Hello, I am new to the forum and have an important safety question. I have read many laser safety manuals and guides online prior to ordering my laser, so I know the basics and some of the advanced, please no pointing out obvious things like "don't shine the laser directly into your eye". Also please read my entire question before replying, thanks.
Two days ago I received a 5mW red laser pointer that I had bought on ebay two weeks prior. It was labled as a 5mW laser on ebay, shipped from hong kong, and only cost me approx $3. I bought this laser for presentations and also as a toy for my laser dot obsessed cat.
The item page is Red Powerful Laser Pointer Pen Beam Light 5mW New - eBay (item 350145195200 end time Sep-16-10 17:14:23 PDT)
I have been playing around with the pointer today, mostly just shining it at the wall for my cat to jump at, and I have noticed that after looking at the dot for a while my eyes begin to itch.
Now I'm starting to worry about the safty of this laser. Is it normal for low powered lasers to make your eyes itch from looking at the dot? More importantly, can looking at the dot of a 5mW laser do any damage. (assuming the dot is AT LEAST 1 foot away)
The following is to give a better idea of the lasers' brightness.
Indoors with low lighting I have tried shining the dot at my hand and it is bright to the point where it is uncomfortable to look at. Shining the dot at a white or beige wall (or wooden floor) several meters away makes it tolerable, but still bright. Shining the dot outdoors on the ground or indoors on a patch of sun at noon the dot looks quite dim, only adding a small red colouring.
Laser Specs
advertised as 5mW
made in hong kong
standard red laser pen using two AAA batteries
one laser diode in small aluminum chamber
no focusing lense so dot is quite large at a distance (approx 2mm at 1ft, 2 cm at 7-8m, and several inches when shining at a tree or at the ground in my neighbours yard)
I had the same problem yesterday but put the problem down to dust and tiredness. Today the same thing happened after looking at the dot for a while (mostly from 2-9m away for 10-15 min while playing with cat). I've looked up details on the net but can only find articles refering to looking at >= 100mW laser dots.
My eyes will begin to itch mildly after looking at the pointer dot for several minutes (again I have to state that this is while playing with my cat. I keep moving the dot and constantly switch the pointer on and off when my cat's face gets too close.) , this effect mostly dissapates within 15-20 min but lingers very slightly for about an hour. It is darkish indoors so pupils are mostly dilated. (on a white wall across the room the dot is uncomfortable to look at directly for more than a few seconds, when I shine it at a patch of sunlight near my feet the dot looks much dimmer, and doesn't look too bright)
So final question, Does anyone know why looking at the pointer dot makes my eyes itch, is this normal, and is it dangerous and/or damaging in any way.
I have read that red lasers have a dedicated diode and produce no IR, so I have ruled that out. I might be wrong though.
Thank you for your time.
Two days ago I received a 5mW red laser pointer that I had bought on ebay two weeks prior. It was labled as a 5mW laser on ebay, shipped from hong kong, and only cost me approx $3. I bought this laser for presentations and also as a toy for my laser dot obsessed cat.
The item page is Red Powerful Laser Pointer Pen Beam Light 5mW New - eBay (item 350145195200 end time Sep-16-10 17:14:23 PDT)
I have been playing around with the pointer today, mostly just shining it at the wall for my cat to jump at, and I have noticed that after looking at the dot for a while my eyes begin to itch.
Now I'm starting to worry about the safty of this laser. Is it normal for low powered lasers to make your eyes itch from looking at the dot? More importantly, can looking at the dot of a 5mW laser do any damage. (assuming the dot is AT LEAST 1 foot away)
The following is to give a better idea of the lasers' brightness.
Indoors with low lighting I have tried shining the dot at my hand and it is bright to the point where it is uncomfortable to look at. Shining the dot at a white or beige wall (or wooden floor) several meters away makes it tolerable, but still bright. Shining the dot outdoors on the ground or indoors on a patch of sun at noon the dot looks quite dim, only adding a small red colouring.
Laser Specs
advertised as 5mW
made in hong kong
standard red laser pen using two AAA batteries
one laser diode in small aluminum chamber
no focusing lense so dot is quite large at a distance (approx 2mm at 1ft, 2 cm at 7-8m, and several inches when shining at a tree or at the ground in my neighbours yard)
I had the same problem yesterday but put the problem down to dust and tiredness. Today the same thing happened after looking at the dot for a while (mostly from 2-9m away for 10-15 min while playing with cat). I've looked up details on the net but can only find articles refering to looking at >= 100mW laser dots.
My eyes will begin to itch mildly after looking at the pointer dot for several minutes (again I have to state that this is while playing with my cat. I keep moving the dot and constantly switch the pointer on and off when my cat's face gets too close.) , this effect mostly dissapates within 15-20 min but lingers very slightly for about an hour. It is darkish indoors so pupils are mostly dilated. (on a white wall across the room the dot is uncomfortable to look at directly for more than a few seconds, when I shine it at a patch of sunlight near my feet the dot looks much dimmer, and doesn't look too bright)
So final question, Does anyone know why looking at the pointer dot makes my eyes itch, is this normal, and is it dangerous and/or damaging in any way.
I have read that red lasers have a dedicated diode and produce no IR, so I have ruled that out. I might be wrong though.
Thank you for your time.
