Glow Sticks Information:

How Glow Sticks Work:

Glow sticks are composed of two components: one, an activator that determines the duration and intensity of the light and the second an oxalate “flourescer”, which determines color. The two active components are separated until activation is needed. Separation is achieved by sealing one of the components inside a glass ampoule, which is inserted inside the plastic tube of the glow stick, and then an exact amount of compatible activator is delivered into that tube as well. The glass ampoule is then floating inside the glow stick, just waiting to be cracked. In order to activate a light stick, one simply bends the stick until the glass ampoule inside breaks, thereby combining the two components and generating the glow reaction, which creates chemiluminescence.

History of the Glow Stick:

Early development of chemiluminescence light began in approximately 1970 with the joint experiments of the American Cyanamid Company and the U.S. Navy. The primary use was for fueling ships at sea. The chemiluminescent light product was attached to the fuel lines between ships for night lighting an ideal situation since glow sticks do not produce heat or static spark. Other branches of the military began using the light sticks for multiple purposes. The most use occurs with the ground forces. Ground forces use the products mostly for night training purposes, night marking, and impromptu landing zones. In 1994, the advent of Infra Red chemicals was developed for night fire activities.

The entertainment and novelty aspect of glow sticks were not lost on people either. Both young and old alike love the magic glow created by the light of a glow stick. Glow Stick necklaces were soon on the scene and from there a whole range of glow jewelry and even glow sports, like glow golf tournaments and glow badminton were developed.

Glow Stick Ingredients:

Glowstick ingredients do vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. We work extremely closely with our manufacturer to ensure both high quality and safety. Glow Sticks are non-toxic and not hazardous. Full Material Safety Data Sheets are available on request. Just give us a call at 1-877-233-4569 or email us at [email protected] and we'll be happy to answer all your glow stick questions!

Oxalate Compound: The oxalate and flourescent dye component fills most of the plastic tube itself – it is the solution outside the glass ampule.

Oxalate Ingredients:

- N-Butyl Benzoate (CAS No. 136-60-7)
- Oxalic acid ester (CAS No. 30431-54-0)
- Fluorescent Dye (Proprietary)

Activator: The activator is contained in the small fragile glass ampule in the middle of the glow stick.

Activator Ingredients: 

- Lemon Oil Acid (Acetyl tri-n-butyl citrate, CAS No. 77-90-7)

How Long Do Glow Sticks Last?

Glow Stick Shelf Life:

The shelf life of glow sticks depends on two things – the way in which they are packaged and how the glow sticks are stored. The glow sticks should be stored in a cool, dry place. One should especially try to avoid storing them anywhere damp, as the glow sticks can actually absorb water through their outer plastic casing, dramatically reducing their shelf life. 

The second thing that will affect glow stick’s shelf life is how they are packaged. Bulk glow sticks that are not foil wrapped (for example 22” glow necklaces and the 8” multi use bracelets) will last 12 to 18 months if they are properly stored with no discernible affect on their brightness or duration. Foil wrapped glow sticks (for example 6” light sticks and 1.5” mini sticks) will last 2 to 5 years. Glow sticks will work past these expiration times but their brightness and duration will be greatly reduced. We've noticed that the glow stick color Green will store longer than the other colors.

Glow Stick Glow Duration and Brightness:

The length of time a glow stick will glow depends on a couple of different factors. The quality and amount of chemical inside the glow sticks, the color and age of the glow stick and environmental factors will all come into play, each one affecting the light stick’s brightness and duration. A large amount of good quality chemical will mean that the glow stick will glow brightly for a long time. A 6” light stick should therefore be brighter and last longer than a 1.5” mini light stick. The ratio of Activator to Oxalate will also affect the glow time – a high intensity stick for example will have a higher ratio of Activator to Oxalate producing a very bright stick that doesn’t last very long (usually about half an hour). A glow stick’s color will also affect both brightness and glow time. Green, Yellow/Green and Yellow are all good choices for safety sticks because they glow the brightest and will last the longest. Aqua, Blue, White and Orange are next, followed by Pink and then Red. Due to the nature of the glow reaction required to produce the red color, red will always be the dimmest and shortest lasting color.

Environmental factors will also affect the brightness and duration of the glow sticks. If you put an activated glow stick into the freezer, you will not stop the chemical reaction, but you will be able to slow it substantially enough for it to last a couple weeks in there. When you then pull your glow stick out of the freezer and run it under hot water you’ll be able to get it glowing again. Heat will also affect the glow stick’s chemical reaction – speeding it up. If you crack a 22” Necklace and just put it down and let it glow, it will last 10 to 12 hours. If you turn it into a necklace and wear it, your own body heat is hot enough to increase the chemical reaction, so that the necklace will glow more brightly but the duration will decrease to around 3 – 4 hours. And if you are dancing in a very hot room, the chemical will glow very brightly but only last 2 hours!

In Case of Emergency:

Though our products are non-toxic, some of our products do pose a potential choking hazard, and may cause irritation/temporary discomfort if you get it on your skin. So far we haven’t had any problems with people choking on the glow sticks and there are “choking hazard” warning labels on the product wrappers. If someone does happen to swallow a whole mini glow stick, it should basically just pass through.

For skin contact wash thoroughly with soap and water. If somebody gets glow chemical in their eyes rinse thoroughly with water, preferably at an eyewash station. Some blurring of vision may occur but that should go away quickly (We have never heard of it causing permanent blindness. People have a tendency to over react with the stuff because it looks like toxic waste in the movies). If someone gets a lot of glow chemical in their eye, tiny glass shards from the broken glass ampoules may be present. Consult a physician immediately.

Glowarehouse.com sells Glow Sticks in Canada and is based on Vancouver Island, British Columbia! For any other information regarding our Glow Sticks, please call us at 1-877-233-4569 and we can help answer any additional question you may have!