Lighting Stations

[Caver1402]

Laura, you should have stolen some of those bobber things from Dan, he has like a gross of them in his garage somewhere

I would ... but I don't live anywhere nearby him! Maybe they'll bring some to the expedition this weekend, if they are coming. I'd be willing to pay him for some! They worked great!

[ArCaver]

If these are the bobber lights I've seen in the past they're great! I think they're an organic LED mated to a charged capacitor and have absolutely no effect on the compass, so you can use them to light the compass as well.

[driggs]

You're not talking about little glow sticks, are you? ( http://extremeglow.com/Merchant4/mercha ... y_Code=112 ) I've heard they make great station lights, although I've never used them myself. I've wanted to try taping them to my instruments so the dial is always illuminated, but have yet to do this.

The great thing about cyalume glowsticks is that you can orient them vertically "|" when targeting compass and horizontally "_" when targeting inclinometer - this really helps the instrument reader when doing "acrobatic" shots! Additional benefits are that mud and water cannot destroy them, nor can dropping them. The color lets your target stand out even when there are StenLights shining back at you!

While I personally find them too dim to light my instruments for reading (I see other people do it with ease), you can be sure that they will not deflect your compass reading, unlike battery-powered lights at close proximity. If using them to illuminate your instrument, it seems helpful to use different color glowsticks for front and backsights, so that your target stands out from the glow in your eyesight.

Many glowsticks come with a hook or eye at the top, and with a long string or ribbon. Use this to let them "dangle" vertically from a high station when shooting compass to take some of the difficulty out of high-angle shots.

Buy these in bulk rather than singly! Retail stores can charge up to $2 per glowstick, but you can get quality ones online for $0.50 apiece.

[SpeleoRover]

I agree, although so are the majority of batteries that we use. My thinking is that throwing away non-toxic glow sticks is better than throwing away toxic batteries. Maybe there is some sort of glow-in-the-dark stuff that is "rechargeable" (set it in the sun for a while) and lasts long enough to be useful as a station light and as a survey light.

Except that batteries can be recycled. Check your local recycling center and make them tell you whether they actually recycle or just seal and dispose of batteries. I getting to be such a nut about this it is pathetic.

[cavemanjonny]

Except that batteries can be recycled. Check your local recycling center and make them tell you whether they actually recycle or just seal and dispose of batteries. I getting to be such a nut about this it is pathetic.

Right you are . Luckily, there is a recycling center right down the road from my apartment where I faithfully drop my spent batteries off. I'm trying to start using rechargeables, but haven't committed to it fully.

Your post prompted me to look around for methods for recycling glow sticks. I haven't found anything helpful yet, other than that they aren't as harmless as I thought :-/.

Hmm, I guess I'm getting off topic.

[wyandottecaver]

the "non toxic" glow "juice" has in fact killed a few bats when it was used by researchers to track bats at night and injected the glowstick liquid into small globes glued to the bats.

[driggs]

the "non toxic" glow "juice" has in fact killed a few bats when it was used by researchers to track bats at night and injected the glowstick liquid into small globes glued to the bats.

It would no doubt kill a human if he drank 5% of his own body weight worth of the stuff like those bats did. Homemade light tags are now discouraged by bat professionals, however packaged "over the counter" cyalume glowsticks are still used regularly and considered safe (disclaimer: I am not a bat specialist or professional). What genius came up with the idea of putting a glow-in-the-dark chemical in a gelatin pill and gluing it to the bats so they can groom it off of their fur?!

Unless you are similarly discouraging the use of alkaline, lead acid, and lithium (ion, polymer) batteries in cave, I don't think it's fair to suggest that cyalume glowsticks are any worse for the cave environment. You'd have to try to break one open; and unlike the above-mentioned batteries, which will rust, corrode, and burst in water, a glowstick will not contaminate the cave stream if accidentally dropped and lost in the water.

[wyandottecaver]

no, I was just pointing out that non toxic doesn't always mean safe. and in fact, the dosages in the case I'm familiar with were probably very very low. essentially the capsules were tight, but they presumably got to the residue left on the outside from filling them.

I use cylume a lot, just emphasising non-toxic has to be taken with a grain of salt.

[Teresa]

no, I was just pointing out that non toxic doesn't always mean safe. and in fact, the dosages in the case I'm familiar with were probably very very low. essentially the capsules were tight, but they presumably got to the residue left on the outside from filling them.

I use cylume a lot, just emphasising non-toxic has to be taken with a grain of salt.

Interesting, as I know a number of people who have drank the stuff with no apparent ill effects. The active chemicals are hydrogen peroxide and phenol. Hydrogen peroxide is water with one more oxygen-- commonly used as a bleach and mouthwash for infections. (My dentist recommends it over commercial mouthwashes.) Phenol is carbolic acid -- a curious thing, since injected it can be fatal, but it is also an OTC local anaesthetic and antiseptic (Campho-Phenique, Chloraseptic).

They combine to form a photo-emitting oxalate ester. Now, I wouldn't drink the stuff myself (mostly because of the potential for ingesting broken glass) and I have no doubt the reports of bat fatalities are true, but I still wouldn't hesitate to give a cyalume stick to a small child to play with. Ever tried to cut one deliberately? It's a pain.

[copelandcaver7]

I have always found the princeton Tec Pilot to work great, it has a on/off button and the batteries are supposed to last about 36 hours. I have yet to replace my batteries though and have been using this light since the first of the year.
http://www.ptsportlights.com/products/i ... pe=0&use=1