics in mind: If the temperature in the room is higher than outside, then the hot air of the room will go toward outside only through the upper-half part of the window (the lower half is where the cold air will get into the room), so place the fan to blow out of the windows through the upper side. And vise-versa if the temperature of the room is lower than out. This way the replacement of the atmosphere of your room will happen way faster.

[@alexistaylor969]

The standard time is 5-15 minutes and then ventilate the room because Ozone is dangerous. So we need to figure out the distance that is required to get sterilization between 5minutes and 15 minutes.

[@vmobile890]

I think only safe UVC light for skin eyes and no ozone is FAR UVC light Very expensive . When tested uvc light in a bedroom closed door with remote plug in on timer for 1 hour . I aired room out a few hours because smelled strong ozone smell . I was using 2 F30T8 UVC Fluorescent tubes in a shop light fixture to kill dust mites . Don’t know if it worked but just a experiment . The UVC light will burn skin similar to sunburn in a few seconds with large light as I was using .

[@Inclined2Travel]

My Superpickle is growing like CRAZY!!

[@zheoi123]

My favorite action hero of all time...Superpickle

[@Shre_k__]

Hey quick question. The UVC passover made at 3:55 is at a much lower height, and thus much higher intensity than the light kept for 1 min at 8 inches. I read that at increased heights, the intensity can drop by over 90%. Could this answer why the quick passover at short height did just as well as at height for 1 min?

[@GrowingAnswers]

Think of it like fire. If you passed your hand over a hot bed of coals at 1 inch and did it so that your hand was exposed to the heat for five seconds, do you think it would hurt? Or you could hold your hand at 3 feet from the coals for 30 minutes. What do you think would do more damage?

[@XisGTZ.789]

I'm probably waay too late with this but here is my entry! SUPERPICKLE

[@justinkokot7447]

Is UVC light bad for organic material? Because i need to find a way to disinfect the SUPERPICKLES I grow indoors at the moment. Btw love the video!

[@MarlanaS]

Germicidal UVC lamps like the one used in this video will damage organic material. It works by breaking down the DNA of the organism so I wouldn't use it on anything living, plants included.

[@growingstuffs]

This video tickled my superpickle.

[@dosdont]

Hope you can answer this. I had a pollen outbreak in my 4'x2'x5'ft high grow tent. I bought a similar light to yours (8w) to try and kill all the pollen. The light is hanging at about 4 feet high. I set the timer for 60 minutes. I'm going to do this a few times but I'm curious what you would do? Is what I'm doing going to be enough. My grow lights and fans etc. were covered in pollen. Nice video btw.

[@GrowingAnswers]

Water deactivates pollen. Use a sprayer

[@dosdont]

@@GrowingAnswers Thank you

[@tipsy113]

Good stuff!!!

[@manic_mischief1510]

Already run a conbernation of leds including if as well helps them look like Superpickle rick.

[@samad934]

thank you man

[@shoenug853]

Does it help get rid of Superpickles??

[@gutrali]

I have grown the most amazing pickles of the super-kind with your advice. Please do send us more advice for large Superpickles of the future. I will worship my prizes superpickle or not

[@kjinxd42]

UVC? Prefer tamgy vinegar for my Superpickle. Always interesting & thought provoking videoes btw.

[@jimbeard519]

A Superpickle may be the best thing that ever happened to me!

[@stephenmegel6975]

I read in the comment section of another video that the most efficient lighting for an indoor Superpickle grow is to use gu10 style bulbs with a 40 degree beam angle. They said the focal lens helps big time. This sound plausible to you?

[@GrowingAnswers]

40 degrees? That’s a really tight hotspot. That’s more of a specific use/situation. Might get light burn too.

[@stephenmegel6975]

@@GrowingAnswers just to be clear we're talking about a diy array of several bulbs. The numbers he threw out were 50,000 lux over a 3x4 area at 100w. The bulbs have posts that stick straight out the back that look easy to solder to. I don't even know how those numbers compare to the marshydro lights I'm just starting to research this stuff.

[@mipad553]

Can you make same test like exposing under uvc with that visual grown sample will they grow again or not

[@JMAX79]

Would it not purify the air at all To set it up on ceiling like you did? I was considering putting uvc on top of cabinet (no direct light except for air) Would this be safe to leave on and would it help purify air?

[@GrowingAnswers]

If you put a UV light inside of something that moves air such as a tube with a fan blowing air through it then yes it would sanitize the air. But if the air is moving too fast past the light it would be less effective. You would also want the tube to be only about an inch or two larger than the light to keep the air in closer proximity to the light.

[@marienovak3663]

How long to wait for UV light sanitizer without ozone to re turn to room to be safe?

[@alexoja2918]

If there is no ozone why would the room not be safe the second you turn the light off?

[@debkayaker]

Nice Suoerpickle man!

[@carlosdecastrojr3789]

I hope I’m not late for the Superpickle party. I brought some beers at least.

[@siixlogis]

I have a 60W UVc light. When I have it turned on for one hour in the room, it creates an sulfur like odor. Is that odor an indication of the presence of ozone. I know the UVc can kills viruses. But does the Ozone also kill viruses. Should I keep my windows closed so that the ozone can kill the viruses effectively?

[@GrowingAnswers]

The ozone also kills viruses. But ozone is not a sulphur smell. When uvc reacts with materials or skin it can create those kinds of odors. That’s one way to know it’s working.

[@Tubellinc]

nice this was great :)

[@rakeshsuryaprakash6401]

What is the watt of the UV light you used on this experiment?

[@firstlast-pt5pp]

6

[@heresteven]

UVC light, more the better. I started with a 6 watt, then a 22 watt, then running dual lamps. Next is 3 or 4 lamps. Ozone is produced really fast. A 15 or 30 minute exposure goes by really fast. I hope to run 4 lamps or 88 watts on a tripod.

[@berndp3426]

UV-C lamps which are intense enough are 1) efficiently in killing germs by molecular breakdown/inactivation PLUS 2) will also have all germs on either surfaces otherwise chemically oxidised - means destructed their cell membranes - in a room after some time. Ozone is an aggressive gas of course. Because these lamps create also amounts of Ozone when lit in atmosphere. That is what you can smell if such a lightbulb is on.

[@robertrelic480]

"BOOM I'M A SUPERPICKLE!"

[@Machria23]

So how long do you run the ozone unit to disinfect the 3x3 tent?

[@GrowingAnswers]

10-20min tops

[@WorthyBuzz]

I’d be curious to see this experiment using UVB instead of UVC

[@Paintingtube]

General random question does a Aquarium uvc light submersible 11.6 x 3.7 x 1.7 inches penetrate plastic at a Distance 2 feet? Will it harm being around it ?

[@GrowingAnswers]

Uvc does not penetrate plastic. And it’s not good for any living thing to be near it when it’s on.

[@someone4you]

Thank you sir, but is the UVC light affected ? is it good for kids at home and do clean the rooms from this ugly dirty things ?? please advise

[@spidermangle]

Interesting Superpickle!

[@panzznine713]

Hi, im just curious cause im planning to make a purifier with uv installed, can reflected UVlight from the bulb itself still works? like putting mirror and deflect it to some parts

[@GrowingAnswers]

Well there are two problems with that. One, is reflecting light is added distance from the source which reduces how effective it is. Two, is if there is any coating, plastic or glass over the reflective source then it filters out the UVC. Many materials absorb it. Any mirror is going to filter the reflected light because it’s glass. Unless maybe it’s a first surface mirror, but I’m not sure.

[@panzznine713]

@@GrowingAnswers ok ty so much for the info

[@ComradeMario]

There are also 185 nm UVD lamps that produce ozone as a by-product, dunno if it's better than only using UVC light / ozone? Also I think UV/ozone would cause plastics/fabrics to deteriorate faster?

[@GrowingAnswers]

Ozone in high concentrations can eat away at certain plastics and rubber type materials. Uvc in closer proximity will do it faster than ozone.

[@Bleach-hx7vn]

man superpickle is the only thing i need after a hard day of growing

[@XDIRTYxDOGX]

I bet purifying the air would really help to grow some superpickle.

[@mobleyMobley]

Ozone is heavily dependent on humidity as well?

[@GrowingAnswers]

Probably, but averaging 50% humidity is where it’s going to be most used.

[@anneraulston2367]

Been craving superpickles

[@cwkie3776]

Can we see a powdery mildew experiment? Pls?

[@mesa8615]

What if UV C reflection with mirror, will it kill viruses ?

[@GrowingAnswers]

It would have to be a first surface mirror. And that still adds to the inverse square law.

[@garza3t]

Can't wait to grow a Superpickle !

[@GrowingAnswers]

Are you located in the USA?

[@garza3t]

@@GrowingAnswers Yes Chicago

[@GrowingAnswers]

@@garza3t You are the winner by random selection. Please remain in contact for further instruction.

[@GrowingAnswers]

@@garza3t please contact me with your shipping address. You can email me.

[@garza3t]

OMG! Thank you so much! I'm super pumped for this light.

[@binholinkelo]

I would love to have an expensive superpickle like that, but here in brazil it costs like an eye, an arm and two kidneys

[@user-rb9dj3kp4w]

very very good