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Using the DLG in the rain

It’s late, it’s rainy, and you just want to get home. But don’t forget about safety, because rainy nights are when you most need good lighting. Fortunately, the Down Low Glow is suitable for use in the rain.

Down Low Glow on a rainy night.

Really the only thing you have to know about using the DLG in the rain is that the battery must be plastic-bagged. If you forget to do this, water will penetrate the power switch, causing corrosion. It won’t keep you from getting home in a pinch. But a few days later, if you’re unlucky, you’ll try to turn on your lights and nothing will happen. (If this happens to you, rock the switch back and forth 10-20 times, HARD! This usually breaks up any corrosion.

Once again, keep this from happening by sticking the battery in a ZipLock sandwich bag, then mounting as normal.

Enjoy and ride safe!

This year, we turned some serious energy towards waterproofing the DLG. We dunked and thrashed a dozen of our light tubes in a trash can recently to test how well the epoxy seals are doing at keeping moisture out. Well, the results weren’t perfect, but 10 out of 12 tubes were hermetically sealed. The others showed condensation inside that evaporated after the tubes were kept in a warm dry room for a few days. Keep in mind that these tubes were completey submerged and knocked around underwater. The abuse they saw is far worse than a rainy commute.

So, while the current level of waterproofing is far from perfect, it’s good enough for us to say “Go Ahead! Ride in the rain, while we research better water proofing techniques.” If you’re one of the unlucky customers with a DLG that has been penetrated by water, we’ll replace it, as long as it’s within the 1-year warranty.