# Black light question



## Erebus (Sep 4, 2009)

Yes, but make sure they are brand new sheets. Or your guest might leave. Ha


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## spookylady (Sep 21, 2009)

lol ewww
yes they will be new sheets!


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## Super_Freak (Sep 6, 2009)

If you wash your sheets in RIT whitener (found in the laundry soap or fabric dye section of your grocery store) they will REALLY glow!


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## ShelbiBabyyy (Sep 13, 2009)

Yes they will! 
I know this because (embarrassingly enough) I used to play Laser Tag, and I accidently wore white one day. I was such an easy target. haha.
It's fun too to write on yourself in highlighter, because you can't really see it without the black light on. But once you turn the light on, it's like a hidden message on your arm/face. 
I'm so cheesy.


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## chartreusechaos (Jul 7, 2009)

You may already know this, but be sure to use real blacklights - the fluorescent kind, not the incandescent. There are compact fluorescent bulbs available that screw straight in to a regular lamp socket, so you don't have to buy a bunch of those long ballasts. I saw the compact fluorescent bulbs at Home Depot for about $5.00 - I haven't bought any, so I can't verify how good they are.


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## Skulkin (Jul 27, 2005)

I'm with SuperFreak, the RIT whitener makes them really glow! I was glad, too, 'cuz my dog decided to eat my couch, so I just covered it with sheets. Here's a pic of my living room a couple years ago.


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## spookylady (Sep 21, 2009)

[There are compact fluorescent bulbs available that screw straight in to a regular lamp socket, so you don't have to buy a bunch of those long ballasts.]


ok thanks for the tip! Id rather buy those rather a bunch of the long type ones!


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## spookylady (Sep 21, 2009)

[so I just covered it with sheets. Here's a pic of my living room a couple years ago]


cool room! Thats what I wanna do,Make everything glow and be dark.
Gee you wouldnt happen to have a beagle would u? lol I had the same problem with my sweet lil dog.She chewed right threw the cushions! we put the couch in the garage,was goning to through it away but we are going to put it down in the basement and cover with sheets just like u did. 

Im so happy I found this site! you all have great tips and tricks ;o)


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## Frankie's Girl (Aug 27, 2007)

You shouldn't have to get Rit whitener unless you really want to. Most detergents have phosphates that are blacklight reactive. Tide, Gain... I used the knock-off of Woolite (just a dollar store version handwashables liquid) and it worked just fine.

Try it with your regular detergent and you may not have to make a special trip to find the Rit stuff.


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## senorita (Sep 22, 2008)

Skulkin, your "blacklight" room looks great! Did you just have the one long blacklight tube shown in the picture? Or more lights throughout the room? I tried something similar last year (without the white sheets), but the room was quite dark so found I had to add other lights.

If anyone else has any tips on how to make a great "blacklight" room, please tell!!


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## spookylady (Sep 21, 2009)

[If anyone else has any tips on how to make a great "blacklight" room, please tell!]


Im going to add lots and lots of "scary" trees then wrap them in orange or purple lights.
I wanted to come up with something so I didnt have to use real lights.I want the dark party feel. Im going to get a bunch of branches and make tress by tying them together,painting them black then adding the lights. Its a super cheap easy way to add a lot of light anywhere in the house so people can still see but it will be with colored lights.


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## senorita (Sep 22, 2008)

The tree lights are a great idea! Thanks so much! Have you thought about how you are going to make them stand up?


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## savagehaunter (Aug 22, 2009)

New white sheets are a good idea! the black lite will really make it look cool.


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## spookylady (Sep 21, 2009)

yes Im going to use cauldrons,fill them with rocks to keep them grounded,now I just need to find the branches! lol thats my plan for this weekend,go looking for branches!


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## TheEvilQueen (Sep 13, 2009)

chartreusechaos said:


> You may already know this, but be sure to use real blacklights - the fluorescent kind, not the incandescent. There are compact fluorescent bulbs available that screw straight in to a regular lamp socket, so you don't have to buy a bunch of those long ballasts. I saw the compact fluorescent bulbs at Home Depot for about $5.00 - I haven't bought any, so I can't verify how good they are.


We tried to use these one year and they did not give off enough lite. So we picked up the 12" ones from HomeDepot and they worked great. eBay sells some really nice ones used in clubs. Hubby picked on up for $50 and it lights up a 15x15 foot room NO problems. Plus all of the neat flashing extras.

The sheet effect is always a winner. Everyone loves to see them self a glow!


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## walkingcorpse (Aug 29, 2008)

Have you considered using UV LED floodlamps? They produce almost zero heat so they can be used inside or out and they too will fit into most standard sockets. They project light really well so that unless you look for it you won't necessarily see the source and one large bulb would easily light up all your furniture. I haven't priced them this year, but I think they run about $35.


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## Super_Freak (Sep 6, 2009)

You might want to add some cheesecloth ghosts to your room. They're cheap and easy to make. I got the idea last year from someone here at the forum (I'm sorry, I don't remember who). 
I used those cheap, posable ghosts that you can find at walmart or kmart or almost anywhere this time of year for a couple of bucks. I soaked lengths of cheesecloth (bought in bulk from the meat dept. for about $10) in RIT whitener and draped them over the cheesy ghosts, then tattered the ends and let dry. I hung them with fishing lines at varying lengths and small eye hooks in the corners of my blacklitt room. I hid a couple of small fans which created just enough breeze to make the ghosts come to life. It's a pretty cool effect. 
I wish I could share a picture with you, but all my pictures were taken with full flash and none of the lighting effects showed up at all (guess I should learn how to use my own camera, huh). 
Good luck with your party!


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## selz (Oct 19, 2007)

ShelbiBabyyy said:


> Yes they will!
> I know this because (embarrassingly enough) I used to play Laser Tag, and I accidently wore white one day. I was such an easy target. haha.
> It's fun too to write on yourself in highlighter, because you can't really see it without the black light on. But once you turn the light on, it's like a hidden message on your arm/face.
> I'm so cheesy.


Oh, how much fun would it be to decorate the first person to pass out drunk!!! Take photos of them under the blacklight, but leave no visible evidance LOL


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## BrahmaBabe (Sep 21, 2010)

senorita said:


> Skulkin, your "blacklight" room looks great! Did you just have the one long blacklight tube shown in the picture? Or more lights throughout the room? I tried something similar last year (without the white sheets), but the room was quite dark so found I had to add other lights.
> 
> If anyone else has any tips on how to make a great "blacklight" room, please tell!!


We bought SEVERAL of the 24" blacklights at wal-mart. We just tested them out last night and at $9.96 each - totally perfect! Wal-Mart mustn't want to sell them for Halloween though -they are found in the regular light section in the store where you buy regular light bulbs.


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## Wikked (Sep 30, 2010)

heres something i found looking for stuff on this same topic , i was looking on youtube for ideas and seen this guy using Tonic Water, which ive never heard of but it looked soo cool! i just seen the post on black light stuff and wanted to share


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## BrahmaBabe (Sep 21, 2010)

I also found this site with helpful hints on how to use black lights..

http://www.squidoo.com/Halloweenglow


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## Tealy (Aug 10, 2010)

Does it matter which Tide? Like Milk there are so many types now.... HE, Febreeze etc. etc.


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## BrahmaBabe (Sep 21, 2010)

Tealy said:


> Does it matter which Tide? Like Milk there are so many types now.... HE, Febreeze etc. etc.



Well - I had read that if it says "with bleach" that it will really glow a lot...I don't' thin kit matters which detergent...


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## Frankie's Girl (Aug 27, 2007)

Tealy said:


> Does it matter which Tide? Like Milk there are so many types now.... HE, Febreeze etc. etc.


Most detergents now days use phosphors - whiteners to make your "whites white and brights bright" type of thing and glow under blacklight. Bleach doesn't make things glow and Febreeze and HE are just additives or low suds formulations. If it's got phosphors in there, then it will work.


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## Tealy (Aug 10, 2010)

Way cool video Wikked! and thanks to all your posts on the subject everyone Yesterday I did alot of shopping and will post results of blacklight price and quality tomorrow. I got the 22in. GE unit at Kmart, a 24" from Walmart, Blacklight CFLs from HomeDepot. I also used my 20% off coupon for the Spirit Store Green Laser Kalediscope ( brought it down from 79.99 to 63.00 ) and used it a little last night.... Oh is it going to be great in our Kelp Forest Maze. What a versatile fun thing it is, and it "crowd safe" so says the label ( We still will be very careful anyway).


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## Frankie's Girl (Aug 27, 2007)

Wikked said:


> heres something i found looking for stuff on this same topic , i was looking on youtube for ideas and seen this guy using Tonic Water, which ive never heard of but it looked soo cool! i just seen the post on black light stuff and wanted to share
> 
> YouTube - Spooky Halloween Ideas


I love tonic water glow!  Here's a thread on the weird and unusual things that glow in blacklight:

http://www.halloweenforum.com/halloween-props/76158-things-gllow-under-black-light.html


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