Using the Detector

Rats and mice are incontinent and will urinate and defecate on the move (up to 80 times a day). This means you will probably see a trail of urine droplets or streaks leading in the direction of travel. Urine and droppings are deposited where the rodents spend most of their time and where they travel.

Amino acids in rodent urine will fluoresce, or emit light of a different color, when exposed to ultraviolet light. This makes it possible to see rodent, rat, mouse, hamster, guinea-pig or squirrel urine even in dark places.

There are many factors which determine how bright a urine stain will be (or not be). In short; old stains are generally dimmer / paler with age. Different types of vermin urine stains can glow in differing colour tones and in varying degrees of intensity.

Note:  The colour shown under UV light is determined by the chemical composition of the substance, not the uv light itself.  The main determining factors for this are the animals diet and health, therefore the colours mentioned below may vary accordingly.

Rat Urine:  Contains a chemical called urobilin, which fluoresces under UV light may appear as a bluey-white to yellow-green colour.

Mouse Urine:  Contains a chemical called 3-aminomethyl-5-methyl-hexanoic acid (AMMH), which fluoresces under UV light and may appear as a bluey-white to yellow-green colour.

Guinea Pig Urine:  Contains porphyrins, which can fluoresce under UV light and may appear as a bluey-white to yellow-green color or sometimes as a pinky-red colour.

Hamster Urine:  Contains high levels of proteins that can fluoresce under UV light and may appear as a bluey-white to yellow-green colour.

Gerbil Urine:  Contains high levels of proteins that can fluoresce under UV light and may appear as a bluey-white to yellow-green colour.

Squirrel Urine:  Contains high levels of riboflavin, which can fluoresce under UV light and may appear as a bluey-white to yellow-green colour.

Rodent Hair:   Fluoresces blue-white.

Rodent Feces:   Some rodent feces can glow under UV light, because rodent feces will often contain high levels of phosphorus. The fluorescence appears as a blue-white glow under UV light.  However, it’s important to note that not all rodent feces will necessarily glow under UV light. The ability to fluoresce depends on the specific composition of the feces, as well as the intensity and wavelength of the UV light used.

Note:  There are many natural and artificial chemical substances and materials found in the home which will also fluoresce under UV light!

Pro Tip:   Always ensure batteries are fresh and have plenty of charge in them. Weak batteries = Weak results.

Pro Tip:  To test the strength of the invisible UV beam, shine it onto a piece of plain white paper or white fabric

Pro Tip:  When searching for stains, be sure to darken the search area as much as possible first.  Stains will NOT show up well in bright light / daylight, so its best to search for stains at night if possible.

Pro Tip:  When you find a stain trail, mark its location with chalk, tape or a pencil.  This way you’ll find the spot when the lights are back on.

Pro Tip:  Be sure to check on and around  feed sacks and stock boxes where rodent runways may have been established.

Pro Tip:  If you do find urine stains, it is important to clean them up as soon as possible. Urine can contain harmful bacteria that can make you or your animals sick. To clean up urine stains, you can use a commercial enzymatic cleaner. Be sure to follow the directions on the cleaner label.

Do not allow children to use this product unsupervised.

Remember. Safety first!  Do not shine torch beam directly into the eyes or at faces.