Path Lighting Ideas

We think a glow in the dark path sounds like a pretty cool idea and that is exactly what has happened to a path in a Cambridge park! This neat concept is great for the winter months and creates fantastic nighttime illuminations. The pathway has been brought to life using a UV coating the emits light after dark, something that could catch on in both public and private gardens.

Cambridge City Council covered the pathway with ultraviolet particles that glow blue after the sun has gone down. The technology was developed by a company called Pro Teq and is known as the StarPath. It works in much the same way as an outdoor solar light. The coating absorbs and stores energy from UV rays during the day and then releases it at night, allowing the particles to glow.

This innovative new lighting product was developed as a way to repair old and damaged paths at a fraction of the cost of laying a new one. Pro-Teq then discovered that luminous particles could be added to the surface to create light after the sun goes down. Owner of Pro-Teq, Hamish Scott, said, ‘We do existing daytime pathways with Cambridge City Council and branched out into the illumination. This product adjusts to the natural light, so if it’s pitch black outside, the luminous natural earth enhances, and if the sky is lighter, it won’t release as much luminosity.’

The product uses polyurethane with an added solution to create the effect. Once the product is applied to the path, it is then sprayed with a sealant top coat. Andrea Reiner, executive Councillor for public places at Cambridge City Council, said: ‘This is an interesting idea that the surfacing company asked if the council would like to explore for a trial period.’

Reiner stated that the glowing path technology will be used sensitively and would not really be suitable for everywhere. ‘If we decided to put this to use on paths in the city, we would want to balance any safety benefit against the desire to preserve the historic nature of our open spaces,’ she said.

The technology could be used in the open spaces and especially remote areas where street lighting would be very expensive to install. It could also be used on cycle paths and there is no reason why it wouldn’t catch on in domestic situations too!

Here at Love4Lighting we don’t have glow in the dark path technology available just yet! But we certainly have a cracking range of outdoor lights including walk over lights, pillar lights and lamp posts which are superb for illuminating pathways, drives and gardens in residential and commercial properties.

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