Lamp for drying nails at home

Women who pay attention to their appearance tend to be impeccable from the roots of the hair to the tips of the fingers. But a personal budget does not always allow constant trips to beauty salons. Therefore, many representatives of the fair sex began to master the technology of home manicure. And if you like varnishes and coatings it’s easy to order, without even leaving your home, then choosing a device such as a lamp for drying nails at home,

requires a more detailed approach. Choosing the right device is not so easy, because the market offers many models. First you need to study their characteristics. We will deal with all this in this article.

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Main requirements

High-tech devices with many functions are what modern lamps for drying nails represent. With their help, in a matter of seconds, you can both dry a regular varnish and achieve the polymerization of extended nails. Therefore, looking at the characteristics of a particular device, first of all, consider for what purposes you will use it:

1. A professional lamp for gel nails has great power, usually 54 watts. And this is a necessity, because salon masters need to get the maximum result in a short time. If you plan to use a lamp at home, you can choose a power of 9-18 watts.
2. It is better to choose the case of the device closed, this is especially true for ultraviolet lamps, their light should not get into the eyes.
3. Ideally, if the lamp has an automatic regulator. With it, you can set the required time spent by your nails in the device. Otherwise, you will have to start the stopwatch with the other hand.
4. It is also worth choosing a lamp with a built-in fan. Drying of some materials causes a severe burning sensation, the air flow on the nails avoids uncomfortable sensations.

Important! If you need a lamp for work, then you should consider buying a device for drying two hands at the same time. If only home use is envisaged, then you can stop at a compact device that is inexpensive, will not take up much space and economically consumes electricity.

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Types of lamps

Before deciding which lamp for drying nails is better to choose, it is worth knowing that there are three types of such devices. Each has its own characteristics and nuances of application.

Ultraviolet

UV lamps have become pioneers in the beauty industry and still maintain their leading position. Many girls constantly ask themselves: UV lamp for nails - which is better? To understand this, you need to know several features:

• Each such device contains one or more fluorescent bulbs. Their power depends on the quantity. Marking 9W shows that there is 1 lamp in the device, 18W gives two lamps, 36W - four.

Important! The higher this indicator, the faster your coating will dry.

• The service life of ultraviolet lamps depends on the operating conditions. The more often and intensively you use, the less it will last. The standard time for which this device is designed is from 5,000 to 10,000 hours.

The advantages of such a device are obvious:

1. It has small dimensions, thanks to which it easily fits in a purse. You can take care of the beauty of nails both on a business trip and on vacation.
2. The service life with infrequent use can reach several years.
3. Light bulbs are easy to change, inexpensive and create uniform radiation inside.
4. Such a lamp can be purchased not only in a specialized store, but even on the Internet.
5. This type of lamp is the most affordable in terms of price.

But you should also know about the downsides of the acquisition:

1. Using such a small lamp, only 4 fingers can be dried at a time, the nail of the big hand is treated separately.
2. Budget models often lack a timer.
3. On average, it takes three to four minutes to dry one layer, which is quite a lot compared to other devices.
4. Such a lamp can heat up to 50 degrees, and if you do not be careful, you can get a burn.
5. You can not look at the lamps of this device, ultraviolet in its pure form is harmful to the eyes.

Important! The lamps contain harmful mercury vapors. Dispose of the device and adhere to safety precautions after the failure of the device.

Gas lamp

Considering the issue, a nail dryer - which is better, it is worth mentioning gas-powered devices. In such devices, as the name implies, they use lamps based on gas emission, without mercury, which makes such equipment safe. Those who already apply them in their work note several main advantages:

• Huge working life without replacing lamps - up to 80,000 hours.
• Low power consumption compared to UV lamps.
• Safety for healthy skin and hands. Slight heating of the gel layers eliminates finger burns.
• Does not imply eye damage.
• Allows you to quickly and efficiently dry all types of gel polishes.

Important! The main disadvantage of this device is its high price. If you are a salon master, then such an acquisition can quickly pay for itself. But for home use, gas-lighting equipment is not very suitable.

LED lamp for manicure

The most popular today are LED lamps that operate on LEDs. This option is considered the ideal solution for drying gels. It has the following advantages:

• LEDs are absolutely safe for health, do not contain any harmful elements.
• This powerful equipment allows you to reduce the polymerization of varnish from three minutes to thirty seconds.
• The varnish has time to harden sufficiently, the coating is of good quality.
• The lamp has low power consumption.
• When one or two elements burn out, the drying quality does not decrease, because the light inside the device is redistributed.
• LEDs do not lose their power over time, their service life is designed for 100,000 hours.

When deciding how to choose an LED lamp for nails, you should also know the disadvantages of this equipment. There are not many of them:

• With such a large list of advantages, it is clear that the price of a lamp cannot be low.
• LED lamp is not suitable for the polymerization of solid acrylic gels.

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Nail industry leaders

In order to facilitate your task when choosing this device, we decided to make a rating of lamps for drying gel varnish. You do not have to think that you need to consider what characteristics are important, take the advice of professionals who have long been using various lamps in their work.

UV lamp rating

To understand which UV lamp is better, let's take the ratio of indicators such as price and functionality as a basis:

• Our rating is opened by the CND UV Lamp 36 lamp. Manufacturers provided this device immediately with 4 timers, manual programming, a carrying handle, a countdown timer, lamp power indicator, a fan and a retractable finger tray.

Important! When buying such a product, it should be borne in mind its high cost - about $ 200, and a large number of fakes on the market.

• The Russian-made apparatus continues the list of leaders, which cannot but rejoice. The Jessnail 36 BT lamp has a classic shape and allows you to dry 5 fingers at once. Advantages include a removable tray and the ability to dry any kind of gels and acrylics. Another plus is the affordable price, about $ 30.
• The Planet Nails lamp is ideal for both professionals and amateurs. Timer, retractable reflector, the ability to dry 5 fingers. The manufacturer tried to please customers, even considering various color schemes. The price will also please - about $ 40. The ability to do pedicures with this lamp, perhaps, will finally make a choice.

Rating of LED lamps for manicure:

• This rating opens the lamp, which has become a favorite among professionals. Opiled Light looks like a small spaceship, so it is stylish and modern. Superbright diodes instantly dry the coating, giving the nails a mirror effect. Touch sensors, a timer, a carrying handle - all this is present.

Important! Cons Opiled Light - it is not intended for all gel polishes and costs quite expensive, about 300 dollars.

• The second lamp on the list is the Diamond, which translates to “diamond." She combined two technologies - ICE and gaslight. 12 lamps allow you to dry any coating in half a minute. If you need to do a manicure, the bottom of this unit is disconnected. Its main disadvantage for craftsmen is its small size, which allows you to dry 4 fingers.

Important! For home use, the inconvenience is that the timer is located on the back of the case. The price of such a lamp is $ 300.

• Completes the rating of ice lamps for manicure W Mini Nail Dryer. Its main plus is the small size. Convenient in shape, easy to use, makes the lamp ideal for home use. Among the advantages it should be noted the presence of a timer, surprisingly low cost. Despite the fact that the use of this apparatus gives fast and good quality results.

Important! The disadvantage can be considered a small power, which does not allow to dry the coating in thirty seconds. For complete drying, several sessions are required. But this more than compensates for the cost of this mini-device - less than $ 10.

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terms of Use

For those who are just mastering manicures at home, you need to know the rules for safe work with the lamp. Observing them, the life of your device can be significantly increased:

1. Any lamp must be cleaned. The remaining gel can be carefully removed with a solid object without solvent - it can corrode the surface. Dust should be removed with a soft brush.
2. Surface disinfection using special means should be carried out every time after another person has used the lamp. This will exclude infection with fungal or other infections.
3. Make sure that the device does not overheat. Direct sunlight can also negatively affect lamp performance.
4. If the lamps burn out in the device, try to replace them as soon as possible. Insufficient and uneven lighting will not give a 100% result when drying, even with an increase in exposure time.
5. Lamps built into the device are recommended to be changed after 2000 hours of operation. After such a period of time, the power begins to decrease, which, again, not in the best way, will affect the quality of the manicure. In addition, prolonged use can lead to overheating of the lamps, as a result - you risk a burn.

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Stock footage

Is it possible to do without a lamp? Any master will answer you negatively. Although shellac resembles a regular nail polish, its chemical components dictate their own rules for working with this material, so a lamp is necessary for work and a successful result. No need to conduct experiments, they all fail. Choosing the best lamp for manicure, do not make premature investments, it is best to use the available information and other people's experience.