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TinyDemon000 t1_jcmmkp7 wrote

Reply to comment by frustrated_staff in If UV radiation is used to disinfect and sterilise things then why isn't everything the sun touches (your skin, the sidewalk etc) sterile? by Critwhoris

"uv from sunlight is, however, lower intensity"

Mate... Try living in Australia. We're sterile af down here.

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purpleoctopuppy t1_jcmr0ik wrote

UV Index of 14 is 350 mW/m², a UV steriliser bulb I found online is 28 μW/cm² which is 280 mW/m² ... huh, those are pretty comparable.

(The bulb is measured at 1m, so in practice it'll probably be 16× stronger or more, but still I wasn't expecting comparable orders of magnitude. Also note different UV wavelengths)

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fkenthrowaway t1_jcmubv6 wrote

Sterilizing bulb is UVC light and im pretty sure a much stronger UVC source than standing in sunlight.

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purpleoctopuppy t1_jcn4ra3 wrote

Yes definitely! That's why I mentioned different wavelength: sunlight is not an adequate replacement for a sterilising bulb.

I was just expecting it to be thousands of times stronger integrated across the UV spectrum that I was surprised, as I wasn't expecting to need to take that into account at the start!

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Historical_Tea2022 t1_jcmtknh wrote

You all must have to cover yourselves in sunscreen. I heard the stuff we have in America isn't even strong enough for Australian sun

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Daddyssillypuppy t1_jcn80im wrote

We have light 'spf 15' ones but they're mostly face lotions and such that are meant to be worn under makeup or indoors.

For outdoors we have spf 30 or 50 generally. After 50 the protection doesn't increase much so spf100 isn't much better than the 50.

I know our sunscreens have to go through testing and meet regulations but I assume the rest of the world does that too.

We have a long long running TV add campaign called Slip, Slop, Slap, Seek, Slide.

Slip on a hat, Slop on sunscreen, Slap on a hat, seek shade, slide on sunglasses.

Edit- Slip on a Shirt

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palbertalamp t1_jcnh2rj wrote

>Slip on a hat, Slop on sunscreen, Slap on a hat, seek shade, slide on sunglasses.

HA. Only two hats.

Amateur.

I too Slip on the first hat, Slap on the 2nd, but the trick is to Scrunch on the third hat to hold down the slippy slappy first two hats.

But then, I only go outside at night, so I keep losing hats in the dark , unless there's moonlight .of course

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Techutante t1_jcnijgp wrote

They suggest a 30+ for everyone nearly everywhere if you don't want to look like a leather sack at 70.

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gauchocartero t1_jcniwft wrote

If you want to experience the most loving solar embrace visit the Altiplano in December and play a football match at 3500m! The sun is exactly directly overhead, and the UV index is over 20 every day. The crazy thing is, it’s the craddle of South American civilisation.

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TinyDemon000 t1_jcnk78r wrote

You'll be happy to know our work clothes are also spf50. If you work in the trades, the shirts have to meet this standard. People were getting burnt through thin cotton t shirts.

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