Red Light Experiment (120V Vs. 130V)

[stressucks]

Wouldn't red light be better before bed than white light?

Avoiding blue light/bright light = sleep?

 

[charlie]

Wouldn't red light be better before bed than white light?

Avoiding blue light/bright light = sleep?

It would seem that way.

 

[cdg]

Hi all,

This topics has been discussed many times, without any definite resolution. Hopefully, I will be able to add something to it (not the confusion:) though). So, the confusion stems from the fact that Ray Peat recommends a heat lamp designed for 130V network but run at 120V. In his opinion this would reduce the amount of near-infrared and shift the light towards the desirable red spectrum. However, forum embers have consulted with a person who seems to be an expert on lights and spectrums and he seems to think that "downgrading" a bulb like that would do the exact opposite - i.e. produce more infrared and less visible red light. Also, this person stated that if a bulb is downgraded like that it would produce almost no visible light. Finally, someone on the forum suggested an experiment where two bulbs of the exact same brand/model and wattage but with different voltages (120V and 130V) are tested side by side and differences are investigated. Well, I did such a test and here are my results.

I bought the lightbulbs from the website listed in the Supplements thread. Instead of buying the clear lights I bought the red lights b/c I wanted to also use a spectrometer to measure what kind of light the bulbs will be emitting. I used both lights to heat up a surface for a preset time (15min) keeping the conditions as equal as possible. I have not done the spectrometer analysis yet since I have to buy one first but it seems that even without it some obvious things are emerging.

1. The 120V/250W Red Bulb: When plugged into the normal socket on the wall (residential unit in USA) the 120V emits a light that is for a lack of a better word "orange" in color. The bulb has red colored glass but I think the light produced is intense enough to make it appear orange in color. Also, the 120V bulb emits a lot more heat. I will use the 120V as a base and say that it produced a unit of heat in 15min and I will use that to compare to the 130V bulb.
2. The 130V/250W Red Bulb: When plugged into the outlet, the bulb produced a radiant saturated red color. If a have to compare it to something I would have to say something between cherry-red and burgundy-red. Also, the bulb produces about 40% less heat than the 120V bulb.

I have ordered this relatively cheap open source spectrometry kit and plan on analyzing the light spectrum of all bulbs in the house.
http://www.amazon.com/PublicLab-Desktop ... ectrometer

I strongly encourage others with an interest in doing it to also do their own testing so that we know for sure if the Peat-recommended lights are really optimal, and also what is the spectrum of the common light bulbs of your home. My initial tests suggest that Scott (I think this was the name of the light expert) maybe incorrect in stating that downgraded light bulbs would be worse. In my experience that are much better in terms of producing rich, saturated, red color and producing less heat. Why that doesn't agree with theory and the charts that have been posted is beyond me, but I trust my eyes and how the light affects me.
Finally, for those interested, it may be worth it to order a light meter (also known s Lux meter). Here are some products:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss? ... ight+meter

It's good to know how many Luxes/lumens of light are pouring on top of you. In my case, I have 6 500W incandescent bulbs in the living room but they all point to the walls b/c they are too bright otherwise. So, the Luxes/lumens I am getting are reflected from the wall and most certainly less than the Luxes/lumens listed on the bulb boxes. Even with that setup, everybody sitting in the living room is feeling super relaxed and even sleepy, which does not happen in the darker bedroom and other rooms. I think the optimal exposure that I have seen in studies is at least 5,000 lumens coming at you (not 5,000 produced by the bulb). So, the Lux/lumen meter would help measure that objectively and help you direct efforts (and money) where it matters.

Another way to get more red should be to use Button light Savers: The Button Light Bulb Saver - - Amazon.com on the 120 volt bulbs this may make them more like the 130 v ones and could also make the 130 v ones even more redder. Maybe you could include these in your tests as well? Thanks.

 

[cdg]

It would seem that way.

Suspect if there was enough orange and red in the light then the effects of blue could be mitigated to some extent but retain the advantage of blue?? Ray said he went to sleep under them while reading and got pimples which he attributed to vitamin A deficiency - I think...

 

[DaveFoster]

I just give up on red light. Learning about this is like getting your PhD in biology in French... when you don't speak French.

 

[murdoc]

http://heelspurs.com/a/led/black3.gif

if you look at this chart you can see that halogen lights emit more red light than incandescent lamps. actually it is very close the spectrum of sun light.
I have bought an orange coloured filter to filter out the blue light. a water filter would be even better because of the infrared heat but this not practical to install.
Aside from LED this is the best form of red light therapy i could think of.

 

[sladerunner69]

yeah doesnt matter if its led or red light halogen they all the same really you know

 

[marikay]

Charliem here are the ones I bought:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004DJ5TMS/ref ... 1_ST1_dp_1

If you can find them cheaper, please share with the forum.

@haidut - these bulbs don't appear to be clear incandescent. does that matter?

 

[cdg]

I just give up on red light. Learning about this is like getting your PhD in biology in French... when you don't speak French.

If you have Ray's book "From PMS to Menopause in Context" there is a very cogent discussion in part 4 which answers many questions. And is simple to understand

 

[DaveFoster]

If you have Ray's book "From PMS to Menopause in Context" there is a very cogent discussion in part 4 which answers many questions. And is simple to understand

Thanks for that. I'll definitely look in this.

 

[haidut]

@haidut - these bulbs don't appear to be clear incandescent. does that matter?

I don't think you will be able to handle the brightness of 500W clear incandescent bulb. I saw such bulbs lit once in a gallery and I could not stay close to them for long as they were almost blinding. The "clouded" ones work much better for me and probably do not inhibit red light release much.

 

[marikay]

I don't think you will be able to handle the brightness of 500W clear incandescent bulb. I saw such bulbs lit once in a gallery and I could not stay close to them for long as they were almost blinding. The "clouded" ones work much better for me and probably do not inhibit red light release much.

Thanks. Do you know where I might be able to find 250 W, 130 volt, clear incandescents? If not, thanks for all the great help anyway.

 

[marikay]

Thanks. Do you know where I might be able to find 250 W, 130 volt, clear incandescents? If not, thanks for all the great help anyway.

@haidut I found some online.

 

[marikay]

@haidut - I'm sorry to bother you with a question you may have already answered but I can't find the answer above. Are your painted red bulbs considered infrared? Or is there a special 130 volt infrared bulb that you use at your office. (I almost understand all of this:)

 

[haidut]

@haidut - I'm sorry to bother you with a question you may have already answered but I can't find the answer above. Are your painted red bulbs considered infrared? Or is there a special 130 volt infrared bulb that you use at your office. (I almost understand all of this:)

All icandescent bulbs will emit some heat, which makes them technically infrared. However, the ones sold officially as infrared use a filament that has much higher resistance and as such converts mos of the electrical energy into heat. So, I use the ones that are NOT sold as infrared. You can buy 150W red colored flood lightbulbs at 130V at most hardware stores. The red bulbs that are also sold as infrared gave me headache after about 10min. I think Peat had the same experience.

 

[marikay]

All icandescent bulbs will emit some heat, which makes them technically infrared. However, the ones sold officially as infrared use a filament that has much higher resistance and as such converts mos of the electrical energy into heat. So, I use the ones that are NOT sold as infrared. You can buy 150W red colored flood lightbulbs at 130V at most hardware stores. The red bulbs that are also sold as infrared gave me headache after about 10min. I think Peat had the same experience.

Excellent. Thanks again.

 

[Pointless]

I also experience a sleepiness and lowering of stress with 250W halogen and incandescent lights. The effect is immediate. I have some questions, though, and hope some of you know the answers because there is a lot of conflicting information on the Internet about this.

Are bright incandescent lights (250-500W) bad for your eyes? I have a 300W clear glass incandescent bulb, but I see spots even with my eyes closed and at a distance of 10 feet. Are the ones with frosted glass less harsh on the eyes? Would sunglasses help?

Does the red tint over the bulb do anything besides filter out harmful frequencies like blue light and ultraviolet? Would it increase or decrease the stress lowering?

How do you run a 130V-rated bulb at 120V? Is it a special lamp? Does it have a dimmer or something?

 

[sladerunner69]

I have been using a 250w incandescent bulb k own as the rubylux. It is coated red. It makes me feel good i guess but it has been hurting my eyes and giving me a headache i think. My eye sockets are always sore its so weird.

 

[john88]

what about 240V and 660W lamp holder? i only have a 250W 130V red bulb

i wonder if its safe, and how it will affect the infrared.

 

[Adrian]

Hello everyone.
In order to compare the two spectra can put the two lamps next to each other and observe the reflection of light on a CD, first turn on a lamp and then the other, I already post some photos.

https://raypeatforum.com/community/threads/home-spectrometer-with-cd.13892/#post-193068

Where I live I have 220V and got 150W and 110V lamps I put them to four in series which results in a total consumption of 150W but with little orange visible light, and the spectrum will surely be run to the infrared, but I can not see it in The CD's refection, it's very nice to feel the soft orange light and the warmth you feel.
On the other hand any incandescent lamp tends to red-orange when it is dimerized, the halogen lamps do not lose so much the blue colors.
As an economic test you can put two lamps of equal power for the network voltage of their homes and see the effect, it is very pleasant.
Sorry for my english.