LIGHT REFLECTIVE PAINT - BASICS OF USING
When searching for unusual effects associated with painting various surfaces we often hear next questions from our customers: what is the difference between luminescent paint and fluorescent paint? Or what distinguishes the reflective paint from the luminescent one and others?
Let us give you some brief answers:
Luminescent paint is a glowing paint that will be glowing autonomously in the dark without the aid of ultraviolet or any other light source.
Fluorescent paint is an ultraviolet paint, to wit a paint that starts to glow only when the covered object is exposed to ultraviolet lamp.
Light reflective paint is a paint that starts to glow when the light beam impacts the covered surface. The best reflection effect will be seen by the one standing on the side where the light beam is directed from.
Reflective paint, or as it's called sometimes - retroreflective paint is often used to draw road markings, when making uniforms (traffic police, emergency), on road guidance signs, to mark the area and in a plenty of other fields. Let's take a closer look at each of the fields and review the working principle of the light accumulative paint.
Retroreflective paint is a combination of special light reflective pigment and ordinary transparent medium (usually varnish) that are getting mixed together in the ratio of 1:3 (1 part of light reflective pigment and 3 parts of transparent varnish). The varnish can be based on any material - it can be alkyd, acrylic, polyurethane, etc. It doesn't matter to light accumulative pigment, however the varnish should be suitable for the surface you are going to make reflective.
The most popular field of using the retroreflective paint is road marking (light reflective dividing lines, curb marking, etc.). Application technology is double-layer. That means you have to apply the regular white marking line first and then you can cover it with a light reflective coating. In this case white reflective paint will act as a perfect reference point for drivers at night.
Road light reflective paint has an extremely long service life which, however, is limited by the abrasion time of the marking line itself.
The other field of using the reflective paint is area marking (light reflective curbs, retroreflective columns, barriers, gates or walls). This service is very popular among factories and industrial facilities. Such retroreflective effects are often used near the hotels or private gas stations. In this case the principle of using the reflection will about the same as when drawing road markings. The main component of the liquid is light reflective pigment that is added to the appropriate transparent varnish. For example, if you want to paint curbs you have add the pigment to the varnish for concrete surfaces. After mixing the compnonets we get a real road light reflective paint.
Reflective stripes on the uniform of traffic police officers, emergency officers and miners are also made using the light reflective paint. Reflection color can be different, from classic white to darker shades like blue or dark green. You can buy a light reflective paint from Noxton Company. We will thoroughly explain you how to use it and to prepare it for applying to different kinds of surfaces.
Road signs with retroreflection effect are becoming an integral part of our lives. As according to regulative documents, road signs should have the reflective elements that would help the road users to quickly orient on the road. Although this kind of guidance signs can be produced with a light reflective layer however a lot of old road signs don't have that feature. That's why a lot of gas stations, hotels, malls and large supermarkets owners can buy a retroreflective paint after the sign is installed in order to bring it into line with the standards.
Reflective film is a great example of a finished product that is in demand among the people that want to get a quick result if they have a small amount of work. Usually finished light reflective film has an adhesive coating so it can be easily used at inside walls, cloth, metal surfaces, etc. If you don't know where to buy a light-reflective film, you can make it yourself by applying a layer of retroreflective paint on any type of self-adhesive film, ORACAL for example. In this case the cost of the reflective film will be much lower than if you would've decided to buy a finished product (light reflective stickers).
The new field of using the retroreflective film is interior and exterior design. You can get an awesome visual effect by making the right combination of light and painted objects.
We are often asked: is there a light reflective paint in a spray can? Yes, such compounds exist. However, considering the size of the light reflective pigment particles, and the density of the substance itself, we can say it's not the best idea to put the paint into the can. Even if you'll add a ball inside this kind of spray can you won't be able to uniformly cover the surface through this method. Light reflective fluorescent paint in a spray can is the best option you can find to perform small amount of work. But if you are facing the task to paint 200 roadside poles then you would want to get a reflective paint or a retroreflective enamel in its usual form.
There is nothing complex about using the light reflective materials. Everyone will be able to add the light reflective pigment to the varnish, mix the compound until homogeneous and get a retroreflective paint that would have the price appropriate for doing some large-scale works.
You can always buy a reflective paint at Noxton Technologies.
We recommend you to read our article about how to correctly choose and buy a luminescent paint.
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