24
votes
Why should a good tent be UV resistant?
It's because the sunlight will damage the tents fabric over time.
UV damage occurs when long term exposure to the sun damages the fabric and thread of your tent or rain fly. The fabric will become ...
22
votes
Why should a good tent be UV resistant?
A tent's UV resistance isn't for you, it's for the tent. High-energy UV rays will break down many synthetic and natural textiles over time. UV resistant fabrics are not as susceptible to this ...
- 488
16
votes
Accepted
Why does sunscreen not work all day?
All sunscreens are physical barriers, designed to absorb or reflect UV radiation. They rub off over time, and they will rub off faster when exposed to water/moisture, most commonly from sweating or ...
- 8,021
16
votes
Accepted
What is SPF in sunscreen cream?
As it is stated in this Wikipedia article, the sun protection factor (SPF) roughly describes how the time that your skin is able to protect itself from sunburn is elongated. To take the Wikipedia ...
- 7,502
15
votes
How can I cover the upper part of my nose to avoid UV radiations?
As skin cancer is such a major issue in Australia, there is a huge range of products that shield the nose.
From the Australian Cancer Council, see this one which clips onto your sunglasses as an ...
- 24.4k
14
votes
How can I cover the upper part of my nose to avoid UV radiations?
Zinc Oxide Paste
Surfers use zinc oxide for the most burnable areas of the face, and it might work for you too.
It's an opaque white paste that totally blocks harmful UV. It's not greasy like ...
- 243
12
votes
Accepted
Do polarized sunglasses protect against UV?
Polarized sunglasses, as with other type of sunglasses may not block enough UV to be considered safe.
From WikiPedia:
for adequate protection, experts recommend sunglasses that reflect or
...
- 5,942
12
votes
What does "UVA in-vitro 49" mean in a sunscreen's description?
@fygsin has this more or less correct, but to expand on the answer:
This is long so TL:DR - In vitro = in glass - lab based measurements, not performed using real sunlight. Higher number = better ...
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11
votes
Eye safety when starting a fire with a magnifying glass
Use your finger.
Equally to using your finger to cover the sun when trying to spot something in the sky you can use the principle to cover the bright spot.
You will be closing one eye and putting ...
- 3,270
11
votes
Why does sunscreen not work all day?
I'd like to add to the existing answer that while sunscreen effectiveness does decrease as it is absorbed into the body, wears off, or is washed off, high SPF sunscreens will still block most sun ...
- 4,199
11
votes
Accepted
Best sun protection for swimming
You will want to look for a sun cream that is designed for swimming - don't bother looking for specific ingredients, look for the bottles that say they are for sun and swim.
Usually in addition to ...
- 24.4k
11
votes
Do polarized sunglasses protect against UV?
Polarization and UV protection on sunglasses are two different things. While UV refers to light of a wavelength of approximately 10nm to 400nm, light of any wavelength can be polarized. Sunglasses ...
- 21.6k
9
votes
How can I cover the upper part of my nose to avoid UV radiations?
Ski goggles. They're made for just that - blocking UV - and allow you to wear prescription glasses underneath.
Did just this on several summer cycling and kayak trips. All day in full sun ones, ...
8
votes
Accepted
Eye safety when starting a fire with a magnifying glass
I would just use eclipse glasses. As they are safe to look directly at the sun with, then they should be fine to look at the bright spot caused by the magnifying glass.
Just make certain that they ...
8
votes
Accepted
How much UV protection does different color linen provides?
It's interesting but just banging amazon with "linen shirt upf" didn't do anything good.
But it turned up another subpage of your referenced page.
It has a nice graphic with a distribution of UPF ...
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8
votes
Accepted
How much side protection should sunglasses have?
Those types of glasses do not provide adequate protection from sunlight, especially in areas with lots of reflective surfaces (desert, snow) and at high elevations where there's more UV radiation due ...
- 8,620
7
votes
Where can I get long but light bottoms for water?
Sounds like what you're looking for is either an undersuit, or simply some swimming pants/tights. Wetsuit undersuits are worn under diving wetsuits to add insulation and comfort to the suit, and they ...
- 53.1k
7
votes
What is SPF in sunscreen cream?
I really like the existing answer, but I feel like it is a bit misleading in regards to what SPF really means. Reading that quote makes it seem like SPF is a linear relationship between SPF and the ...
- 9,628
7
votes
Extra strong sunglasses for sensitive eyes
These are generally known as glacier glasses. They are rated as Category 4 on the CE scale and you aren't supposed to drive while wearing them.
Sunglasses in Category 4 only transmit 4-8% of ...
7
votes
Can natural material be found in a temperate forest to help protect against snow blindness?
Good snow goggles as described in ab2's answer take a while to make.
A quick and dirty way for temporary use can be made with bark. Birch bark is probably easiest to work with, but any smooth bark ...
- 11.8k
7
votes
How can I cover the upper part of my nose to avoid UV radiations?
Thinking practically, how about just putting a bandaid on there? Or buying surfer’s sunblock that really sticks for a long time.
- 2,180
7
votes
How can I cover the upper part of my nose to avoid UV radiations?
Some face shields also include nose protection, e.g. (mirror):
Another option is using a UV face shield visor, e.g. (mirror):
Good feedback on it in the comment section:
That fancy visor doesn't ...
6
votes
When hiking should I always wear a shirt and sunscreen, or is just sunscreen okay?
According to this health-related website, you should still wear a shirt:
You should not think of sunscreen as an alternative to avoiding the sun or covering up. It is used in addition. Sunscreens ...
- 5,942
6
votes
Accepted
What to look for in eco-friendly sunblock?
This article has a list of what chemicals to avoid, why, and some good sunscreen choices.
The three main points are below. Note that titanium dioxide falls under physical sunscreen but is still ...
- 2,837
6
votes
What does "UVA in-vitro 49" mean in a sunscreen's description?
In vitro refers to tests being done "in the glass", i.e. in petri dishes or test tubes under laboratory conditions. After some googling I come to the conclusion that it very likely refers to the way ...
- 12.2k
5
votes
Eye safety when starting a fire with a magnifying glass
Use a non-battery welding mask glass. You can carry it in the same pouch as your magnifying glass. One can be Purchased new for a couple of dollars. They can also be had second hand.
- 30k
5
votes
Eye safety when starting a fire with a magnifying glass
One option would be to use snow glasses. They've been used for centuries to prevent snow blindness, and work by limiting the amount of light that can enter your eyes. They are simple to make, and can ...
- 53.1k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible