IAQ Fact vs. Fiction

Do UV-C lamps all have the same lamp life?

A common myth when it comes to germicidal UV and Indoor Air Quality is that all lamps have the same lamp life, irrespective of use conditions. Low pressure mercury UV lamps are built similar to fluorescent lamps and are subject to filament wear over use. They typically exhibit a drop of 10-15% in intensity over 9,000 hours of continuous use. Frequent on/off cycling will impose greater stress on the lamp filaments resulting in a greater rate of reduction and a shorter lamp life. Therefore, the useful lamp life will be below the manufacturer’s maximum rating, which some manufacturers inaccurately state is the actual lamp life. A properly designed system should factor in this drop in lamp intensity at end of life when sizing a system. UVDI UV-C lamps used for our Indoor Air Quality products undergo extensive testing to verify actual lamp life of 9,000 hours.

To learn more about UV-C Indoor Air Quality facts and fiction, download a whitepaper from Dr. Ashish Mathur here.