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Equipment & Lamp Performance
The most successful salon operators meter their equipment’s
output regularly, and keep a careful log of their meter readings.
Contact your supplier and purchase a handheld UV meter that is
designed to give the most accurate readings for your tanning
system. These simple meters are typically built to read UV intensity
at only one wavelength (normally 365nm). It is important to note that
they give a relative reading only!
Three different meters might give three different readings for the
same lamp in the same bed or booth on the same day. That’s not
important. What is important is that your UV meter will help you
to see how your equipment is functioning. These meters can show
you how your lamps and acrylics will degrade over usage. Establish a
notebook with a page for each booth or bed in your salon. Here is an
example of how your notebook should read:
When you put new VHO lamps into your equipment, you should
operate them for at least 5 hours initially, to distribute the mercury
within the lamps and bring them up to full output. In the case of HO
lamps, no break in time is required. Once the lamps are stabilized,
take and record your initial UV intensity reading. Test them regularly.
You’ll want to change your lamps when the output falls to 70% of
the original meter reading. Thus, if your initial reading was 20, you’d
want to re-lamp when the output falls to 14.
Always test your equipment under the same circumstances. We
suggest a five minute warm-up, and readings taken with the meter
in the center of the equipment, resting on the acrylic, or within a
preset distance from the lamp. If your test procedures vary (e.g.,
incoming voltage), your readings will vary, and the information will be
inaccurate. It’s not just lamps that wear out. As they age, acrylics
degrade, and begin to filter out some of the UV coming from the
lamps. When this happens, even unused lamps will hardly tan your
customers—and it’s time for new acrylics. Meter your equipment’s
output with new acrylics, and watch for a significant output change,
(acrylic on vs. acrylic off) as the acrylics age.
In addition, the existence of written records and test results will save
you time and money if you ever have to diagnose certain equipment
problems. Therefore, you need to meter your equipment and keep
good records. You’ll be glad you did!
Date
Acrylic On
Reading
Acylic Off
Reading
Lamp
Hours
Bed
Cleaned
12/01/14 17
18
5
Yes
01/01/15 16
17
102 No