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The Gel System

Oligomers

These products are normally associated with gel systems. They
are very similar to the monomer and polymer system. Gels are
supplied pre-mixed, are placed on the nail and cured under a
UV (ultra-violet) light for approximately two minutes. The
initiator in this system is the UV light.

Oligomers are also chains of molecules, but are shorter than
polymer chains. They allow the UV light to penetrate the gel so
that curing can take place.

Ultra violet light

The tubes in most nail lamps emit only UVA light to cure nails.
Tubes can vary between 5 and 9 watts and lamps usually have
1-6 tubes. There are many lamps available but most will only
give out 38-45 watts of UV which is not harmful to the skin. The
problems associated with light cured gels are that the light
must completely penetrate the gel to polymerise all of the
oligomers. This means that the product must be applied thinly
and exposed to the correct amount of UV otherwise there is the
risk of uncured product remaining on the natural nail bed. If the
wattage in the lamp is too high it could cause heat reactions on
the nail bed.

UV gel is more sensitive to oxygen than the liquid and powder
system, as oxygen inhibits the polymerisation of the surface of
the gel nail. UV gel will always have a sticky layer after curing
which needs to be removed before buffing or polishing the
nails.

The viscosity of gels varies greatly from one product to
another. Viscosity relates to the thickness of a liquid. A lower
viscosity gel is normally used to apply thin coats, whilst higher
viscosity gels are used for building or sculpting.

Take the following points into consideration when learning your
skills on the gel system:

  • The thicker the gel that is applied the fewer the layers that
    will be needed
  • Some gels will not hold shape for long
  • Thicker gels are harder to master
  • Thinner gels are self-levelling
  • Gels are more resistant to solvents
  • Gels retain their surface shine longer
  • Thicker layers will shrink more than thinner layers
Gel Nails