Ceiling-mounted photoluminescent running man exit sign with right arrow under a retail store roof

Photoluminescent Exit Signs

Green running man exit signs, wayfinding strips and stair edge strips that glow on stored light when the power goes out. No electricity, batteries or bulbs at the sign. Supplied, audited and installed by Think Green Solutions.

What ArePhotoluminescent Exit Signs?

Photoluminescent running man exit sign above a blue steel door with the lights on
Photoluminescent exit sign glowing green in total darkness with no power or batteries

A photoluminescent exit sign absorbs light from your building's normal lighting, stores it, and glows when that light goes out. There is no electricity, battery, bulb or wiring at the sign to create its emergency glow, so a power failure or a tripped breaker does not leave the exit dark.

In Canada, photoluminescent exit signs and path marking are built and tested to CAN/ULC-S572, the national standard for photoluminescent and self-luminous exit signs and path marking systems, and the National Building Code calls for the green “running man” pictogram in place of the word EXIT.

Think Green Solutions supplies photoluminescent running man exit signs approved to CAN/ULC-S572 at the maximum 120-minute duration, rated to perform with as little as 2 foot-candles of light, and backed by the manufacturer's 25-year performance guarantee. We also supply wall wayfinding strips and stair edge strips, and handle the site audit and installation.

What We Supply and Install

Everything needed to mark the way out of your building, from the exit door back along the route.

  • Running man exit signs

    Green photoluminescent running man exit signs for exit doors, approved to CAN/ULC-S572 at the maximum 120-minute duration.

  • Directional exit signs

    Running man signs with directional arrows that point the way along corridors and at turns in the route.

  • Wall wayfinding strips

    Photoluminescent strips mounted along walls that outline the path to the exit when the lights go out.

  • Stair edge strips

    Photoluminescent strips on stair edges so each step stays visible in a stairwell that has gone dark.

  • Egress site audits

    A walk-through of your exits, existing signs and the lighting that charges them, and a recommendation for what to change.

  • Installation

    Our installation teams install the signs and strips. With no wiring to run, signs mount without an electrical connection.

From Site Audit to Installation

Photoluminescent signs only work if they are in the right places and kept charged, so every project starts with a walk-through of your building.

Installer on a ladder mounting a photoluminescent running man exit sign in a retail store
  • Walk the routes

    We check every exit, existing exit sign and path of travel, including corridors and stairwells.

  • Check the charging light

    We confirm that the normal lighting on each sign face is enough to keep it charged, and that it is not on a timer or motion sensor.

  • Recommend

    You get a plan for which signs to replace, where directional signs belong, and where wayfinding and stair strips will help.

  • Install

    Our installation teams install everything to the plan, so your building is marked from every exit door back along the route.

No Power.No Batteries. No Bulbs.

A traditional exit sign depends on electricity, wiring, backup batteries and lamps, all of which need upkeep and eventually replacement. A photoluminescent sign needs only the light already in your building.

  • No electrical connection

    No wiring, circuit or power supply at the sign, which simplifies new installs and replacements.

  • Nothing to burn out

    No bulbs, LEDs or backup batteries at the sign to fail or replace.

  • Glows when the power fails

    Stored light keeps the sign visible during a power failure, when an electrically powered sign would depend on its backup supply.

  • No radioactive material

    Unlike self-luminous tritium signs, photoluminescent signs glow from light they absorb, with no radioactive material to handle or dispose of.

Built tothe Canadian Standard

Photoluminescent running man exit sign with right arrow on a green and glow-yellow face
Wall-mounted photoluminescent running man exit sign above a commercial double exit door

CAN/ULC-S572 is the Canadian standard for photoluminescent and self-luminous exit signs and path marking systems. The current edition was published in 2017 and reaffirmed in 2022, and it is referenced in the National Building Code of Canada. Signs evaluated at less than the maximum viewing distance are marked with their rated viewing distance.

Since its 2010 edition, the National Building Code has called for pictogram exit signs, the green running man with directional arrows, in place of the word EXIT. The 2017 edition of CAN/ULC-S572 set the colour scheme as green on a white or lightly tinted background.

Photoluminescent signs need an external light source to charge. Some jurisdictions set a minimum light level on the sign face, such as 54 lux in Winnipeg, and some do not allow the charging light to be on an automatic timer. Requirements vary by province and municipality, so our site audit checks your building against the rules that apply to it.

Photoluminescent Exit Signs On the Job

Running man exit signs over exit doors, along back-of-house corridors and hung from open-truss retail ceilings, glowing on stored light with no wiring at the sign.

Contact us

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Tell us about your project and we'll get back to you. Based in Cambridge, Ontario, we run lighting projects for commercial and industrial clients across Canada and the United States. Active outage or failing fixtures? Call +1 (647) 381-3733 and talk to our experts

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FAQs Photoluminescent Exit Signs

Straight answers to the questions facility and property managers ask us about photoluminescent exit signs and path marking.

A photoluminescent exit sign absorbs light from a building's normal lighting, stores it, and glows when that light goes out. It needs no electricity, battery, bulb or wiring at the sign to create its emergency glow. In Canada, these signs are built and tested to CAN/ULC-S572. The signs we supply are approved to CAN/ULC-S572 at the maximum 120-minute duration and backed by the manufacturer's 25-year performance guarantee.

Yes, when they are built to CAN/ULC-S572 and installed where the building's normal lighting keeps them charged. CAN/ULC-S572 is the Canadian standard for photoluminescent and self-luminous exit signs and path marking, and the National Building Code of Canada references it. Provinces and municipalities adopt the code with their own changes, so our site audit checks the rules that apply to your building.

From the light already in your building. The sign absorbs light from your normal lighting and stores it, then glows when that light goes out. Codes expect the sign face to stay lit while the building is occupied. The signs we supply achieve rated performance with as little as 2 foot-candles (about 22 lux) of illumination. Local rules can ask for more: some jurisdictions set a minimum level, such as 54 lux on each sign face in Winnipeg, and some do not allow the charging light to be on an automatic timer.

No. There is no electricity, battery, bulb or wiring at the sign to create its emergency glow. That is why they keep working during a power failure and why there are no batteries or lamps at the sign to replace.

Yes. Fire codes require exit signs to be inspected so they stay visible, identifiable and unobstructed, and that applies to photoluminescent signs too. What changes is that there are no bulbs or batteries at the sign to fail or replace.

Both are covered by CAN/ULC-S572 and neither needs electricity. Self-luminous signs glow from tritium, a radioactive gas, so they are regulated as radioactive products with handling and disposal rules. Photoluminescent signs glow from light they absorb and contain no radioactive material.

The National Building Code has called for green running man pictogram signs since its 2010 edition, so many older buildings still have red EXIT signs from before that change. Whether you need to replace yours depends on the code that applies to your building. Our site audit checks your signs and tells you what to change.

Yes. Along with exit signs, we supply and install photoluminescent wall wayfinding strips and stair edge strips that outline the route to the exit when the lights go out. CAN/ULC-S572 covers path marking systems as well as exit signs.

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