Moth Trap Bulb Advice

[Kreacha]

Hi,

I am building a moth trap (well not me exactly ) but am not sure what bulb to use . I live in a town so don't want something too bright that will annoy my neighbours but want a bulb that will attract a good amount of moths. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks muchly

[Phil Whiley]

Hi,
I've not long ago started using a moth trap and asked advice from the supplier on that same issue as I wanted to use it in the garden. I was advised to go for actinic tubes (in my case two 30w tubes). These do not light up the sky and looking at my trap from a distance, there is not much light pollution. I'm told you get about 60% of the catch than you would with a (bright) MV bulb; I've used my trap a few times and got up to 20 species - not bad for a fairly small enclosed garden.
Hope this helps, and sure the more experienced guys will give some more advice.
Phil..

[Graham Barker]

hi
similar situation...i live in a town, hastings, surrounded by houses, small-ish garden to work with.....i use a 15w actinic....and would recommend going for actinic rather than anything more powerful which will probably draw a great deal of attention from the human population in the area as well as moths.
remember that weather plays a part in trapping, whatever the bulb used, so cold nights produce less anyway. last year i had around 85 species, whch isnt too bad, though others with a similar set up have had more....and even with a less birght bulb its amazing what moths are passing by in the garden...
this year i started trapping in april, though the spell of cold northerly winds put paid to much recently...happily now the warmer summer weather is here its all systems go and i am back to trapping most nights with varying results, not just numbers,but species as well....
good luck with the trap and hope to see some posts from you soon...
graham

[Kreacha]

Thanks for the advice. I will pass your info onto my mate (who is building the trap for me). Would you happen to know who the best supplier is for these bulbs?

Thanks

[widiot]

Hi,I recently started trapping and faced a similar problem choosing bulbs,as I didnt want to disturb my neighbours. I have been using energy saving UV bulbs,I started with a 15W bulb,and caught a fair few species,tho my catches were small. I recently upgraded to a 26W UV bulb(which I use with a White sheet nearby) and my catches have been pretty large,usualy attracting well over 100 moths on a mild night, leaving me with an awful lot to ID as im still learning. Link to the bulb supplier below,nice thing about this is it just plugs into a normal bayonet or screw fitting so no other electrics needed(just make sure everything is waterproof)

UV Blacklight Bulb 26W Bayonet or Screw - UV Blacklights - Glowshop +44(0)121 423 2000

[Miss Caretaker]

Sorry to hijack your thread but would an aquarium tube (T5) work ok as I have a spare ballast and tube that I'd like to use with a moth trap?
Jo

[peter2009]

Paul Batty,A most helpful chappy.
Mercury Vapour MAIN PAGE

peter

[Phil Whiley]

Originally Posted by Miss Caretaker

Sorry to hijack your thread but would an aquarium tube (T5) work ok as I have a spare ballast and tube that I'd like to use with a moth trap?
Jo

I'd say give it a a go. If your T5 tube is a marine one (something like a "Triton" or "Corallife") I seem to recall they emitted more UV light than a standard tube. I remember using these in my marine tank years ago. Take care if leaving the trap out overnight as the connectors and ballast etc will probably not be sealed against water ingress (even if they were meant for use with an aquarium!). Also, I recall some of them ran a bit hot - my actinic tubes are quite cool.
Phil