I just put in a couple of pale-yellow plastic encased CF bulbs (bug
lights, supposedly) outside on my deck, and there are piles of bugs
flying all around them. Not as bad as a daylight bulb, but still,
they're crap. Are there any that really work?

Thanks!

Dean

"dean" wrote in message
oups.com...
I just put in a couple of pale-yellow plastic encased CF bulbs (bug
lights, supposedly) outside on my deck, and there are piles of bugs
flying all around them. Not as bad as a daylight bulb, but still,
they're crap. Are there any that really work?

Uhm... bug lights are supposed to ATTRACT bugs. You put them out away from
where you want to be. At least that's how all the ones I've seen work.

On Jun 4, 1:12 am, "Noozer" wrote:
"dean" wrote in message

oups.com...

I just put in a couple of pale-yellow plastic encased CF bulbs (bug
lights, supposedly) outside on my deck, and there are piles of bugs
flying all around them. Not as bad as a daylight bulb, but still,
they're crap. Are there any that really work?

Uhm... bug lights are supposed to ATTRACT bugs. You put them out away from
where you want to be. At least that's how all the ones I've seen work.

That's a bug zapper. A bug light is a yellow light of some kind that
insects can't see (supposedly, they can only see UV and blue, which is
filtered out).

On Jun 4, 12:15 am, dean wrote:
On Jun 4, 1:12 am, "Noozer" wrote:

"dean" wrote in message

roups.com...

I just put in a couple of pale-yellow plastic encased CF bulbs (bug
lights, supposedly) outside on my deck, and there are piles of bugs
flying all around them. Not as bad as a daylight bulb, but still,
they're crap. Are there any that really work?

Uhm... bug lights are supposed to ATTRACT bugs. You put them out away from
where you want to be. At least that's how all the ones I've seen work.

That's a bug zapper. A bug light is a yellow light of some kind that
insects can't see (supposedly, they can only see UV and blue, which is
filtered out).

That's theory, as you've discovered, it isn't all that effective of
one...

I'm unaware of any that emit any usable visible light that don't also
attract at least some -- as in enough as to not be of much value as
compared to an ordinary incadescent bulb. I suspect the only thing
that would be effective would be so far to one end of the spectrum or
the other that it wouldn't produce enough light that humans could see
in it either. After all, the insects fly around during the daylight
hours in the same light we wander around in -- would be somewhat
surprising if what light sensitivity they have weren't in similar
response frequencies...

--

On Sun, 03 Jun 2007 22:35:32 -0700, dpb wrote:

On Jun 4, 12:15 am, dean wrote:
On Jun 4, 1:12 am, "Noozer" wrote:

"dean" wrote in message

roups.com...

I just put in a couple of pale-yellow plastic encased CF bulbs (bug
lights, supposedly) outside on my deck, and there are piles of bugs
flying all around them. Not as bad as a daylight bulb, but still,
they're crap. Are there any that really work?

Uhm... bug lights are supposed to ATTRACT bugs. You put them out away from
where you want to be. At least that's how all the ones I've seen work.

That's a bug zapper. A bug light is a yellow light of some kind that
insects can't see (supposedly, they can only see UV and blue, which is
filtered out).

That's theory, as you've discovered, it isn't all that effective of
one...

I'm unaware of any that emit any usable visible light that don't also
attract at least some -- as in enough as to not be of much value as
compared to an ordinary incadescent bulb. I suspect the only thing
that would be effective would be so far to one end of the spectrum or
the other that it wouldn't produce enough light that humans could see
in it either. After all, the insects fly around during the daylight
hours in the same light we wander around in -- would be somewhat
surprising if what light sensitivity they have weren't in similar
response frequencies...

It wouldn't be surprising. In fact all of us** assumed it was the
case until we heard about bug lights. But it wouldn't be necessary
either.

**Didn't we? Once we found out other animals had eyes, didn't we
assume they were just like our eyes? Dogs have ears but they can hear
dog whistles.

On Jun 4, 4:49 pm, mm wrote:
On Sun, 03 Jun 2007 22:35:32 -0700, dpb wrote:
On Jun 4, 12:15 am, dean wrote:
On Jun 4, 1:12 am, "Noozer" wrote:

"dean" wrote in message

roups.com...

I just put in a couple of pale-yellow plastic encased CF bulbs (bug
lights, supposedly) outside on my deck, and there are piles of bugs
flying all around them. Not as bad as a daylight bulb, but still,
they're crap. Are there any that really work?

Uhm... bug lights are supposed to ATTRACT bugs. You put them out away from
where you want to be. At least that's how all the ones I've seen work.

That's a bug zapper. A bug light is a yellow light of some kind that
insects can't see (supposedly, they can only see UV and blue, which is
filtered out).

That's theory, as you've discovered, it isn't all that effective of
one...

I'm unaware of any that emit any usable visible light that don't also
attract at least some -- as in enough as to not be of much value as
compared to an ordinary incadescent bulb. I suspect the only thing
that would be effective would be so far to one end of the spectrum or
the other that it wouldn't produce enough light that humans could see
in it either. After all, the insects fly around during the daylight
hours in the same light we wander around in -- would be somewhat
surprising if what light sensitivity they have weren't in similar
response frequencies...

It wouldn't be surprising. In fact all of us** assumed it was the
case until we heard about bug lights. But it wouldn't be necessary
either.

**Didn't we? Once we found out other animals had eyes, didn't we
assume they were just like our eyes? Dogs have ears but they can hear
dog whistles.

The point was that the yellow bug light isn't very effective if the
plan is to have a light that doesn't attract bugs so something is
attracting them -- maybe they hear the filament, I don't know. What I
was driving at was that by the time one shifted the spectrum to
whatever is the most effective if it isn't something in our range the
light might be effective at not attracting them, but it won't help you
see, very effectively it at all, either...

--

In .com, dean wrote:
I just put in a couple of pale-yellow plastic encased CF bulbs (bug
lights, supposedly) outside on my deck, and there are piles of bugs
flying all around them. Not as bad as a daylight bulb, but still,
they're crap. Are there any that really work?

I think it takes a more amber deeper yellow to really cut the
attractiveness to flying insects. They see blue-green/green-blue well
and appear to me to be attracted to that, most light yellow plastic lets
that through, and compact fluorescents have spectral content there. Some
yellow plastic passes more UV and/or more deep blue or violet than one
suspects.

Along these lines, I think low pressure sodium should work well.
Problem is, its spectrum is monochromatic, and things look an
orange-yellow version of black-and-white with most colored objects
appearing dark.

If you have an enclosed fixture with glass panes and you have time and
are handy with this sort of thing, try replacing the glass panes with
yellow acrylic such as yellow "lucite" or "plexiglas". Or someone who is
handy with acrylic can build you a yellow enclosure.

For more extreme reduction of insect attractiveness, try orange acrylic
instead of yellow.

Insects also see yellow light but supposedly do not well see red light.
They have four color vision receptors - UV, blue, blue-green and yellow
(or yellow-green-peaking maybe). I suspect the theory is that having
light not doing much stimulation of the three shorter wavelength ones
makes the light less attractive to most light-attracted flying insects.

- Don Klipstein )

On Jun 4, 3:59 pm, (Don Klipstein) wrote:
In .com, dean wrote:
I just put in a couple of pale-yellow plastic encased CF bulbs (bug
lights, supposedly) outside on my deck, and there are piles of bugs
flying all around them. Not as bad as a daylight bulb, but still,
they're crap. Are there any that really work?

I think it takes a more amber deeper yellow to really cut the
attractiveness to flying insects. They see blue-green/green-blue well
and appear to me to be attracted to that, most light yellow plastic lets
that through, and compact fluorescents have spectral content there. Some
yellow plastic passes more UV and/or more deep blue or violet than one
suspects.

Along these lines, I think low pressure sodium should work well.
Problem is, its spectrum is monochromatic, and things look an
orange-yellow version of black-and-white with most colored objects
appearing dark.

If you have an enclosed fixture with glass panes and you have time and
are handy with this sort of thing, try replacing the glass panes with
yellow acrylic such as yellow "lucite" or "plexiglas". Or someone who is
handy with acrylic can build you a yellow enclosure.

For more extreme reduction of insect attractiveness, try orange acrylic
instead of yellow.

Insects also see yellow light but supposedly do not well see red light.
They have four color vision receptors - UV, blue, blue-green and yellow
(or yellow-green-peaking maybe). I suspect the theory is that having
light not doing much stimulation of the three shorter wavelength ones
makes the light less attractive to most light-attracted flying insects.

- Don Klipstein )

I'll try the LPS light - I have one that I can plug in and test. Will
report back anon.

Also I've seen CF's that have a yellow pigment and actually emit
yellow light, rather than a white CF inside a yellow cover or glass. I
suspect they will do a better job but I dunno if they emit in the blue/
green at all.

On Mon, 04 Jun 2007 20:28:40 -0000, dean
wrote:

Also I've seen CF's that have a yellow pigment and actually emit
yellow light, rather than a white CF inside a yellow cover or glass

I happen to subscribe to the notion of using yellow bulbs for bugs.

A bulb with a *dense* yellow pigment (inside) is what I use. They cost
out the wallet

In Las Vegas nuisance bugs are attracted to the Strip and eaten by
thousands of bats living at the airport structures.

--
Oren

...through the use of electrical or duct tape, achieve the configuration in the photo..

dean wrote:
I just put in a couple of pale-yellow plastic encased CF bulbs (bug
lights, supposedly) outside on my deck, and there are piles of bugs
flying all around them. Not as bad as a daylight bulb, but still,
they're crap. Are there any that really work?

Thanks!

Dean


Every few years in the Fall the crickets will accumulate by the
billions... local strip malls and shopping centers are picking them up
with snow shovels. There is a night and day difference in the numbers of
crickets in the parking lots with sodium based lighting (has a yellowish
hue) over the mercury vapor lights.

Lar