Led Lamp And Bottled Ink

[Aetheric Continua]

Hello!

 

I've recently gotten a dedicated writing desk. It has a shelf that I think my LED lamp and bottles of ink look great on but I've read that exposing ink bottles to light can be bad. UV light seems to be shunned more than artificial light, but I'm wondering if LED is better for inks than other types of indoor lighting (exempli gratia, fluorescent).

 

I would love to keep my ink bottles displayed on the shelf, but I also don't want to damage(?) my ink. Is exposing them to direct LED light bad?

 

(Sorry for the grainy mobile phone picture.)

 

http://i.imgur.com/eI6tmGR.jpg

Edited June 8, 2016 by Aetheric Continua

[amberleadavis]

I'm so glad you asked. Feel free to look at the Inky Topic O'Day (Inky TODs).

 

Here is a start:

 

Have you ever had an ink fade: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/265201-inky-t-o-d-have-you-ever-had-an-ink-fade/

 

Let's see your ink collection setup: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/267546-lets-see-your-ink-collection-set-up/page-1

 

How do you display your inks: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/230595-how-do-you-display-your-inks/page-1

[amberleadavis]

Now to give this some context, I did a bunch of fade tests and a test: Does Ink Fade in the Bottle? https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/254849-results-does-ink-fade-in-the-bottle/

 

It's been three years and the ink in the bottle still has not faded.

[amberleadavis]

OH, and you are off to a terrific start with that collection!

[Aetheric Continua]

Thanks for the posts and kind compliment

 

From what I could see, the mentions of ink vs light was usually about sunlight (though I could very well have missed something). What do you think about having an LED lamp directly shining on ink in bottles?

[Sandy1]

Hi,

 

FWIW I do not display my inks before they appear on paper. Should it be significant to display an ink bottle, then do so with an empty bottle or one that's filled with water and a tincture of that ink. (So sorry for those using Black inks.)

 

Kindly note that Ecclesiastical Stationery Supplies mentioned that their magnificent iron-gall ink is best stored in the dark. As such I would extend that condition to other I-G inks.

> See also Post 383 onward @ https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/205705-ecclesiastical-stationery-supplies-registrars-ink/?p=2833607

 

Bye,

S1

Edited June 8, 2016 by Sandy1

[bizhe]

I don't know how much the led will actually affect them. Having said that, I keep my ink bottles in their boxes to prevent uv damage. Perhaps you could put the bottles under the small shelf instead of on top of it.

[Aetheric Continua]

I don't know how much the led will actually affect them. Having said that, I keep my ink bottles in their boxes to prevent uv damage. Perhaps you could put the bottles under the small shelf instead of on top of it.

I thought about putting the bottles beneath the shelf. I'd like to keep them on display, but if that means they'll be damaged, I may reconsider their location.

 

Ah, oh well. Maybe I'll switch out the inks with my notebooks on my bookshelf

Edited June 8, 2016 by Aetheric Continua

[amberleadavis]

I have mine in the open and under florescent lamps. The IG inks are in a darker cabinet.

THis was November 2014.

 

http://sheismylawyer.com/She_Thinks_In_Ink/Potions_Cabinet/slides/20141110_213659a.jpg

[amberleadavis]

Personally, I'm serious about displaying my inks. These are conversation starters with fellow attorneys and clients.

[Aetheric Continua]

You have such and awesome collection! I can't fault you in the least for wanting to show them off

 

On a somewhat unrelated note, do inks actually "expire"? A friend gifted me her barely used bottle of Mont Blanc Blue (Say that four times fast). It has a sticker under it that says "SEP 12" and I'm assuming that's an expiration date.

[BlueJ]

There should be no problem with LED lamps, as the LEDs used for household lighting produce virtually no UV light, and none at the shorter, "harder" wavelengths most likely to break chemical bonds and cause bleaching. An engineer at GE Lighting told me this. Of course even visible light may cause some changes over time, so very intense light might be an issue, but LED lighting should be safer in this respect than nearly any other light source.

[amberleadavis]

Thanks BlueJ!

 

 

@AC I'm still using some MB Ink and Sheaffer Skrip ink that I bought in the 1980s and I've used ink from the 1950s without problems, but then I had bottle of Pelikan 4001 that was locked in a dark cabinet go bad after a few years. So, it just depends on the ink.

[Aetheric Continua]

Thanks BlueJ!

 

 

@AC I'm still using some MB Ink and Sheaffer Skrip ink that I bought in the 1980s and I've used ink from the 1950s without problems, but then I had bottle of Pelikan 4001 that was locked in a dark cabinet go bad after a few years. So, it just depends on the ink.

 

Awesome. Since the friend who gave me the ink is German I figured it'd only be appropriate to ink it up with my Imperial Blue Lamy Studio

 

It's a very dark blue, nearly black, and I'm digging it so far.

[amberleadavis]

Well, there you go! Enjoy your ink.

[Ink Stained Wretch]

There should be no problem with LED lamps, as the LEDs used for household lighting produce virtually no UV light, and none at the shorter, "harder" wavelengths most likely to break chemical bonds and cause bleaching. An engineer at GE Lighting told me this. Of course even visible light may cause some changes over time, so very intense light might be an issue, but LED lighting should be safer in this respect than nearly any other light source.

 

I agree Aetheric Continua should have no worries about LED lamps. The killer is sunlight, which puts out UV and at a much higher density than you're going to get from a fluorescent lamp. From the look of that lamp I'd say that the LEDs are only putting out maybe 4½ Watts. The Sun's rays on a perfectly clear day average about 7% UV, and that's with about 1 kW/M² at the surface. So that's about 70 Watts of UV per M². That desktop is getting 4½ Watts of whitish light overall. And LEDs are pretty monochromatic. There is ordinary blue light in them, but the LEDs have phosphors embedded on them and this takes even much of that blue light and gives us more colors.

 

So the bottom line is: I wouldn't worry at all about a LED lamp bleaching my inks. Although I keep my bottles in a dark drawer. I would look to see if direct sunlight ever hits that part of the desk, however. If that happens then something should be done about it.

 

Thanks BlueJ!

 

 

@AC I'm still using some MB Ink and Sheaffer Skrip ink that I bought in the 1980s and I've used ink from the 1950s without problems, but then I had bottle of Pelikan 4001 that was locked in a dark cabinet go bad after a few years. So, it just depends on the ink.

 

Oh my. I have a bunch of Pelikan 4001 _______ (fill in the blank) in my ink drawer. Most of it's been in there for more than what I'd consider " a few" years. Well, nothing I can do about it now. I'll just have to hope that it keeps. So far, so good .

[IrishEyes]

I have mine in the open and under florescent lamps. The IG inks are in a darker cabinet.

THis was November 2014.

 

http://sheismylawyer.com/She_Thinks_In_Ink/Potions_Cabinet/slides/20141110_213659a.jpg

 

I want your cabinet :-). I LOVE quartersawn oak like on the curved part of the roll top!

Edited June 14, 2016 by IrishEyes

[mhguda]

Also, glass absorbs some of the UV in sunlight, so even if not in the box, the ink in its glass bottle should be OK. I have never noticed a difference between ink kept in the dark or that exposed to (moderate) sunlight (indoors). I honestly never worry about it.

[Aetheric Continua]

But I do have a plastic bottle of Chesterfield Registrar's Ink that I guess I should keep in the dark, aye?

Edited June 14, 2016 by Aetheric Continua

[mhguda]

That, or transfer the contents to glass. Plastic also seems to allow some water to evaporate (through the bottle walls) so your ink thickens slightly as time passes. Of course if you use the ink regularly that probably won't be much of an issue. Neither would the small amount of UV that made it to your indoors ink display shelf, I'd guess.