What is Glow in the Dark Paint?

What makes this paint glow is the Europium crystals that contain Strontium Aluminate. These crystals are suspended in a clear medium that uses direct light to help them glow.

When this type of paint was created, the glow did not last very long because of the size of the crystals and the other minerals used; however, more modern paints can glow longer due to the other minerals used.

Type of Mineral	Specifications
Zinc Sulphide	This was the first mineral used with the Europium crystals. This was, and still is, used in the toy market and body paint market, but it does not last very long.
SrA1204 (Strontium Aluminate)	This is odorless and solid. It is heavier than water and nonflammable; however, by itself, it will not make paint glow in the dark.
SrA1204:Eu (Strontium Aluminate with Europium Crystals)	The Europium added to the mineral will make it phosphorescent so that it emits a glow.

Even Strontium Aluminate with Europium Crystals will fade out and stop glowing, unless it is recharged. When UV light is shone on the Europium crystals, they will "recharge" the crystals and make them glow again. This is why most glow in the dark paint requires you to place it on a sunny windowsill for a few hours. The longer the paint is in the sun, the longer the glowing feature will last in the dark.

If you have ever had something with glow in the dark paint, you will probably remember that in summer, it was extraordinarily bright, but in winter, it seemed almost dull. This is because the sun has weaker UV light in winter; if you are interested in keeping your glow in the dark paint glowing all year round, you might want to invest in a UV black light.

Are There Any Side Effects or Health Risks?

As long as you use glow in the dark paint properly, there are no health risks involved. Many people fear that glow in the dark paint is radioactive or has radioactive properties, yet this is not true. Glow in the dark paint is non toxic. Glow in the dark paint on clothing is specially coated so it will not react with water. The same is true of glow in the dark paint that is used on the body, so it is able to be washed off; however, glow in the dark paint for walls and artwork does not contain this special coating so it will react with water, but the reaction is still not considered toxic.

Color Availability

There are actually a wide range of colors available, including green, aqua, blue, lilac, white, orange, pink and red. Each of these has a different "glow time" (length of glow before needing recharged).

Color	Glow Time and Other Information
Green Paint	Longest glow time. Will also produce the brightest color.
Aqua Paint	Second longest glow time. Second brightest color. Slightly less "blue".
Blue Paint	Third longest glow time. Third brightest color. Medium to long glow range. Vibrant blue color.
Lilac Paint	Short to medium glow range. Hard to produce this color because there must be many colors and additives used.
White Paint	About two to five hours of glow time. Slightly rare; difficult to find. Considered a specialist color Slightly expensive.
Orange Paint	Has about one to three hours of glow time per charge. Difficult to find because of the technique used to create them. About the same price as the color white. Can be recharged with regular sun UV light, though works best with a UV black light.
Pink Paint	Very difficult to find; considered rare. Very expensive because very few companies make this color.
Red Paint	Shortest glow time. Very rare and difficult to find. Must be used in conjunction with Black Light.

The general colors that are available are green, aqua and blue. These are the easiest to find and will produce the longest glow. The harder to find colors are still available; you just have to look harder to find them and do more work to get them to glow.

How to Use Glow in the Dark Paint on Walls and Clothing

Using glow in the dark paint on clothing is simple. You simply take the bottle of paint, and outline whatever it is you want to outline. Let it dry, and you have a glow in the dark article of clothing; however, walls and/or ceilings are different.

If the wall is already painted the preferred color and is sealed properly, all you have to do is choose the glow in the dark paint color you want, and paint it on the wall or ceiling where you want it to go. Use very thin, even layers. You may need to paint more than one layer, depending on how bright you want the glow in the dark paint to be.

If you are redoing ceilings or walls, you will need to first apply a sealing layer, especially if the wall or ceiling is not smooth. Consider using a water or solvent base for the sealing layer. Next, you will need the base color layer, unless you are interested in painting your entire ceiling or wall with glow in the dark paint. This is generally not done because of the cost and the end-result: everything will glow in the dark. Finally, you will paint the last coat with glow in the dark paint. This can be used to create small or large shapes.
UV black lights can also be Home DIY to help you ensure your glow in the dark paint will always be glowing and as bright as possible.

Conclusion

Whether you want to include these painting supplies in your kids' craft kit, or if you want to create wonderful dreamscapes when you paint your walls and ceilings for nighttime wonder, glow in the dark paint is a great choice. There are many colors available and they can be applied just like regular paint.

Knowing that glow in the dark paint will always recharge itself with the use of the sun's UV light is also helpful; it would not be fun to only have your creations glow for one night.