What is the difference between luminous and fluorescent paints?

luminous painting

This is a special paint that comes in a light green color. Once on the surface with the special base coat, the paint ‘charges’ when light is available. When the lights fail, for example in a power outage, the surface will glow in the dark for a limited time, which could help people find their way out of the building. Therefore, it is ideal for use in closed areas to identify exits in an emergency.

key qualities

  • Luminous paint is suitable for both indoor and outdoor use.
  • Ideal for exit directions, emergency doors or even for artistic/theatrical effects
  • Available in 500ml and 2.5 liters
  • Suitable for use on wood, metal (with a metal primer), plaster and concrete/masonry.

fluorescent paint

This paint is the ideal way to identify hazards. It is a high visibility paint that comes in 5 colors. It works by converting ultraviolet light into visible light and is also reflective. For example, it will glow brightly when car headlights shine on a container’s paint. It will always appear brighter than adjacent non-fluorescent colours, highlighting hazards, fire fighting equipment, emergency exits, etc. Note that this will not show any benefit in the dark without the light shining through. If you need this, use luminous paint.

Key benefits.

  • Fluorescent paint is designed to create a neon effect finish.
  • This product is a high visibility coating that is effective in daylight or under night lights.
  • Ideal for use on bicycles, containers, bollards, fishing floats, bridges, signs, etc.
  • Can be used internally and externally
  • Fluorescent paint is suitable for use on wood, metal, and masonry.

The 3-step process involves

  • Base for Fluorescent Paint
    It provides a high density white basecoat which is essential for the Paint system to work.
  • Fluorescent or Luminous Paint
  • Protective coating for fluorescent paint
    A clear coat for use over SPO fluorescent paint, protecting the color and finish from wear. Especially useful outdoors to protect from the elements or in high traffic areas such as floors.

Clear coat is an absolute must for exterior applications, both products will tend to fade outdoors and clear coat will slow down this fading process. The maintenance schedule for external fluorescent paint is likely to be a 6-12 month refinish cycle.

Note: Both paints work best as a two or three paint system together with a primer and topcoat clear for exterior or high wear environments.

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