Bam! COVID hit us too.

Yes me, my husband and my 8-year-old daughter were tested COVID positive. Luckily, the symptoms were not too bad, most of it passed like a bad flu. But you know what was bad, really bad – going cold turkey on my 1-year-old son, isolating from him under the same roof for 10 days.

Fast forward 10 days of isolation; in our quest to protect our home from further spreading of the virus, we gathered a few quotes from companies for chemical disinfection. Kid you not, all priced above 1000 AED. We managed to use some discount vouchers and finalized on one company who did a decent job spraying the chemical disinfectant in about 30-45 min.

All that while, I was wondering hmmm..Coronavirus is here to stay and so how often will we have to avail this not-so-pocket-friendly service to ensure that we are protected and homes are sanitized against the virus. That’s when I had my eureka moment! I dusted out the UV-C desk lamp that I had purchased off a staff sale few months ago. To be honest I had never used it, in fact even forgot about it like many other things in that storeroom of mine.

I should admit it was so simple to use. Just plug-and-play, follow the clear voice guidance and voila! Within just a few minutes, I had different zones of my house disinfected. This has now become an additional step to my everyday cleaning chore, without having to break the bank or wasting time. It also comes with a full metal housing which unlike plastic, lasts longer when exposed to UV-C.

But, like everybody, even I was worried about the potential risk of UV exposure. That’s why good brands come with stamps & approvals [4]. It has a built-in sensor to detect humans & animals and automatically ceases operation.

You might wonder, but Sanam you will only say good things about your product. Well theoretically yes! But that would mean I will need to spend an entire lifetime writing posts on the gazillion solutions that Signify sells. This is a personal account of me as a consumer and how glad I was to be owning this device that promises to disinfect my home from germs in an effective and easy way. If you wish to go one notch higher to reduce the potential spread of airborne pathogens [6], try asking your AC maintenance guys to apply UV-C lamps in the ducts of your air-conditioning system.

So back to my almost 2-year-old Kahlil, this is when he saw us after 10 days.

No clue what UV-C is? Or think it’s not safe? Let me help you. With UV-C disinfection, you can effectively deactivate the coronavirus. But UVC is a double-edged sword. As well as it mangles the genetic material of viruses and bacteria, preventing them from reproducing, it can also cause severe injuries to the eyes and skin.

However, UV-C products present minimum risk when used by professionals who know how to use them. What’s even better, if the operation is automated and monitored effectively by foolproof system. You wouldn’t even need to invest in trained professionals.

The truth is we’re all still at risk of contracting and spreading viruses and bacteria, especially in busy public areas like the office, stores, schools and museums. And one thing we know today is that UV-C lighting has the power to disinfect air, surfaces and water. But it's only effective with the correct usage and the right application design. So, choose experts who will assess your facility to identify potential areas for UV-C, customizing a solution with the right light output, optimum installation and system functionality. Someone who can not only supply, install but also maintain your UV-C system. And someone who can verify performance and provide fast replacements at the end of your UV-C light’s useful life.

CDC warns that coronavirus may become a seasonal epidemic[3],[14]. And so here’s why I think businesses and homes should invest in UV-C disinfection:

• Biosecurity will become standard in nearly all public places.
• Trust - UV-C has a long history and track record in effective disinfection.
• Fast & Effective - All bacteria and viruses tested to date respond to UV-C disinfection. Disinfects surfaces and objects in a matter of minutes.
• Versatile - Can be used in numerous applications, such as offices, hospitals, stores, schools, and public transport.
• Proven & Approved Effectiveness by Government.[4],[6].

Experience + regulations = safe products

References & notes

[1]     The product’s effectiveness in the inactivation of certain viruses, bacteria, protozoa, fungi or other harmful micro-organisms is as described in the user manual accompanying the product. Signify does not promise or warrant that the use of the product will protect or prevent any user from infection and/or contamination with any viruses, bacteria, protozoa, fungi, illness or disease. The product is not approved for, are not intended and must not be used to disinfect medical devices or in medical settings. Signify shall have no responsibility or liability whatsoever for any claim or damage that may arise from or relate to any use of the product outside of their intended use or contrary to its application and operation instructions, as described in the user manual accompanying the product.

[2]     https://www.signify.com/en-ca/innovation/uv-c

[3]     A Nature survey shows many scientists expect the virus that causes COVID-19 to become endemic, but it could pose less danger over time. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00396-2

[4]     Approved by Dubai Central Laboratory Department for Electrical Appliances Sanitizing Effectiveness – UVC Trolley & UVC Disinfection Chamber. [5]     https://www.signify.com/global/our-company/blog/innovation/uv-c-lighting-explained.

[6]     WHO guidelines on tuberculosis infection prevention and control (2019 update)[7]     Data made available to us by the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEIDL) at Boston University, which has been collected from a laboratory experiment conducted by Dr. Anthony Griffiths (Associate Professor of Microbiology at Boston University School of Medicine) and his team at the premises of the NEIDL (such data will be the subject of a forthcoming scientific publication by Boston University), shows that Signify’s UV-C light sources irradiating the surface of a material inoculated with SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease) at a UV-C dose of 5mJ/cm2 (exposure time 6 seconds) resulted in a 99% reduction of the SARS-CoV-2 virus present on that surface. This study determined that a UV-C dose of 22mJ/cm2 results in a reduction of 99.9999% of SARS-CoV-2 virus on that surface (exposure time 25 seconds). Research variables are available upon request.

[8]     EPA Report, “Building Retrofits for Increased Protection Against Airborne Chemical and Biological Releases” Pg. 56

[9]     Fluence (UV Dose) Required to Achieve Incremental Log Inactivation of Bacteria, Protozoa, Viruses and Algae Revised, updated and expanded by Adel Haji Malayeri, Madjid Mohseni, Bill Cairns and James R. Bolton. With earlier contributions by Gabriel Chevrefils (2006) and Eric Caron (2006) With peer review by Benoit Barbeau, Harold Wright (1999) and Karl G. Linden

[10]  There is a limit to the amount of times certain objects (such as non-medical face masks) can be reused after disinfection with UV-C.[11]  https://www.once.lighting/one-minute-three-minutes-or-ten-minutes-oh-my/ [12]  At this moment, none of our UV-C products are certified or approved under any applicable laws as a medical device and as such, Signify and/or any of its group companies do not currently intend for them to be used as medical devices anywhere in the world.[13]  https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/pdf/guidelines/environmental-guidelines-P.pdf