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GPX solved case

UV lamp dimming during printing: aging and solution

We've been having many problems lately with the UV light turning off on its own or ruining the print after copying the same image 10 times without changing anything – how can you help me

By Cristiano Zappacosta — Senior Graphic Production Consultant

The problem

We've been having many problems lately with the UV light turning off on its own or ruining the print after copying the same image 10 times without changing anything – how can you help me

Cause and analysis

The UV light progressively dims during the printing session and does not recover after breaks: behavior consistent with UV lamp aging or degradation of the reactor/ballast that does not maintain rated power

The reduction in brightness is not due to temporary lamp overheating (which typically recovers after cooling), but to degradation that persists even when cold: suggests actual lamp wear or instability of the power supply circuit

The print is ruined after 10 repeated cycles: it is possible that the drop in UV intensity makes polymerization insufficient or that the customer perceives a quality degradation that coincides with the light dimming

Solution proposed by GPX

The UV lamp has reached end of life or is in an advanced aging phase; UV lamps have a nominal lifespan (typically 500–2000 hours depending on the type) beyond which the light output progressively decreases even if the lamp does not switch off completely

Limits of this analysis

This analysis is generated with the support of Artificial Intelligence: always verify its correctness and applicability before using it. The reliability level of this analysis is "Medium", not the highest possible.

Checks before proceeding

  • Check the printer manual or the label on the UV lamp itself for the total number of operating hours so far (usually shown on the machine display or in an internal log, or noted on the unit). If the lamp has exceeded 70–80% of the expected nominal lifespan, the loss of brightness is the first indicator that end of life is approaching

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