How To Use a Mini Urine Finder (UV - Black Light)

Urine-Off UV Urine Finder Black Light - 16192

The crystalline structure of dried urine causes it to fluoresce a dull yellow color under ultraviolet (UV or "black") light. Thus, a Black Light becomes a valuable tool for locating the exact areas that need Urine Off.

A few notes on Black Lights:

• Incandescent bulbs that screw in to a regular lamp socket do not work; a fluorescent tube-type or LED light is required.
   
• "UV" refers to a specific band of light wavelength. Generally, urine will fluoresce under any UV light - but some exact wavelengths do a better job of fluorescing urine. The Urine Off product line of black lights employs custom circuitry to produce the optimal light wavelength for urine fluorescence, and so work better - which means you don't have to have the room perfectly dark, or hold the light source so close to the surface. Hardware-store black lights work okay, but are harder to use effectively for these reasons.
   
• Urine is not the only substance that will fluoresce. Some soaps and detergents have components that fluoresce, even after rinsing thoroughly, as well as some fabrics and lint. These will usually fluoresce a bright white or even blue-ish hue, not the dull yellow of urine.

Familiarize yourself with your new black light

• Use protective eyewear: Prolonged and direct exposure to UV light can be harmful to the eyes. The ideal type of protective eyewear is safety goggles that can be purchased at any local hardware store.  These glasses, like most eyewear made today, filter UV rays.
   
• Take the black light into the bathroom and darken the room. Inspect the toilet, especially around the seat hinges and the outside front of the toilet bowl. This will allow you to see exactly what urine looks like under black light. Even the cleanest bathroom will show glowing yellow urine crystals, because ordinary cleaners simply do not dissolve them.

Now you're ready to inspect the rest of the facility. Close the curtains/blinds if necessary to make your work area easy to see under the black light. 

How do you tell what's urine and what's not? The color is the first clue. After that, you'll use common sense and sometimes your sense of smell. You probably have a good idea where the cat or dog has "gone," or the baby or elderly family member has had an "accident." The black light will confirm it - and indicate some spots you never guessed about! Fluorescence 5 feet high on the wall is probably not urine! But a puddle-shaped area on the floor near a cat's litter box, or beneath the crib mattress or an incontinent family member's favorite chair, probably IS urine.

Once you've located all the affected areas, you might want to mark them with a piece of masking tape or marker so you can find them when the house lights are on.

Now that all areas have been found, use the guide below to remove the urine odor and stain.

NOTE: Urine Off's bio-enzymatic action is capable of breaking down the uric crystals completely so that their fluorescence is eliminated, particularly on hard surfaces like porcelain and glazed tile. The initial buildup will likely take 2 or 3 treatments, but light buildup will need only one treatment. Porous surfaces like fabrics, carpet, and even concrete, can retain so much residue that complete elimination of all fluorescence may require diligent extraction efforts with commercial equipment. This is simply too costly - once the urine stain and odor is removed, the goal has been reached!

Uric Salt Crystals under magnification

Carpet under a blacklight before and after treatment

 

Product Information Provided by Bio-Pro Research