# Glowing "hot" coals ...



## LT Scare

I searched the site for all the key words I could think of but didn't find anything like this so here goes ...

First, want to give credit to someone named "Goldie" at Instructables . com for the basis of this idea. My changes are not earth shaking - more like adaptations to create a "heat" source for "cooking" up some goodies in cauldrons in our new Witches Coven.

Here is a pic of the final results in low light with Cauldons setting on the prop.


http://imgur.com/q7Y9GbW




*Materials:*

A "fire bed" shaped per your needs, made of anything from foam board to 1" plywood. Whatever suits your needs and how well you want it to hold up year after year. - Craft store or Hardware store
Several strings of lights to your choosing. I used one string of 150 Orange lights with a controller (button selects differnt flashing patterns), two strings of 50 orange lights, two strings of 25 purple lights and one string of 50 orange and purple (same bulb) lights. I think that last string was not necessary. - available anywhere - got programmable lights off of ebay, be patient there
Wiffle balls of as many different sizes as you can find. I found softbal sizes, hardball sizes, and golf ball sizes. I also used a few orange pingpong balls. The quantity will depend on your taste and the size of your fire bed. I suggest you buy one package of each size and add more later as you like. - most came from Walmart
Fire grate - optional dependent upon your application. I used four tree supports landscapers use to hold up a newly planted "small" tree. - Landscaping section of a large hardware store
A few Screws. - hardware store
One piece of 3/4" plywood about 12" x 14" (very optional). - hardware store or your scrap bin
A small bottle of acrylic craft paint in gray - think ashes. - Craft Store
Great Stuff expanding foam - my "fire bed" required alomst all of two cans. - hardware store

*Tools required. *
Something to cut your "Fire bed" to the size and shape for your application. Could be an exacto knife or a Utility knife for cardboard or foam board to a circular saw or jig saw for plywood shaping.
A good Hot Glue gun and lots and lots of sticks.
What ever you need to cut your grate if you use one. I use my sliding compound miter saw and a drill press (for the vericle supports), but you could get by with only a hand saw.
Screw driver

Steps:

1. Decide / cut to size and shape, your "fire bed." Keep in mind that the larger the "fire bed," the more components you will need, but the greater the impact, IMO. Also, I think the programmable lights really improve the affect but should NOT be used without some other lights staying on all the time.

For the picutured prop, I used a rectangular sheet of 1/4" plywood about 4' 6" long by 20" ... because that's what fit the intended display space.

2. If you intend to use a grate, determine where you want the verical supports and mark those locations on your bare "fire bed" material. Our plan required extra support in the middle where we have a "boiling" cauldron of eyeball soup brewing - filled with water and floating eyeballs. Water is heavy and could ruin the prop if the grate breaks. BTW the pics don't show this well because the water was low and the mist was high at the time.

3. Cut your wiffle balls in half. If you want your surface to be uneven, cut some balls at 3/4 of their height rather than half.

4. Spreadout the lights on the "fire bed" in a very irregular. Take care not to infringe upon the vertical support areas. I tried to group a good mix of the different featured lights as much as possible, but some remained by themselves and that's ok too. Have one of the cut wiffle balls handy to give you and idea of the space needed for the groupings.

Most crutial here is the placement of the control box for the programmable lights and the accessability of the male plug that will power the strings of lights. Try to have enough length to it that it can extend away from the prop to better hide the power source ( I didn't do this well on mine).

More in the next post.....


----------



## Baron Samedi

That looks very effective....


----------



## LT Scare

Step
5. Plug the lights in, to make certain that they all work properly prior to advancing to the next step. Be carefull in all the following steps, not to break any of the bulbs in any of the strings. 

6. Time for the glue gun. I like to use a pie pan as a resting place for the glue gun to localize the mess that you WILL make. You also might want to keep an old rag around to wipe the tip (double or tripple fold - that bugger is HOT) when it gets a bit too loaded up. 

Use the glue gun to librally adheare the wires of the lights to the "fire bed." Certainly not every wire needs to be glued down. Focus on gluing the clusters of lights to the board. Use one of the cut wiffle balls to assure the bundle will fit.

7. After the wires are in place, begin to hot glue the wiffle ball pieces over the lights. I prefer a very uneven "coal" surface, so I stacked wires in the center and put different sized and shaped wiffle balls nearly touching. Here the wiffle bals must be glued to the wires if they do't reach the "fire bed." As long as you use plenty of glue to anchor the balls and the lights to th "fire bed," you should follow whatever pattern you desire. 

Here is a close up of the corner where I mounted (hot glued) the light controller and you can see some of the wires and balls mounted in that area. You also see a couple parts of the grate setting in place.


----------



## LT Scare

Step:

8. Grate. There are lots of options here. 

*ALERT!! BE CAREFUL WHEN WORKING ON THESE ROUND POLES. BE CERTAIN TO SECURELY CLAMP EACH PIECE BEFORE STARTING ANY CUTTING OF ANY KIND - I AM NOT RSPONSIBLE FOR YOUR MISTAKES. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.*

a. If you don't want a grate to set a cauldron over the fire, skip this step entirely.​b. If you want a grate, you might choose to do this first, not 8th. Why? So that you can mount the veritcal supports prior to gluing any lights.​c. In my case, I cut the grate pieces while gluing the wires and screwed the verical supports to the plywood, prior to gluing the wiffle balls in place.​d. You might have a better / easier idea for a grate for your application​
Grate construction:
If you want a grate, you need to decide how high you want the horizontal grate from the foam covered wiffle balls. For my prop that was 6 inches.

As I mentioned earlier, I needed 4 landscape poles, three for the horizontal grates and one to be cut up for the veritical supports. 

The poles are about 2" wide. I mounted a 2 inch hole cutter into my drill press. I clamped one poll under the press so that the distance from the pole end to the shortest point the hole cutter hits the pole is 6". 

Drilling the hole should provide you with one complete support piece and create the top for another on the remainder of the pole. 

Use the saw to cut the pole at a 6" length - again from the shortest point of the hole cut. 

Drill another hole repeating the prior two steps until you have all the vertical supports you need. 

*Another option for those with no drill press / hole saw: *
Measure and cut, with your circular saw, one pole into 7 inch lengths. Then cut a one inch deep "V" at the top of each section. 

For my prop, the veritcal supports were screwed to the "fire bed" from the bottom after drilling small pilot holes from the top to assure correct placement.

Here is a pic of the prop with the verticals mounted and the horizontals trial sitting in place, before the expanding foam application. We are looking at the "back" of the prop here. Notice the end of the light strings, the female plug in the center at the back. Also at the back on the far right here, is the light pulse controller box and the male plug (out of the pic) for the lights.









9. If your vertical supports are now mounted, or if you are not going to have a grate, you are ready to apply the foam. This stuff is REALLY messy and sticky. It's best to wear disposable gloves and spread newspapers down the well beyond the outer edge of the "fire bed." 

If you have vertical supports, surround them with the thickest application of the foam. This to help bond the veritcals to the "fire bed." 

Elsewhere, cover the wires and wiffle balls "mostly" and "thinly." In other words, don't lay it on thick and don't try to cover every crack. But, make certain that the wiffle holes aren't open to view from the front. Seeing an occasional light directly through small openings in the foam is desirable to enhance the affect, but perfectly round holes ruin the authinticity of the prop. 

Do NOT over spray the EXPANDING foam. Also, apply it in spirts, not one long string of foam, or it will resemble intestines more than coals. 

Almost finished here. This is a flash pic that washes out the lights almost completely, but provides a good view of the post foamed prop. Yet to do... ashize the foam and add support that will hold about 4-5 gallons of watter.









Here is a no-flash pic of the illuminated prop prior to painting. Some of you might be tempted not to paint it.


----------



## LT Scare

Step:

10. Screw the cap off of the 2 fl oz, gray Acrylic Craft paint and pour about a half oz - a quarter of the bottle into a coffee cup or something similar. Add enough water to the paint to thin it without complete loss of color. Use a 1 to 1.5 inch cheap foam brush to hit the tops of all the foam. Do NOT try to cover every crack, valley and crevice in the foam. You want different levels of resistance for the escaping light. Just like the application of the foam, less is better with the paint. Mix more paint / water solution if you need it. 

I chose to use the paint undiluted on the control box and on the surface of the plywood - the "fire bed" - so that no plywood could be seen. Originally I had planned to hit parts of the foam with black and some parts with red paint. However, I decided that while this would enhance the daytime view of the prop, it would degrade the nighttime glow of the lights, so I stayed with the gray only paint

As with everything else about this project, do this to your taste, not mine. You have to be happy with the finished prop. 

Here is a flash pic that shows how sparce the foam is painted. That cente cauldron holds 4-5 gallons of water so under that cauldron is a rectangular 3/4" piece of plywood about 12" by 14 " that is screwed to each of the horizontal poles. This helps keep them together under the weight of the water and helps the cauldron's bottom stay in one piece  . 









No flash provides a pretty good comparison to the unpainted no flash pic in the last section.


----------



## Baron Samedi

Great Tutorial, LT Scare.
I think a lot of members will find a use for a version of this.

It's certainly one of the most realistic effects I've seen for hot coals.


----------



## Demon Dog

Excellent job, LT Scare! As the Baron said, very realistic. Thanks for posting this.


----------



## maleficent

This is a great tutorial LT! I think I could really do this one! I've been wanting to make fake coals or fire for my set up. This would be a great foundation for so many fire props. Thank you soooo much for posting it!


----------



## streakn

Wow, that's amazing. Thank you for the tutorial.


----------



## ChangedReality

That is AMAZING! I am definitely going to try and make one of these for this coming year! Thank you!


----------



## fravak

That is great! Thank you.


----------



## savagehaunter

great job on the tutorial.


----------



## Terra

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I am thinking of using this in a wall application. Question: What setting do you have the lights on?


----------



## Atum

It has a lot of applications, thanks for posting.


----------



## SpookyMuFu

what happens if a bulb blows out and kills the whole string of lights, how do you fix it?


----------



## LT Scare

Scott N. said:


> what happens if a bulb blows out and kills the whole string of lights, how do you fix it?


I used only strings with independently wired bulbs. If one burns out, the others stay lit. 

I'd have used all LEDs if I could have found a string of preprogrammed Orange LED lights.


----------



## LT Scare

Terra said:


> Thank you, thank you, thank you! I am thinking of using this in a wall application. Question: What setting do you have the lights on?


There are two or three settings that look "compatable" with the coals, but the best one, IMO, is the fade in / fade out setting.


----------



## SpookyMuFu

LT Scare said:


> I used only strings with independently wired bulbs. If one burns out, the others stay lit.
> 
> I'd have used all LEDs if I could have found a string of preprogrammed Orange LED lights.


theres no way to fix or replace blown bubs tho right? I didnt see where this was addressed in the post, just making sure I didnt miss something.

I think this would look good as a smoldering fireplace (which I might use it for  )


----------



## LT Scare

Scott N. said:


> theres no way to fix or replace blown bubs tho right? I didnt see where this was addressed in the post, just making sure I didnt miss something.
> 
> I think this would look good as a smoldering fireplace (which I might use it for  )


I chose to build my prop with no wires on the bottom and all of the wires and lights more or less sealed under the wiffle balls and the foam. I chose to use LOTS of lights. If so many were to burnout that the affect was diminished, I'd try to cut the foam away, replace the lights, and patch with new foam and paint. However, this prop will be lit up only for a few weeks, a few hours each night every year, so I'd expect the lights to last a long time.

That said, if the placement of your version of this prop is not flat on the ground, or if you choose to elevate it with a "frame" on the bottom, you could drill holes through "fire bed" and mount the lights from the bottom of the "fire bed," sticking each light throught the hole and under each wiffle ball. 


FWIW


----------



## StanFam3

OH MY!!! This rocks my socks off!!! Sooooooo cool! Glad you shared.


----------



## walkingcorpse

All good stuff, and cudos to everyone who takes the time to do a tutorial. I thought I'd share some tricks I've learned with faux hot coals. Unless your final product has to fit into a some sort of frame as LTScare did, there is really no need for a base. I laid a string of 150 orange lights onto 7mil clear plastic sheeting, forming a circle under my cauldron. I placed a dozen red and white whiffle balls around it and plugged about half the bulbs into them and spread the remaining bulbs evenly around the cauldron. I removed the cauldron and covered all balls, lights and cord with Great Stuff foam. When the top of the foam dried I carefully removed the clear plastic and let the bottom dry (upside down.) I then plugged in the lights and painted any area that didn't light up black. This method gives me the opportunity to replace burnt bulbs; randomizes the sizes and shapes of the coals; and gives a realistic glow along the edge as some of the bulbs create a downward glow onto my ground cover.Halloween Forum - walkingcorpse's Album: Old stuff - Picture


----------



## LT Scare

Thanks walking - another good application of the same basic "tech."

I should mention more about the prop that Goldie made that inspired this prop / tutorial.

Her prop was a piece of cardboard, with the top covered in tin foil. She poked holes through it and fed orange lights from the bottom. She then covered with wiffle balls and foam. It was shaped so that she could (dressed as a witch) lay in a wheelbarrow with her legs out front and torso up, and place the "coals" so that it appeared she was covered with coals in the wheelbarrow.

There are lots of good applications for this and I hope you guys will share them here with us all.


----------



## Zombie Machairodont

Thanks for the tutorial; looks like a great effect ! With the exception of a couple particularly excellent projection illusions, I tend to be unimpressed with simulated flames, so I'd much prefer to try this technique where applicable. It makes me want to try to recreate the burning fort effect on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland; I bet you could use the basic technique for larger settings.


----------



## silent night

this is awsome- add 1 more to the build!! thank you


----------



## Lonescarer

I can't wait to get started on this for next year. Really great tutorial.


----------



## LT Scare

Wow, glad that all of you like this. 

TIP: I suggest you start looking for the orange, controlled light strings right now. Last year it took me a couple of months to get a good price on them.

FWIW


----------



## darkpenguincowboy

Wow! The whole thing looks great! it reminds me of the Mummy ride at Universal, when the walls of the temple begin to glow like they are being heated up red hot, and it follows the car along the cattacomb. I always thought that was a really cool effect, and now I am tempeted to try it using this and some chasing LEDs programed to move slower. Thanks for the ideas!


----------



## Lonescarer

So, I'm putting together my shopping list and I can't seem to find a string of orange lights with a built-in controller. Can you tell us what company, etc. yours is? I looked at christmas light source, but they only had them without controllers and i couldn't find cheap controllers separate for non-LED strands.


----------



## LT Scare

This was definately the most difficult component to acquire. I watched new listings for searches of "orange light string" and "orange light control" and "holiday lighting chasing" on ebay for quite a while (months?) before I found one. 

I just checked and there are none listed right now, but if you have lots of time on your hands, this item Item number: 280450239869 is the same thing with red, blue, & green christmas bulbs. You could replace all 150 of these with orange lights if you are truely determined.

This also looks promising if you are electronically savvy- Item number: 140373296881 . It appears it could duplicate the control of several strings. 

Another, more expensive alterative is a place called NoveltyLights.com. They will make up all orange (I'd add in some purple if possible) rope lights and they offer some controllers that would work. BUT this looks costly to me. 

Be sure to exhaust the ebay option first. Save your search and search often. Sellers can see people looking for specialty items like this and if there are any left out there, they will eventually get listed. They might seem a bit pricey compared to a regular string of lights, but if you've explored the alternatives above as I had, you'l be certain to snap up the first on listed.

Less costly alternative that would still be a good affect - 
Several different shorter strings of orange lights flashing at diffent intervals mixed with some none flashing orange and purple lights. 

I've glued my light controller to the board with hot glue, but I'll check tonight to see if I can spot the manufacturer name and I WILL pass it along if I can find it.

Once again, you don't want all of your lights in sync. Some of my strings stay on all the time, some use a standard flashing bulb control, and others, of course are this hard to find controller string.


----------



## LT Scare

Just found this on ebay - Item number: 350311914320 

These are clear blulbs using what is described to be my controller. Clear might work well if you use some orange celophane and or orange plastic pieces to line the wiffle balls. JoAnn's should have something that would work for that.


----------



## BadTableManor

Love this idea. I remember seeing Goldie's original version of it as well. Both are excellent!


----------



## HauntDaddy

That is great!!! I'm making it


----------



## BeaconSamurai

I love this! I'm going to "steal" it for one of my displays, if you don't mind. I already have one cauldron with fire. Two alike is bad for the displays overall, so this will work great thanks, YOU ROCK!


----------



## foggyfathoms

great how to! i'm friends with goldie! shes great too!


----------



## rpick89

I found these on eBay, Item #270537238182 

Looks like this is exactly what you were describing for the lights, no?




LT Scare said:


> This was definately the most difficult component to acquire. I watched new listings for searches of "orange light string" and "orange light control" and "holiday lighting chasing" on ebay for quite a while (months?) before I found one.
> 
> I just checked and there are none listed right now, but if you have lots of time on your hands, this item Item number: 280450239869 is the same thing with red, blue, & green christmas bulbs. You could replace all 150 of these with orange lights if you are truely determined.
> 
> This also looks promising if you are electronically savvy- Item number: 140373296881 . It appears it could duplicate the control of several strings.
> 
> Another, more expensive alterative is a place called NoveltyLights.com. They will make up all orange (I'd add in some purple if possible) rope lights and they offer some controllers that would work. BUT this looks costly to me.
> 
> Be sure to exhaust the ebay option first. Save your search and search often. Sellers can see people looking for specialty items like this and if there are any left out there, they will eventually get listed. They might seem a bit pricey compared to a regular string of lights, but if you've explored the alternatives above as I had, you'l be certain to snap up the first on listed.
> 
> Less costly alternative that would still be a good affect -
> Several different shorter strings of orange lights flashing at diffent intervals mixed with some none flashing orange and purple lights.
> 
> I've glued my light controller to the board with hot glue, but I'll check tonight to see if I can spot the manufacturer name and I WILL pass it along if I can find it.
> 
> Once again, you don't want all of your lights in sync. Some of my strings stay on all the time, some use a standard flashing bulb control, and others, of course are this hard to find controller string.


----------



## BeaconSamurai

I just made my version yesterday. I'm building a Witch Crash. the witch is in a cauldron with only her feet showing. I already have another prop with a fake fire and wanted something different. I stumbled onto this post and boy I'm glad I did. Thanks, the step by step and pictures helped and now I have one cool looking set of glowing coals under my cauldron! YOU ROCK!


----------



## The Archivist

This is a perfect tutorial. I needed to find something for the Linus Lament scene I'm building this year and have been stressing on whether or not I should use the old flame bowl standby. Now that I've seen this, I now know what I'll do! Thanks.


----------



## Flynn Manor

Great tutorial! I saw Goldies version as well, but your explanation was much much better. Can't wait t o give this a try. Two questions: Are all the lights placed inside of the wiffle balls? How do you prevent the Great Stuff from covering the lights completely?


----------



## Morbiddious

Awesome prop. Great effect. I'm currenly in the process of building one right now. The only difference will be is that I am building a frame around mine with some simulated brick paneling. I meant to take some pics of the process, but as usual, I got to going and it just plain slipped my mind. Once complete, I'll post some pics of the finished product...that is if it works and doesn't suck ! You are correct on one thing, finding those orange lights is a real adventure. Ended up getting amber LEDs from Christmas Lights - Artificial Christmas Trees - Christmas Decorations - Christmas Store - Christmas Depot. Hope it all works out. Thanks again for a great idea !


----------



## Finn

Great job. Can't wait to start making mine. Going to go into a body parts BBQ.


----------



## Morbiddious

*My progress on my Pit*

Here is what I have so far. Slow process due to limited time to work on project. It's just a basic 1x2 / 2x2 frame, faux brick paneling for sides and a beveled 2x4 top rail. Still need to do the lights, balls and foam. Of course other details are in the works for this. I'll create an album and post more pics as available.


----------



## LT Scare

Flynn Manor said:


> Great tutorial! I saw Goldies version as well, but your explanation was much much better. Can't wait t o give this a try. Two questions:
> 1.Are all the lights placed inside of the wiffle balls?
> 2. How do you prevent the Great Stuff from covering the lights completely?


1. No. I tried to put most of the lights inside the wiffles or the ping pong balls, but some are just hot glued in the open on the base board.
2. If you've used the foam in the past, you know it expands quickly after being sprayed. However, you can quickly learn to guage how much it will expand as you move the can over the surface of the prop at various speeds. My goal while spraying, was to make certain that man made shapes were changed to irregular shapes. Cover, at least, the round edges of the holes and use the foam to make the ball outlines irregular. Some of the lights not in the balls are not covered by the foam and some are. Changing the intensity of the lights with foam and paint adds to the effect, IMO.


To all of you,
My job keeps me very busy during the first part of the year, so I haven't been able to get back to the forum much in 2010. I'm surprised to see so many posts and views of this thread and humbled by the kind remarks from so many of you. At the same time, I'm proud to have contributed in some small way to your haunts and the any added enjoyment you and your visitors will experience as your builds surpass my humble example of this effect.

Again, thank you for the kind remarks.

Happy Haunts my friends.

LT


----------



## The Archivist

I wonder how well this idea would hold up to miniaturizing? My latest incarnation of Linus' Lament is gonna be 3'x3' corner piece with a 6"bulge in front. I want to have a JoL pot over a stove with this glowing coal method. Hmmm...Should be interesting. I'll post pics when I'm done.


----------



## alucard

Looks great!


----------



## LT Scare

The Archivist said:


> I wonder how well this idea would hold up to miniaturizing? My latest incarnation of Linus' Lament is gonna be 3'x3' corner piece with a 6"bulge in front. I want to have a JoL pot over a stove with this glowing coal method. Hmmm...Should be interesting. I'll post pics when I'm done.


IMO, the more random the lights blink, the more effective the prop.

The only issue you will likely encounter with shrinking the amount of the area of this affect is the fact that fewer lights can be used. You probably won't want to use the controller lights with the multi fuctions (affects). Those are usually 100-150 lights - that might be too many for the area you have available. 

If you do use a controller light string you will have two chanllenges. First, you would have to leave the controller set to random flashing (it resets each time power is interupted) and still risk obvious patterning that would betray to prop. 
Second, I strongly encourage multiple strings that are not on a single controller to avoid as pattern flashing as much as possible. JMHO


----------



## LT Scare

Anyone interested in building this, or something like it should take a look at ebay item# 110550042653. 



> 100% BRAND NEW!
> High Quality,
> Durable indoor and outdoor decoration.
> 8 different ways of glimmering (combination,in waves,sequential,slo glo,chasing/flash,slow fade,twinkle,flash,steady on.)
> Low power consumption: 7W. a
> Total 100 LED bulbs.
> Plug in to controller is 65cm in distance
> Controller to the first led bulb is 25cm in distance
> Total length: 10m
> Color:Orange


Starting bid is $.99 !!

FWIW


----------



## LT Scare

Locating the lights to build this prop will be MUCH easier this year. I suggest you search all of ebay using the words "orange light string chasing" and check "Include title and description." 

I had to use old style glass minilights last year. Looks like there are lots of controller orange LEDs this year. I might just have to make some more of these.


----------



## icemanfred

anyone have a video of this effect?


----------



## DarkLore

LT Scare said:


> Anyone interested in building this, or something like it should take a look at ebay item# 110550042653.
> 
> 
> 
> Starting bid is $.99 !!
> 
> FWIW



With shipping at $5.60. Made in China.


----------



## lucky13

Thanks for posting this thread I saw this last year, but just haven't figured out how I'm going to apply it to my haunt. So happy to see all the different ideas in application.

I've been on the look out for inexpensive wiffle balls and am happy to report that the Dollar Tree has them (pack of 4) in the toy section.


----------



## LT Scare

icemanfred said:


> anyone have a video of this effect?


We have a vid, but frankly, I've never seen it. It is still on our HD camcorder from last October. My son was assigned to download it and put it on a DVD and into Youtube, but his priorities are not the same as mine. When he returns from a trip next week, I'll put the pressure on him to wrap this up and we'll post a link here.


----------



## icemanfred

Looking forward to it.
Thanks


----------



## Kammo

I LOVE your idea of using that for cooking cauldrons. I used kinda the same technique with a bbq grill.






Looks better in the dark...


----------



## jimmyzdc

This looks awesome! Probably the most realistic faux coals I have seen.


----------



## Kammo

LOL i hear ya LT. Im glad Im the one in charge of that or else I would never get anything up.. lol
Something I have found looks really cool on these is if you use a florescent starter in line with the lights it will flicker randomly and give it a nice "air on the coals" look...


----------



## Lynn

This is a fantastic effect. Why does my list alway continue to get longer even though I have been working my tail off to get through it! OH !.... I know!...... its stuff like this that I cant resist. I just need to turn my head away.


----------



## Kammo

HAHAHA i know what you mean Lynn.. You just have to stop checking new threads here.. But I think we all know that is never gonna happen. That is why I have 3 houses worth of Halloween props at my house every year... Working on 4 heheheh....


----------



## LT Scare

A member sent me an email asking about using LED lights (their intensity) and mixing them with minibulb lites. Here's the reply I sent ....

I think that the LEDs will work great and add a longer life to the prop. Wish they had been available last year when I made mine. They're not only available now, they're cheaper than my mini bulb lites with the controller were!

Mixing LED and bulbs should be better. Think about a dying fire in your fireplace after the flame is gone. There are hotter spots and cooling spots with lots of variation in intensity and flickering. I added some purple lights and some red along with the orange in the prop in the tutorial. 

To me, the more irregular you can make the blinking lights, the better the effect, so multiple strings with different sequences would be great.

The great advantage of this prop is that any light you think is too intense or if you don't like the color of a light, you can mute by adding more foam, or hide completely by using more paint on the foam. It's hard not to get great effects from this prop formula, IMO.


----------



## Hoodoo_Hermit

That's amazing! Thanks for sharing this


----------



## 4ToUov

Lynn said:


> This is a fantastic effect. Why does my list alway continue to get longer even though I have been working my tail off to get through it! OH !.... I know!...... its stuff like this that I cant resist. I just need to turn my head away.


hahaha co-sign on that!!


----------



## halloween_sucks_in_the_uk

I love this idea, I saw the one instructables.com called Goldie's Toxic Waste Barrels and Goldie's Bubbling Halloween Cauldron. 

They had a skeleton in a barrel one lit up by glowing foam, reminded me of the return of the living dead movie.

Yours look very realistic.


----------



## LT Scare

Thanks Everyone for the kind comments. 

My son has chopped up a vid of last year's finished prop, but his editing software won't compile the bits in the correct sequence. I'm looking for some affordable software that can do the job. Maybe we can get the vid posted before the upcoming Halloween!


----------



## jpbaily1

When I built mine I used the bottoms & tops of plastic soda bottles (cuz I'm cheap) & they worked great.

I placed it under my skeleton which was tied to a rotisserie per say.

GREAT EFFECT & write up!


----------



## jrmullens

I like the idea of the plastic soda bottles instead of the wiffle balls. Now I can get started. I'm going to build one about 4'x6' and place it in the middle of the hallaway of the haunt. With a grate over the top painted yellow and orange. Probably hide some space heaters in the walls pointed at it.


----------



## LT Scare

jpbaily1 said:


> When I built mine I used the bottoms & tops of plastic soda bottles (cuz I'm cheap) & they worked great.
> 
> I placed it under my skeleton which was tied to a rotisserie per say.
> 
> GREAT EFFECT & write up!


That's a good alternative. Just remember that unless you are using all LED lights, don't "seal" the lights to the board. You need to leave some openings for the heat to get out. 

I bought some video editing software and my son promises to have a video available before the end of the weekend. However, he says the cameraman displays no shooting talent at all, so don't expect much. I hope his editing skills are better than my shooting. Regardless, he painted himself into a corner. Now he is committed to shoot a good vid of this year's haunt.


----------



## Die N Rott

Thanks so much for this tutorial. This is exactly what I need for my witch section this year.


----------



## obcessedwithit

I have every thing ready to with this but I want to cut the base in a circle with the emtpy hole in the middle to set one of the heavy old timmey metal cauldrons in, just hope time allows, me, this a great tut....thanks abunch


----------



## LT Scare

My son is busy with school work and helping me with the haunt, so I don't when he'll have a vid ready for this thread. 

Glad you folks are finding ways to work this idea into your haunts. 

Please post some pics so that we can all enjoy your handiworks.


----------



## Autopsy

Hey LT, thanks a ton for the post. I just recently found this website. Until this year, I had been solely looking at one website. I've been throwing halloween parties for the last 13 years for my family. Started out for a b-day / hallo party, but after a 2 year break, they've asked me to do it again this year! However, they said to take the gloves off! SO! I've been bustin tail to get new props built (sold all my stuff 2 years ago when they told me they didn't want to do it anymore) 

I will use your idea, hopefully I can do it justice, and I'll send the "props" your way! I have a few artistic people that'd be very interested in seeing it. I'll be sure to give credit where credit is due. 

Thanks again, and I've already bought all my Good Stuff foam (about 12 cans lol, not all for this prop), boards and all my lights except orange with controller. I may have to do without the controller this year. I'll be sure to post pics when I start on it and finish it.

~{Autopsy}~


----------



## Lynn

I found orange lights with controller in Ebay..... Fairy lights... They are LED so I hope they work out fine. Havent received them yet. We'll see how the color looks.

They were pretty cheap too! $6.50 per set of 100 lights.


----------



## Autopsy

I went ahead and bought 2 strings of 100, LED's for $12 shipped. All I could find, but no controller. I can at least use them on another prop. If I find some at a retail store, I can post on here and anyone wanting them, if you have paypal, can just reimburse me and I'll pick them up for you. 

~{Autopsy}~


----------



## LT Scare

Autopsy said:


> Hey LT, thanks a ton for the post. I just recently found this website. Until this year, I had been solely looking at one website. I've been throwing halloween parties for the last 13 years for my family. Started out for a b-day / hallo party, but after a 2 year break, they've asked me to do it again this year! However, they said to take the gloves off! SO! I've been bustin tail to get new props built (sold all my stuff 2 years ago when they told me they didn't want to do it anymore)
> 
> I will use your idea, hopefully I can do it justice, and I'll send the "props" your way! I have a few artistic people that'd be very interested in seeing it. I'll be sure to give credit where credit is due.
> 
> Thanks again, and I've already bought all my Good Stuff foam (about 12 cans lol, not all for this prop), boards and all my lights except orange with controller. I may have to do without the controller this year. I'll be sure to post pics when I start on it and finish it.
> 
> ~{Autopsy}~


Glad to help. I just searched ebay for "red LED bulb string control" and got 200+ hits. Listed first is a buy it now for $6. Wish these were around last year when I made my prop. 

The same search for Orange bulbs returned only 10 hits, but the first is a buy it now for $10 (100 bulbs).

Searching without the word "control" for purple lights will return over 200 items. At least one of which is a 100 lights WITH a controller for $.99 with FREE Shipping. 

The bad news - these are_ probably _all coming directly from China and will take about 2 weeks or so to get here. You might find some that are already here in the US, but those will cost more. Catch 22


----------



## OctART

Hey I just thought of an idea,when looking at the pic's .......I figure I'll try to use a hair dryer to increase the CRACKS in the foam when I make mine .
I'd like to share my idea in case some one is ready to try it before I am >>>I just had surgery on my right wrist but with a little luck I'll be back to it and I'll post MY pic's to show the effect


----------



## kevin242

Great effect! Is there anything you can't make with great stuff?


----------



## Autopsy

FYI, I JUST finished foaming mine. I only used 1 can. For a longer distant look, I left some gaping gaps. What I did different. (My cam wasn't charged yet and I was anxious to start, sorry no pre pics)

1. Keep in mind, if you've never done this... the light WILL ambient THROUGH the foam! So, don't be afraid to use the foam!

2. Spotting the foam is key, like he said.

3. I only had access to Ping Pong balls. We grouped 3 at a time. 

3.B. If you DON'T have Ping Pong balls OR Wiffle balls... no fear. I'm sure SOMEONE around you has WalMart bags, amirite? layer down about 2 full bags. I wouldn't triple layer. As some of mine has, half of the glow in mine, is the lights being under those WM Bags. These bulbs don't get hot, and will be plastic safe. My foam is still WET! So, I'm pretty sure mine won't come out looking like intestines. But, at least let the foam drip from the tip before you sling it to the next spot, it will most likely fall in mid movement and drop a string. String foam is bad, mkay

For the record, I will be painting mine as well. I want that ash look for up close. But I am trying to keep it somewhat brighter so it can be visable from the party tables we're going to have at the end of the shop.


----------



## spicybad

First of all, I'd like to thank LT and Goldie for the idea. I love you guys and love this forum. There is so much talent here and everyone is willing to share, THANKS.

anyway, after making my cauldron, I decided to have a go at making the hot coals in this thread. I made them to surround my cauldron and just need to let them dry completely then paint a few highlights. Here's a few progress pics.



I cut a thin bit of plywood to surround the cauldron.




Then cut plastic golf balls in half and used hot glue to attatch them and red lights to the plywood





Next I put on the expanding foam, let it dry a while,
and because it started to get dark, couldn't wait to test it out .





cheers, Rick.


----------



## LT Scare

Wow guys! Great Jobs and great applications. 

It's great to see more uses of this technique

BTW, (re-run here), the reason I very lightly painted the tops of the coals was so that it would look better during the day and early evening. Using a watered down gray acrylic (joann's or michael's) will, OMO, provide a decent daytime look without significantly affecting the effectiveness of the the prop.

It takes more time to gather the materials than to make the prop. Hope more of you give it a shot and post pics for all of us to enjoy!


----------



## Kammo

Ok so I made this prop last year when I decided to keep an old bbq grill I had set out to go to the dump. Also figured out if you paint all the foam with black then chrome silver spray paint, it really looks like hot coals.









Check out my "ROASTED" page here to see how I did it... you might want to also
http://www.kammoslair.info/Roasted/Roasted.htm



.


----------



## obcessedwithit

spicybad said:


> First of all, I'd like to thank LT and Goldie for the idea. I love you guys and love this forum. There is so much talent here and everyone is willing to share, THANKS.
> 
> anyway, after making my cauldron, I decided to have a go at making the hot coals in this thread. I made them to surround my cauldron and just need to let them dry completely then paint a few highlights. Here's a few progress pics.
> 
> 
> 
> I cut a thin bit of plywood to surround the cauldron.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Then cut plastic golf balls in half and used hot glue to attatch them and red lights to the plywood
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Next I put on the expanding foam, let it dry a while,
> and because it started to get dark, couldn't wait to test it out .
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> cheers, Rick.


thanks for the post , this is the way I want to do one as well......


----------



## gooosehunter

I use real fire. Everyone loves it. This year, I will make one of these. Incredible! Thank you!!!

Dave
Norfolk, Virginia


----------



## LT Scare

I'm jealous. Real fire is not an option here ...


We're on a small lot on the side of a hill and all of our haunt is scene setters/6mil plastic sheeting over 2x4s and PVC fencing. The heat of a real fire would melt walls ... at a minimum.
So Cal is all fire hazzard country. We aren't even allowed private fireworks. An open fire of any kind would bring authorities quickly ... as it should here.


----------



## Lynn

OK got my lights yesterday..... they are supposed to be orange... they look more yellow. I am hoping I can make it work out though.


----------



## jpbaily1

The yellow should work.

If you do not like the look paint the faux fire orange & red.


----------



## LT Scare

Lynn, I suggest you get a couple of more small strings. At least one of red to place near the yellowish-orange you have, and if you can find a purple it would also help.

If you look at a dying fire you'll see much more than just orange.

FWIW


----------



## Lynn

I have some purple lights already..... So maybe a string of red would offset the yellow a little.

I thought about using some orange paint to add some color to the coals, but maybe I will try some red lights first.

Thanks!


----------



## LT Scare

IMO, the paint will only be seen during the day. Unless you are using some transluscent paint, any paint will tend to block or reduce light through the dried foam.

BTW, you can get orange ping pong balls pretty cheap - not sure, but I think I got them at walmart ... maybe Sport Chalet. I cut them in half and placed them around the prop. The idea is to vary the color coming through. 

The worst result would be a single uniform color at night. This would make it look very phony. 

Varying the thickness of the foam also helps change the "texture" of the light making it more real looking - JMHO


----------



## Kammo

If your going to use 2 light stings, put a flicker circuit on both of them and watch the magic... it looks like real coals!


----------



## LT Scare

Absolutely! It's best when the multiple strings blink at different intervals.


----------



## eVilcreations

This would go quite nicely underneath my rotisseried corpse.....

Very nice post, thank you for the write-up!!!


----------



## jpbaily1

The painted foam worked very well for me.

Just me 2 cents.


----------



## Lynn

The 2 orange strings have controllers on them.... even though they turned out to be yellow  
So I should be ok with the red and purple strings being steady on right?


----------



## vsweet

Awesome! Great tutorial, I will be trying something very similar to this for my "Hell on Earth" Halloween party this year


----------



## LT Scare

Lynn said:


> The 2 orange strings have controllers on them.... even though they turned out to be yellow
> So I should be ok with the red and purple strings being steady on right?


It would be OK, but the affect is better (IMO) if they at least blink on and off. Most strings come with that ability. 

There is no rythem in a dying fire, so the more caos with the lights, the more realistic.

Iif the red and purple can't even blink, be sure to place a yellow bulb right next to each of the other colors. This might fool the eye into seeing more activity than is actually there.


----------



## ScareWorks

Great tutorial. Maybe I can finally put to use the many plastic Easter egg halves I have instead of using wiffle balls. Thanks.


----------



## LT Scare

ScareWorks said:


> Great tutorial. Maybe I can finally put to use the many plastic Easter egg halves I have instead of using wiffle balls. Thanks.


Those would be good for LED lights, but if you use incondescent, be sure to poke holes in them (hot icepick ?) to let the heat out.


----------



## sindy

I couldn't find Wiffle balls, So i used a calinder(plastic) it worked great for a little firepit. thanks for the idea.


----------



## Autopsy

Funny, my lights have no HEAT* (fixed) at all. I only used a few ping pong balls and plastic bags. 

I need to post pics of mine since painting. It looks more 3dish now. I like it a lot better since painting it.

I saw someone say that painting wasn't necessary, I think it is. It gives SO MUCH depth to it. Paint all of the high spots, just enough to block the light and the effect will truly be, heat underneath.


----------



## jpbaily1

Mine looked ridiculous before painting.


----------



## gooosehunter

I made mine the other night and it turned out great. My wife thought I was nuts until I showed her the next day. I still have to add the paint. 

thank you for this idea!

Dave
Norfolk, VA


----------



## gooosehunter

I turned mine into a grill and I am adding body parts for grilling. I was thinking of a great idea. How would I add a BBQ aroma to the area? It would be insane to have a grilled hamburger smell lingering in the air. 

Dave
Norfolk, VA


----------



## LT Scare

How about an electric room deodorizer, but replace the perfume with a small piece of hamburger and some BBQ sauce. 

Those new room deodorizers use very low heat to force evaporation of the purfume. The meat might spoil before it spreads the BBQ smell. Might be worth a try.


----------



## lorod

Man, that is cool! Thanks for posting a tutorial on this.


----------



## JensPlay

Thank you so much for a great and easy to follow tutorial. I just took your directions and built my own version, but much smaller. Mine will be on the table as a centerpiece like there is a burning fire in the middle of my kitchen table. 

This is the first time I have ever built anything completely by myself. To really make it easy on myself since I am a complete beginner to building anything...instead of the landscaping poles that you used, I used PVC pipe and painted it black. Mine is roughly 2.5 feet long and 5 inches tall. 

Thanks again!


----------



## Spectremaster

gooosehunter said:


> I turned mine into a grill and I am adding body parts for grilling. I was thinking of a great idea. How would I add a BBQ aroma to the area? It would be insane to have a grilled hamburger smell lingering in the air.
> 
> Dave
> Norfolk, VA


TWO Words........... Liquid Smoke...........

Maybe mixed with fog juice?...Maybe not.

How about Liquid Smoke mixed with water. then into a Ultrasound humidifier?


----------



## Beatlejuice

Found these at Sams Club today - 40 LED with controller, very bright and nice combination of 16 effects - should work well. $9.98 / box can probably mix with a string of the smaller, cheaper, less bright, always-on lights (mixing in a few purple) for a more random look. Even better, as they are LEDs you won't need the wiffle balls to dissapate the heat - right?












Thanks for sharing this tutorial - yours looks great.


----------



## LT Scare

Beatlejuice said:


> Found these at Sams Club today - 40 LED with controller, very bright and nice combination of 16 effects - should work well. $9.98 / box can probably mix with a string of the smaller, cheaper, less bright, always-on lights (mixing in a few purple) for a more random look. Even better, as they are LEDs you won't need the wiffle balls to dissapate the heat - right?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Thanks for sharing this tutorial - yours looks great.


Sounds like you've got a real good mix for the lights - should be very effective.

Regarding skipping the wiffle balls, you may not need them to get the heat out, but they also create "pockets of light" that might not be achievable by just applying foam. Can't say for sure, because I've not tried this without the wiffle and ping pong balls.


----------



## Beatlejuice

Good point LT - It's usually a combination of effects that looks the most random and natural. Thanks again for a very helpful tutorial. I'm incorporating it into a witch scene.


----------



## Kammo

Ive never used anything but just foam.. Mine came out completely realistic.. I have used my BBQ 2 years now having it running for many many hours and never had any problem with heat from the wallgreens orange lights that I put in it. Plus, its outside in the cold and I don't know about anybody else and where they live but here in NM it gets a bit on the chilly side so It stays nice and cool all night.. Just my 2 cents.
Also, if you haven't seen mine here it is again..

http://www.kammoslair.info/Roasted/Roasted.htm


----------



## LT Scare

Looks Good Kammo. 

Guess the balls would be optional. Looking at Kammo's coals, I think the balls are probably better for a large "fire" like mine because the same light source covers a larger area, but for a smaller area, his looks pretty good without the balls.

Anymore pics out there of this application??


----------



## Kammo

Hmmmmm. Very true LT, I guess if your doing a large area then the balls would fill in a lot of space and not have to use soo much foam.. and it would also raise the coals up higher..


----------



## cryptoid

*glowing coals--lighting*

FLICKER BULBS--is what you need to make a realistic looking embers--go to the craft store and buy a string of sockets made for night light bulbs and a bunch of FLICKER BULBS--position them under the foam and you will be amazed at the effect.i built a fire pit for my gemmy witch`s cauldron out of foam and FLICKER BULBS--THE GLOW FROM THE BULBS EVEN REFLECTED OFF THE BOTTOM OF THE CAULDRON--AMAZINGLY REALISTIC--TRY IT


----------



## LT Scare

Flicker bulbs are costly, made of glass and would generate heat (maybe not too much though?). 


The glass issue concerns me even more than the cost. 
I'd think that you would need to design in the capability of replacing each bulb in case it broke or burned out. 
LEDs and even mini lights would have such long lives and there would be so many, that there should be no need to ever replace them. 
If the storage of your props is as challenging for you as it is for me, the need to minimize fragility is important. 
The flickers create more of a fire affect than a hot coal affect. Maybe mixing some flickers into a coal prop would look cool

I would like to see a pic of your Flicker set up, bet it looks cool.


----------



## Kammo

I would LOVE to see some video and pictures of this "flicker" bulb made into coals...


----------



## cryptoid

*glowing coals*

the flicker bulbs don`t generate heat if they did my gemmy witch would have burned to the ground last year and they also don`t cost a lot,i think i paid $1.00 for two nightlight sized bulbs at the craft store. i also designed it so the bulbs can be easily replaced.i`ll try and post some pictures.


----------



## cryptoid

*glowing coals*

see attached pics of glowing coals, if they come thru?


----------



## cryptoid

*glowing coals*

one more--


----------



## Kammo

OK, that makes more sense... That looks really great.. might have to give that one a go...
Thanks for the pics, makes a world of difference when I can see it..


----------



## Smiter

Thank You. Very helpful instructions for a fantastic prop!


----------



## cryptoid

*hot coals*

three more pics of cauldron fire--notice the power strip--there are three seperate strings of sockets there,you can wire them all together or just plug them into a power strip--the blocks of wood keep the bulbs from getting damaged--dont forget the foil under the bulbs--hot glue secures it all together on 1/4 inch plywood--looks so real you`ll want to warm your hands next to it!! -- thanks--cryptoid


----------



## moosecat

*Hot Coals*

Really looks great. I,m trying to make a fake haunted tree. I,m using a real tree to make the mold for bark. Using liquid latex. I,ve got the mold making process down pat but, cant seem to find the right material to put in the mold for making the actual bark. Any suggestions out there? I,m new to this site.


----------



## moosecat

*hot glowing coals*

Best design that I,ve seen for coals. What kind of foam did you use?


----------



## Autopsy

I likes. I'll have to wait till next year though


----------



## LT Scare

moosecat said:


> Best design that I,ve seen for coals. What kind of foam did you use?


"Great Stuff" spray foam available at Home Depot. This stuff is REALLY messy.
My tips on its use for those of you as clutzy as me:

Spread a plastic drop cloth before you start.
Wear old clothes and shoes that you don't care if they get permentantly messed up. I suggest long sleeves.
Wear disposable gloves. 
If you plan to spray the foam with your right hand, put oil all over the glove of your left hand. This will allow you to touch and (limited) shape the foam without having it stick to your glove. 
For most applications, an easy touch on the "trigger" of the foam can is best - NOT a "wide open throttle."
Paint thinner / remover works ok for limited clean up. It will not remove all the foam from clothes, but cleans skin just fine.
Be careful where you step - durring the application and after.

FWIW


----------



## cryptoid

*hot coals*

great stuff foam--you have to be crafty with it,small amounts is usually all you need because it expands.i craft it the way i want it right out of the can then add to or cut some away as needed.


----------



## moosecat

*foam*

Thanks alot for the tip. I build alot of facades and static pieces i.e. columns etc. out of styrofoam but I,ve yet to try the coals. I,ve been trying to figure out how to do it. You,re's is the the best I,ve seen so far. Can,t wait to try it. Thanks again.


----------



## OctART

*my take on it...*

O.K so I tried out the use of a hair dryer to see if I could improve on the CRACKS.....but to no avail,although it is a great way to move it around.

I then let dry and started to paint it .....but not with acrylic as was suggested.

I sprayed black on the sides and just hitting the tops of the foam from the out side in direction...(I made a circle for a cauldron). 
Then I sprayed SPECKLE STONE and both of these melted the foam perfectly and the speckle stone in grey is a great match to ASHES.

no pic's tonight but proly tomaly

Donovan


----------



## OctART

K So heres the few pic's I took .......

I drilled 1"holes ............easy !!

Then I threaded lights into the holes (orange and purple LED)









Covered the holes with half wiffel balls covered them with foam ....hit it with the hair drier ....let it dry and hit THAT with spray paint ,,,,,,as the post before stated





















I have to thank the people and the support of larry's site for all the help...

More to come.
Donovan


----------



## moosecat

Thanks again. I made a cauldron out of styrofoam. I glued it into a big block and carved it out. It,s 30" tall by 34" wide. After carving it I dented it up a bit to make it look like it was hammerd. In the bottom I put in a coffee can for dry ice and put in an aquarium air pump so it would sound like it,s bubbling. A bbq grate above that and thats where I put the candy. Works great! Now that I,ve seen your dir,s for coals it,ll be that much better.


----------



## Spectremaster

I Started mine this weekend. Ill post pictures and video as soon as i can. Thanks for the instructions.


----------



## LT Scare

Great job Donovan, looks really good!



OctART said:


> K So heres the few pic's I took .......
> 
> I drilled 1"holes ............easy !!
> 
> Then I threaded lights into the holes (orange and purple LED)
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Covered the holes with half wiffel balls covered them with foam ....hit it with the hair drier ....let it dry and hit THAT with spray paint ,,,,,,as the post before stated
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I have to thank the people and the support of larry's site for all the help...
> 
> More to come.
> Donovan


----------



## marigolddesigns

Awesome prop!! thank you to everyone who shares ideas here!! I'm hoping to come up with something unique to give back!!


----------



## WHIT

If you are looking for amber/orange twinkle lights this co just got them in on Wens http://www.christmas-treasures.com/Lights/MiniaturexmasLight.htm

part # Item Sku: 3140AMBER-ORANGE

I have had an insane time finding them..

Hope this help some 

Whit


----------



## LT Scare

WHIT said:


> If you are looking for amber/orange twinkle lights this co just got them in on Wens http://www.christmas-treasures.com/Lights/MiniaturexmasLight.htm
> 
> part # Item Sku: 3140AMBER-ORANGE
> 
> I have had an insane time finding them..
> 
> Hope this help some
> 
> Whit


These would be quick to arrive, but at $22 for Orange glass bulbs with a controller - that's a bit stiff.

If you can wait a week or two (next Halloween) just log onto ebay and search "orange led string". For $6 you get a 32ft string of 100 lights with an 8 function controller. 

Change the search color to purple and you get the same string in purple for $8. 

The down side, as I said, is that shipping will take about two weeks.


----------



## Xane

I just bought a strand of 60 orange LEDs from Big Lots for $4.88 on sale. They had a ton left. However, they don't twinkle. I'm one of those people who can see the flickering AC hum in LEDs which drives me nuts, so it'll twinkle for -me- but not for people who don't see it. I'm debating rigging up a controller but that would make it flash, not twinkle Maybe if I use 2 strands so that they flash out of sync...


----------



## LT Scare

Xane said:


> Maybe if I* use 2 strands so that they flash out of sync.*..


That would look great - three even better, if your prop is large enough to justify 180 lights.


----------



## Xane

Ten years ago I'd say that would start a *real* fire. With LEDs, the instructions say I can wire up to 41 strands at once!

Unfortunately I only wanted to make one small pile of coals for my misting cauldron. My idea was to make it on a piece of plywood or cardboard, use anything I can find to make it uneven, then drape a piece of clear thick vinyl from the Wal-mart fabric department over everything, then spray the Great Stuff over that. That way the lights are removable and changeable. So I'll probably wind up just using 1 strand and leave it in constant-on mode. If I get ambitious I might make a bigger prop.


----------



## LT Scare

Separate subject ... yet related. Our Kitchen and adjacent TV room has approximately 13 "ceiling cans" which started out with spotlights. The incondescent bulbs gobbled electricity and raised the temp of the rooms considerably. Focusing on the cost I installed transformers and switched the cans to smaller Halogen spots. Cost went down but heat probably got worse. 

All but a couple of the Halogens are now replaced with 60 or more LED bulbs running off the transformers sucking up pennies of electricity a month, not tens of dollars and they add NO HEAT. The initial cost is high, but they should last forever ... er ... longer than I'll need to worry about them anyway.

FWIW


----------



## Angelique_NM

That's such a fantastic prop and tutorial LT Scare 

I wanted to make a version of this but I improvised on whatever was around. I did find those wiffle balls though in the store. I made a small round version for a cauldron witch. I used a plastic bakery packet which had had donuts in, wiffle balls, tissue paper, napkins, scrunched up paper from catalogues, a piece of cardboard from a box, pva glue and a string set of battery operated red leds. I haven't finished the "ash" details on it yet and it won't be waterproof but I think it does the job 

angelique_nm


----------



## LT Scare

Angelique, sounds great. Show us some pics!


----------



## Angelique_NM

*Glowing Coal Pit*

This is my attempt at the glowing coal pit. It was quick and pretty cheap as the only thing I had to buy were the wiffle balls. I intended that only the lumps of coal would be glowing, like a fire pit that was slowly cooling off. I think it turned out okay and everyone who visited our yard haunt seemed to appreciate it so that was good 

The glowing coal pit was used with the cauldron witch, we'd intended on making a witch prop but ran out of time and bought a witch prop from Toys R Us when Halloween items were marked down by 50%  This is the coal pit with the camera flash on Halloween night:










The cauldron was a pot from a pot plant on a chain then attached to a tripod made from twigs. I spray painted the pot minutes before I put it out on Halloween night, the same with the glowing coal pit. I'd like to add some more "ash" detail later from incense ash. This is taken without the flash on Halloween night:










and finally with the camera flash on of the witch and her brew:










I'd also wanted to make a similar prop to the glowing coat pit for the witch's green glowing brew but in the end I just put a string of green leds in the pot and covered it in white tissue paper lol

angelique_nm


----------



## LT Scare

Great job!


----------



## chop shop

That is totally fantastic!! Of the creative chart....im so doing this.


----------



## One eyed Mick

That turned out great.....nice job.....!


----------



## LT Scare

A year of storeage outside didn't seem to hurt the coals this season.


----------



## padave29

*Nice Rocks!*

Hey, nice coals! How'd you make them?


----------



## LT Scare

padave29 said:


> Hey, nice coals! How'd you make them?


You're kidding, right? - go to the first post on this thread.


----------



## zukeeper

I've searched kettle and cauldron and coming up empty. How are you guys getting the glowing smoky effect inside the cauldrons ?? I assume waterproof lights and mixing something in the water ??
Yes I am a lurker , but my mother in law bought a house so I will have a yard to work with next year ( I live deep in the country , no tots here ) so I'll be posting more ( asking more questions lol )


----------



## Frankie's Girl

zukeeper said:


> I've searched kettle and cauldron and coming up empty. How are you guys getting the glowing smoky effect inside the cauldrons ?? I assume waterproof lights and mixing something in the water ??
> Yes I am a lurker , but my mother in law bought a house so I will have a yard to work with next year ( I live deep in the country , no tots here ) so I'll be posting more ( asking more questions lol )


Most likely a fog machine hooked up to tubing leading into the cauldron, (or put directly inside) and a string of lights inside the cauldron itself. That's what I do. No water involved.


----------



## Xane

Either that or one of those ceramic disc mist machines with color cycling LEDs. The mist output is very low but enough for a medium cauldron.


----------



## cryptoid

*fog for cauldron*

SEE ATTACHED PICS of some examples of mist makers for cauldrons--youll have to run power wire thru the back of the cauldron and put a bowl of water inside and near the top of the cauldron.the leds change colors on most misters and most are pretty affordable--shop around


----------



## zukeeper

awesome , thanks everybody !!


----------



## Xane

Remember that the ceramic disc mist makers also make a Huge Mess[tm]. Unlike a fog machine, the mist is basically -real- fog, and will quickly soak whatever you put it in. So you wouldn't want to put it into a papier-mâché prop.


----------



## Hauntcast

Simple and effective. Great tutorial.


----------



## bamtunebam

Nice job with the coals! A simple, yet realistic display. 

Thank you for the post. I'll have to give it a go.


----------



## Boohorn

I definitely want to try this one this year!


----------



## LT Scare

I promise I'm not getting any commission or kickback, but I can't emphasize enough, how easy and cheap the led lights are on ebay. I searched ebay for "red LED bulb string" and got 300+ hits. Some are with controls, some not so look closely. You want the white box with the single button that toggles through several different affects. First one I found today is a buy it now for $1 + $4.43 shipping! 

The same search for Orange bulbs returned only 25 hits, but the first is a buy it now for $6.49 (100 bulbs) and FREE Shipping.

The same search for purple lights will return about 40 items. Look carefully and you'll find a 100 lights string WITH a controller for less than $10 including shipping.

Again READ the adds and LOOK at the pics. Don't buy the battery powered strings and make sure you are buying the US 110V plug - _most_ offer both and will only ship the 110V to the US, but read carefully anyway. Some here have found smaller strings locally, so you might be lucky, but why spend the gas and time? JMHO

Good Luck!


----------



## Crunch

This is great. I'm thinking I'll be using something like this to make a spit roasting corpse perhaps.


----------



## LT Scare

I'm considering a sort of Bone-Lava overflow out the "door" to Freddie's Furnace in my haunt. This will be a big, vertical "drip" with charred bones sticking out of the Great Stuff foam - maybe touching a "puddle" of the same on the ground. 

The overflow would start at the opening - seen as a dark rectangle here:









At night:









What do you guys think?


----------



## jpbaily1

Crunch said:


> This is great. I'm thinking I'll be using something like this to make a spit roasting corpse perhaps.


Like this? I had not connected the elect motor to make it spin at this time.


----------



## Crunch

jpbaily1 said:


> Like this? I had not connected the elect motor to make it spin at this time.


Yes exactly! That's where the idea has come from.


----------



## LT Scare

That's a warm looking fire jpbaily1. Bet TOTs want to warm their hands over it on a cold Halloween night.


----------



## HeadStone13

This halloween how to is the coolest! Looks great and looks like I can do it!


----------



## jpbaily1

HeadStone13 said:


> This halloween how to is the coolest! Looks great and looks like I can do it!


If I can yo ucan! 

Cool effect. I cnanot take the credit for the idea, just the addition of the bike parts & the FCG motor.

all the best to ya all on this years haunt.


----------



## LT Scare

Well we finally got the video up on YouTube last night, but I can't get the link today because the IT team at work has a blocker up that won't let me access YouTube.

I'll post the link to night.


----------



## jpbaily1

LT Scare said:


> Well we finally got the video up on YouTube last night, but I can't get the link today because the IT team at work has a blocker up that won't let me access YouTube.
> 
> I'll post the link to night.


Lets see the video...


----------



## LT Scare

correct in next post


----------



## LT Scare

Sorry these aren't as professional as many I've seen here. Guess that's two skills we need to refine - shooting the vids and editing them. I should also have also had a couple of day shots, but you can see those in the Photo Album. Anyway, please excuse my crappy camera work and my son's first attempt at editing.

I think this is the link (can't check at work again):






Just in case, here are the other two links to our haunt vids:











First vids I've ever posted and can't confirm them until tonight at home


----------



## GiggleFairy

I think you and your son did a fine job with the video. I'd actually marked this thread when I first joined the forum. I love the coals and really appreciate the tutorial and video.


----------



## LT Scare

Thanks Giggle Fairy, I think the 2010 vid shows more of the light string programs in the coals. I'm trying to put pressure on my son to get that vid edited "soon."


----------



## drwilde

*great effect*

I love this. I'm going to add in a few places this year. One question though, what's the main purpose for the whiffle balls or plastic bottles seen in other versions? I'd think the foam would look pretty irregular enough without. Is it for the lights?


----------



## Lynn

I think its for the lights and so that you can get the irregularity without the foam being so thick. If it gets too thick it probably wouldnt glow as well.
This is just my thoughts as I havent tried this yet.... keep thinking about it though


----------



## LT Scare

The wiffle balls do help change the intensity of the lights, but they also keep the foam from touching the lights. It's possible that foam encasing the lights could get hot enough to scorch a bit and block the light. It's more likely that a bulb encased in foam would get hot enough to burn out. These reasons are moot if you use led lights. The balls also allow you to more easily go into the prop -cut it open - if you need to make a repair.

I also used the wiffle balls to "clump" bulbs that are different colored and from different programmed strings together. I think this adds to the realism of the affect.


----------



## GodOfThunder

Well, I started my first such "hot coals" project today. I'm going to actually employ a big black Weber kettle grill that has been sitting in my garage (got it with lawn furniture and haven't used it on account of my gas grill)...

Anyhow, so I cut out two cardboard discs, glued them together, cut two different size wiffle balls and bisected some orange ping pong balls (those suckers are expensive!). 

I have 3 boxes of 70 count orange lights. So far, I'm halfway done with the first strand and it's proving to be interesting. My early observations are that the pingpong balls do little good except for adding some 3-D aspect to the coalbed. Other than that, they're quite small, even for a 17" round diameter plot that I'm using. 

Also, the lights can get squirrely--already having foreshadowing twitches thinking of Christmas lights.

But it's proceeding along. I think I'll use the earlier suggestion of putting a layer of white plastic grocery bags in between the base and the foam when I'm about to spray, not sure. But so far, so good!


----------



## Halloween_Honey

That is too cool! Can't wait to try this!


----------



## GodOfThunder

OK, here are the first two pics of my first stab at making the hot coals effect. More to come as I progress. 

The first one is the layout of the wiffle balls and ping pong balls on the double-layered cardboard base. I kept many of the lights exposed unlike the prior shots I've seen and covered the entire surface with run of the mill white plastic grocery bags. I used a single layer of the bags, duct taped them on the bottom and created a clean outer perimeter edge.


After I laid the bags on (no picture of that), I sprayed the foam. Looks like a big meringue pie. There are some natural gaps and some other areas where the foam is thicker than others. I have a tendency to overthink projects like this, so I just let it rip and kept it as random and scattershot as possible. 

Will keep you posted on the near completed project.


----------



## SewWoodsy

Wow you did a great job on this! I've pinned this to my Pinterest account in hopes I can one day make one of my own!


----------



## lildeviltjs2

I did this last year thanks to this post!!! Here is a pic and a video of mine... not the best but you get the idea!!!


----------



## BeaconSamurai

Dave Lowe on his website gave credit to LTSCARE and the forum for this idea. He is using it on one of his props.


----------



## LT Scare

BeaconSamurai said:


> Dave Lowe on his website gave credit to LTSCARE and the forum for this idea. He is using it on one of his props.


Cool!


----------



## GodOfThunder

Just an FYI and piece of advice: I had to redo my foam as it expanded WAY too much and I used too much. 

The good thing about trying the grocery bag trick over the lights is that you can essentially upwrap it and pull the foam off in one chunk. I re-applied being more conservative and got a far better result. About to paint it. 

But wanted to throw that out there for anyone else trying it; be more sparing than your first impulse might suggest.


----------



## LT Scare

Because LED lights last tens of thousands of hours, I'm guessing you are using the grocery bags to be able to access and change the incondescent pin lights. Unfortunately, unlike LED, these also generate a fair amount of heat. When I applied the foam, I tried to leave one hole partially open on the backside (away from view),on each wiffle ball. However, working with Great Stuff is a challenge and it doesn't always do what you want. 

Regardless, I would be a tad concerned that the heat from the non-LED Bulbs could burn the plastic grocery bag. FWIW.

If you can use LED bulbs, all of this becomes moot.


----------



## GraveyardGus

Regarding the need for whiffle or ping pong walls, I just tried my hand at this project and the main effect seems to be to make it possible to get more height. However if you staple your lights to a wood base so that you are able to make a few LED bulbs stand up higher (the light wire is kind of stiff so bracing it with staples gives you more control) then you can probably get a very similar effect by stacking blobs of foam on top of each other (some foam under the lightbulb and some over). When I did my blobs I tried to make the foam mounds in between the bulbs so the bulb light would be visible more in the cracks between the mounds than under the mounds themselves, like real coals are. I also don't think its essential to use colors other than orange. 

Rather than cutting my ping pong balls in half I punched holes in them and stuck bubs in through the hole.

Cost me $5 each for two sets of 30 orange LED lights at Rite Aid (they just put these on the shelf). Then $3.50 for about a dozen some ping pong balls at Toys R Us. Plus $3 for a can of Great Stuff at Ace Hardware. And this made a roughly 2 foot circular pile of coals. It's amazing how something that looks so ugly in the light can look so cool in the dark with the LEDs on.

We need another thread to talk about the cauldrons and different ways of getting fog and lights in there, or listing cool cauldron props that are out there.


----------



## Halloweenie1

*Ooooo! Very cool! 

I have been getting by with a black Christmas wreath and orange lights. But this looks so much better! Thanks for posting!*


----------



## LT Scare

GraveyardGus said:


> It's amazing how something that looks so ugly in the light can look so cool in the dark with the LEDs on.


Great job GGus. I agree, it can look bad in the daylight. That's why I used some diluted gray acrylic paint on the foam to make it look a little more realistic in the daytime.




GraveyardGus said:


> We need another thread to talk about the cauldrons and different ways of getting fog and lights in there, or listing cool cauldron props that are out there.


FWIW, I've tried a lot of different solutions to the smoking cauldron challenge and IMO the best, easiest to maintain, solution is the use of a mist maker with LED lights in it.







See the bigger cauldron in this pic - you can't see or hear the aerator in this pic, but trust me - it's cool and worth the $10 or so at Walmart.







NO fog juice to buy or fog machine to clean / replace. Just water, lasts ??? forever? I've had one that I've used for at least 6 years. I also recommend using a cheap aquarium aerator to make the cauldron bubble.


----------



## Delirium

Can you put the mist maker inside the filled cauldron together with the aerator, or does it have to stay dry?


----------



## Xane

Delirium said:


> Can you put the mist maker inside the filled cauldron together with the aerator, or does it have to stay dry?


Actually the mist maker _*needs*_ to be under water in order to work. Shouldn't be a problem!


----------



## Delirium

Ah OK, I was planning to buy one for a prop and had no experience with mist makers/aerators, thank you very much!


----------



## LT Scare

Yes, the mist maker must remain under the water level in a "sweet" zone not too far blow the surface of the water, to produce the mists and it tends to "use up" water so you will need to keep a pitcher of water handy. Start with a "full" prop and you will probably have to top it off during the evening once. The smaller the prop and the higher the water level is, the more frequently you will have to top it off with water. Only one small note of warning regarding the mist maker.... because of the way they work, the mist quickly turns back to water so the area immediately surrounding your prop can get wet if the mist escapes the sides of the prop. 

For a large cauldron (as in my pic), if you set up the mister with the level of the water 5-6 inches lower that the top of the cauldron, the mist will be mostly contained inside the cauldron with very little, if any, water falling to the area outside the cauldron. 

However, a small "bowl-like" placement as in the "wall fountain" pictured below, usually requires much more maintenance - you may need to add (less than you'll add to the large cauldron) water several times over the course of the night.


----------



## Delirium

Thanks for all the info!


----------



## LT Scare

OK, this vid might be the exception to the rule "Better late than never." This was taken in 2009 and right after we started shooting, the program for the lights changed and you only get a glimpse of the best program in the programmable lights....


----------



## drwilde

*hot ember sign*

Just finished my sign with burning embers below. Worked great. 2 sets of LEDs with program packs. They fade in and out. 3 sets would have been better to have seamless fading. It helps tie in the backstory of a funeral home that was set on fire.


----------



## GiggleFairy

That sign looks GREAT drwilde! Good job!


----------



## Icarus

Yeah, I second that doc. Well done!


----------



## LT Scare

Dito DrWilde! Any night / lit up pics? Bet it looks great!


----------



## drwilde

*pics*

I'll be sure together some better photos. I also have process pics too.


----------



## lwaldeck

Nice sign drwilde!

Question: Where did you get your LED lights? I'm currently tackling this project and have a set of amber always-on lights, but I'm looking for something to give that glow/flicker of a fire. I can't seem to find anything for a reasonable price...


----------



## drwilde

*lights*

Thanks! Mine were from kmart after Christmas a couple years ago. Bought a few sets and stashed them. They run off 2 C batteries. Last forever. Has 8 flash modes. The bulbs are little round red globe diffusers. Orange would be better but it works. The 2 sets fade on and off and when they are out of sync you get a cool movement of light like fire.


----------



## LT Scare

I get my programmed light strings on ebay. Cheap, easy to find and they work well. Here is a link to a nice string for $2.00 with free shipping (not a typo, this is $2.00):

Correction to 110 Volt string:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/10M-100-LED-Orange-light-wedding-fairy-party-110v-220V-/230671856029?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35b51d319d

Description


> :
> High Quality,
> Durable and waterproof for indoor and outdoor decoration.
> 8 different ways of glimmering (combination,in waves,sequential,slo glo,chasing/flash,slow fade,twinkle,flash,steady on.)
> 
> Low power consumption: 6W. a
> Total 100 LED bulbs.
> Plug in to controller is 20cm in distance
> Controller to the first led bulb is 2.5cm in distance
> Total length: 10m
> Powered by 110V-220V ( we will send the item via your country on your shipping address )
> Color:Orange



Pic:


----------



## lwaldeck

Thanks. I ran into those just recently as well. Looks like I might have to plan on those for next year as shipping takes quite awhile.


----------



## dscrimager

*This is completely the coolest Halloween element I've done this year.*

Its a great idea that can be used so many ways. 

I started to paint mine and didn't like it. So I took a couple of handfuls of ash from my grill and dumped it into the paint. I'm going to hit it with some matte finish and see what happens.

Be sure to buy twice the cans of great stuff that you think you need. I used about 8 or 9 cans on a huge bed of coals to hold my cauldron about 6-8 inches off the ground; had to go back twice.

I was able to basically complete this in a few hours on this last Sunday.

Freshly Doug


----------



## GodOfThunder

dscrimager said:


> Its a great idea that can be used so many ways.
> 
> I started to paint mine and didn't like it. So I took a couple of handfuls of ash from my grill and dumped it into the paint. I'm going to hit it with some matte finish and see what happens.
> 
> Be sure to buy twice the cans of great stuff that you think you need. I used about 8 or 9 cans on a huge bed of coals to hold my cauldron about 6-8 inches off the ground; had to go back twice.
> 
> I was able to basically complete this in a few hours on this last Sunday.
> 
> Freshly Doug


I re-re-did mine again becuase I didn't care for the paint job. I diluted gray acrylic, made it real watery and then brushed it all over copiously. Took some black, less diluted after taht, and just ran the edge of a brush around the depressions primarily. It dried funky and just didn't look too good, so I'm going to redo it. 

I think I'm getting hung up on it looking TOO realistic...when it's dark and the thing is plugged it, it should look fine, but I'm getting anal retentive about it now...


----------



## LT Scare

At night the paint on the coals will probably not be visable. The darker your setting, the better the effect of the lights - IMO. The folks visiting your haunt during the day will be the ones who will appreciate your artistic endeavors on the coals. 

However, applying even a little bit of paint on the foam will help make the prop last longer. Left to the elements, the great stuff does turn an ugly color and (I think) start to deteriorate. This is my third season. I store mine in a plastic bag under a tarp along side the house. It gets pretty hot in the summer, but it doesn't get rained on. Mine still works great, but I'm going to put more paint on it this year, to try to protect the aging great stuff.


----------



## red_johnny

I keep seeing people saying to dilute the paint with water. When I did that it did not coat very well. It kept beading off of the foam. So I used full strength and it came out pretty good. I also bought a set of 150 orange lights and put 1 blinker bulb in. So every few seconds it "heats" up. That set has 3 circuits in it so two stay on steady and the third blinks.


----------



## LT Scare

Looks Great!


----------



## drwilde

*painting the embers*

I'll get some pics on this weekend. All I did was mist the foam with black spray paint. Hit it from the side so it mostly hits the tops. The light comes through the cracks. Then even lighter mist it with white or grey for highlights. I then did a little drybrushing with white on the high spots.


----------



## MOTOCO

Working on my own right now http://www.halloweenforum.com/members/motoco-albums-fire-pit-cauldron.html

[video=facebook;2217363708735]http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=2217363708735[/video]

[video=facebook;2217369188872]http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=2217369188872[/video]

\[video=facebook;2217660636158]http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=2217660636158[/video]


----------



## CycloneJack

Took me awhile to find this thread but glad I did. Wanted to show you all my little rendition of this fantastic effect. I wanted a campfire look for my stirring witch prop so I went with a firewood/foam direction with mine. I was concerned with applying foam directly over my rope lights, so I made a two layer effect. The bottom layer is plywood with studs for the plexiglas to rest on and three studs that protrude through so that my cauldron with wiper motor can sit atop. There is a ring of firewood glued to the outer edge of the plywood base. The rope light is underneath the plexiglas to illuminate from underneath. The top layer is the plexiglas with firewood and foam to create the coals. The top layer can be removed at any time to adjust, add, remove or maintain the lights. Thanks to the originator of this thread, LTScare, for the fantastic ideal!


----------



## MOTOCO

[video=facebook;2261191884412]http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=2261191884412&saved#!/photo.php?v=2261191884412&set=vb.1086878376&type=2&theater[/video] Finally finished my FirePit and Cauldron. Thought I would share.


----------



## H82GO55

That's a really great job you did on this project.


----------



## jeeper

*tweaked to fit my theme*

i used your basic idea and repurposed it for my needs.


----------



## LT Scare

Looks dangerous!! Great Job.


----------



## BlackBlade

Excellent job, LT Scare!...Thank you for sharing this technique, going to us it in my next prop build.


----------



## LT Scare

Glad to see so many applications and variations in all the haunts. Dazzle them guys an gals!


----------



## LT Scare

This prop has survived three years of outside storage and still works flawlessly.


----------



## The Pod

I ended up copying the circuit for EFX-TEK's WickLED. I soldered together 5 strings of 5 red LEDs and 5 strings of 4 LEDs and controlled them with a Prop-1 controller. I increased the capacitor size and lengthen the delay on the off which gave for a really nice random slow flicker/fading of the glowing coals.


----------



## Crematory

So simple but so cool! What did you spend on the LED's. Seems like the wiffle balls would be pretty cheap but the likes look pretty spendy.


----------



## LT Scare

The wiffle balls help "spread" the light out over a larger area and provide access to the lights if needed.

You can find strings of LEDs with a controller on ebay for as low as $5 on a "Buy it Now" for 32 feet for a red string.









Item number 130729486432 or you can search for "LED String red xmas" on ebay

Be careful, the shorter strings are battery powered. The $5 set is US 110v plug. If you are willing to wait several days and bid, there are a couple of them currently at less than $1.

All of these I've mentioned here are FREE SHIPPING, but will be shipping from Asia.


----------



## jpbaily1

Very cool.


----------



## Ryiinn

Wow! Very cool! I'm definitely going to try this this year. Would have been great for my slaughterhouse a few years back. I just ended up using lights, but it definitely didn't look as nice.


----------



## LT Scare

Again, when I built this the LED strings were hard to find and very expensive. Today they are dirt cheap on ebay - they generate VERY little heat and last a LOOOONG time. The only way to go with this build.


----------



## Sublime Nightmare

Wonderful prop and what great instructions! Thanks for making this easy to understand


----------



## red_johnny

Has anyone tried different light combinations? I was thinking of using red, blue and green LEDs each color in a string of 100. Trying to mimic the blue/green glow in places. Maybe not a good idea for coals though. But I think I may give it a shot. Got some boy scouts who are going to do a theater merit badge for Halloween so we are looking for a bunch of cheap props they can build. I got a few on my list but I would like to see a better version of what I did last time.


----------



## LT Scare

I know this is a looong thread, but there are lots of pics of others' application of this formula with plenty of light variations. I'm not sure if I've seen those combinations, but have a look.

My original has some red, lots of orange and some purple - all on different blinking/controls sequences. The slow lite up and fade with each string on different timing really provides the most realistic effect, IMO.

Experiment with the combinations you like and please post pics of the results. Good Luck !!


----------



## LT Scare

*NEW Foam available ....*

Our local Walmart has started carrying a "GE" foam that drys lighter than the Great Stuff and seems to be more firm when dried. The GE a bit less costly than Great Stuff and comes in a smaller can that seems to go just as far.

I have been making sand cast skulls this Summer - about 150 from Great Stuff and 150 from the GE foam. The GS stays softer and shrinks considerably. The GE will also shrink, but much less. The GE dries almost like those large blocks of foam you buy at JoAnnes and Michael's, but the surface dries smooth.

The GE RED LABEL foam at Walmart is definately a good, perhaps preferable alternative foam for the Glowing "hot" Coals 

Hope this helps someone.


----------



## jpbaily1

LT Scare said:


> Our local Walmart has started carrying a "GE" foam that drys lighter than the Great Stuff and seems to be more firm when dried. The GE a bit less costly than Great Stuff and comes in a smaller can that seems to go just as far.
> 
> I have been making sand cast skulls this Summer - about 150 from Great Stuff and 150 from the GE foam. The GS stays softer and shrinks considerably. The GE will also shrink, but much less. The GE dries almost like those large blocks of foam you buy at JoAnnes and Michael's, but the surface dries smooth.
> 
> The GE RED LABEL foam at Walmart is definately a good, perhaps preferable alternative foam for the Glowing "hot" Coals
> 
> Hope this helps someone.


Thanks for the insight LT scare, I will have to look into this.!!!

John


----------



## MokkNoir

*LED Warning*

I've posted a warning about using LED lights for the "hot coals" effect. I never thought that they could be a fire hazard!

Check out my post before you go ahead with this type of prop: You've been WARNED!


Also, I've posted a request for how to modify the LED strings I found at Target that are far superior to the junk strings I got off of E-Bay. Just need to figure out how to slow the twinkling lights down to a slow fade in and out. Got any ideas?


----------



## LT Scare

Thanks for the heads up MokkNoir. My original prop uses the old incondescent minilights and is still functioning without issue. Had it on for several hours Sunday night - no problems. Please recall that I suggested using wiffle balls and ping pong balls over the bulbs and not completely trap them, if possible, with the great stuff. I can't say for certain, but I'd guess that this method might have avoided your smoking LEDs. The Incondescents I used are definately hotter than any LED made anywhere. 

For any of you making this, or a similar prop, please don't spray the graeat stuff directly onto the lights, regardless of what kind of lights you use. Others might have done this with no problems, but better to be safe than sorry.


----------



## erie_pa_halloween_guy

Just wanted to chime in on this I finally made a small version of this maybe 18" by 18" for my witch and cauldron the pictures do not do it justice just used some orange lights and wiffle balls this looks absoluterly real gonna find a cracking fire mp3 and hook it up to my lightning fx box and see how ot comes out


----------



## Spookwriter

I used my new "hot coals and rotisserie this weekend to an overwhelming
response. Certainly a big hit. To the point that I had several offers to buy 
them.

People actually borrowed my flashlight, got down on their knees and gave
it a good look. One of the most realistic props of the season.

It was a cool night here...some of the children pretended to warm their hands
as they sat by the fire. You could see the childrens breath in the air as they 
warmed their little hands.

Totally blew the paying customers minds when they attempted to warm thier
own hands.

I sat it up as the lead prop...outside the corn, as part of the show before people
entered. "Something to look at."

My rotisserie is "hand-crank" model. Had a little skelly riding around. I like them
slow-roasted, you know. Had me a nice little poker, I would stop and poke the
poor skelly.

Checking on dinner. Talking to the crowd the whole time.

Then lead a group into the maze.

My first prop inside was my dead-man. I'd dance around and
try to get everyone to stay for dinner...we're gonna drag this dead
guy out front and cook him. 

Fresh ribs tonight for sure...

So to the original poster who brought us this ideal...My hat is truely off
to you. That simple fire turned into a good half-hour show.

And stold the night. As a group, the fire department spent $800.00 this
year on new props. Some really nice stuff to add to our collection.

The fire walked all over them all night long. To the extent that many 
people would go through the corn and then came back to the "fire' to
warm their hands and hang out.

If you don't have one of these fires yet, you gotta make one. It's the
"must-have" of the season.

Big-time hit !!!


----------



## LT Scare

Sounds like everyone had a great time Spookwriter - except the cooked Skelly 

Any Pics??


----------



## LT Scare

erie_pa_halloween_guy said:


> Just wanted to chime in on this I finally made a small version of this maybe 18" by 18" for my witch and cauldron the pictures do not do it justice just used some orange lights and wiffle balls this looks absoluterly real gonna find a cracking fire mp3 and hook it up to my lightning fx box and see how ot comes out


Glad it works for you. Any pics?


----------



## erie_pa_halloween_guy

Not yet will have some very soon


----------



## erie_pa_halloween_guy

Here the pic of mine


----------



## Slider

I had a huge problem with these last year. I had a 3'x3' section of coals with skeletal "cremains" that sat inside of a faux boiler we had built. About an hour or so into the night, we started to notice an acrid smell of chemicals and guests noted that they saw smoke coming from the boiler, and how cool it was. i narrowed it down to the heat from the string lights releasing chemicals from the Great Stuff foam. Since it's insulating foam, it just holds heat in until it burns out the lights as well. I shut it down.

This year, I've taken a different approach. Using chicken wire as an armature, I squirted Great Stuff (in moderation) all in the chicken wire, making sure to leave in some good sized gaps for light and ventilation. I left the entire back of the coals open to allow for even greater ventilation, greater light intensity shining onto the back of the boiler, and it makes it incredibly easy to swap out dead light strings. You can even mount a lamp receptacle with an orange party light in there, and it burns bright.







Chicken wire creates space in which to place the lights. (Soda bottles were used to help hold some stubborn, saggy bits of chicken wire. They were removed in the end.)








Built up from the ground up. Larger spaces in the foam allows more air flow, plus more direct, "hotter" light.








Black coat with lighting. I later dry brushed in grays and whites on the high points, and fixed the shading on the side of the skull.

It still gets smelly, but not as bad as it did last year. i think with a fan blowing into the cavity will keep the foam cool enough to not release those chemicals intot he air.


----------



## Ethereal

What is the name of the type of foam you used? Thanks!


----------



## Slider

It's called Great Stuff. You can get it just about anywhere, but it runs a little on the expensive side if you're on a budget. If you have a Habitat for Humanity ReStore near you, check there. I got slightly damaged cans for $2 each.

I found out what was causing the smell in my first set of coals. It wasn't the Great Stuff burning. It was the heat from the string lights being held in starting to melt the wires. It's a HUGE health hazard to your guests, so you need to be careful to either use LED lights that don't heat up, or use my method of chicken wire to build open space so air can flow in there and keep the lights cool.


----------



## Ethereal

Thanks for the advice. So if I do Led I'm ok because it wont get too hot? Seems like this kind of foam works in lots of applications now that i'm looking into it. How quickly will it dry?


----------



## LT Scare

Great Stuff is great, but you need to know:
VERY MESSY
VERY sticky
The thicker you lay it on, the longer it takes to dry
Will always shrink - I made about 200+ skulls with it using fine sand molds. The skulls would shrink and deform - actually look cooler IMO - for about two days.

Wear disposable rubber gloves and I recommend you coat them with WD40 (I also used WD40 on my sand molds to minize the wasted sand)

Do not expect to change the shape of the great stuff by touching it to move it. Better to spray too much, then cut down with a knife (cuts VERY easily when dry) later.

Walmart has a GE copy cat brand of Great Stuff that is about a $1 or so cheaper than GS. It seems to have identicle characteristics.

I STRONGLY recommend you work in the confines (no wind) of your garage and on a plastic drop cloth.

You can paint the dried GS with spray paint, acrylic or whatever. 

In my experience, NONE of my LEDs covered in GS have gotten too hot. However, there have been some reports of this being a problem. IMO it's best to use pieces of a milk carton or whatever, to create air pockets around a group of bulbs before you spray, then poke a hole thru the GS as a vent. Several have reported this is not necessary - it may not be for most lights. My oldest "Glowing hot coals" use this process. They are about 5 years old now and still function perfectly despite being stored out side, wrapped in a couple of plastic bags. 

Hope this helps.


----------



## Oak Lane Cemetery

> Do not expect to change the shape of the great stuff by touching it to move it. Better to spray too much, then cut down with a knife (cuts VERY easily when dry) later.


You can actually do this to some extent if you wait till it skins over, but not fully dries. You should be able to pinch, crease, dent, and dimple it to add more texture, or squash down parts that are too high. You won't be able to make huge changes, but you can add subtle details this way. Just be sure a good thick skin has formed and wear gloves in case any squeezes out.


----------



## Palmdale Haunter

Very nice, I used the technique myself last year....
I was shocked how good it looked in the dark....
I used a se,t of constant on lights. 
The flicker effect was so real just by the viewer walking.


----------



## Raven's Hollow Cemetery

As I posted in the "other" hot coals thread, LED's & even plain old string lights are *usually* perfectly fine in Great Stuff/Foam-O-Fill. I've been running a similar method for years with plastic dipped orange light strings, and when disassembled after 2 years and nearly 200 hours of run time. There is no signs of even minor scorching and I didn't bother with whiffle balls or plastic bottle tops. Mine were in direct contact w/ the foam unlike many others, but I didn't use a cheap light string either. Mine (I have 3 different effects using this method) were made with the more expensive Walgreen strings, although I forget the manufacturers name offhand. 


I'd be more suspect of that foam skull &/or the light string used itself being defective/cheaply made than the Great Stuff. You can see in Sliders pics above that the foam skull is getting hot enough to crack the paint which indicates it's not the Great Stuff alone, but the lights themselves. I'm not suggesting you shouldn't test first, I'm just saying that there's some other circumstances going on which aren't indicative of the general results many have had with this effect. 


My hell hole from 2010, after disassembling for a makeover after Halloween last year. Lights in direct contact with Great Stuff. Note, no scorching, burning, etc...






























The different effects they're used in...











Better pic of the coals...











Used in the coals under the cauldron & the glowing overflow on the cauldron...











In summation, I've used this effect quite a bit with no problems. Which is what leads me to my conclusion about it being the only possible variation being the light strings used, since I used the exact same brand of foam & 3 different types of that particular brand. In other words, only use higher quality incandescent light strings &/or LED strings.


----------



## CupcakeKiller702

Just a hint website ShopWildThings dot com does have orange light cellophane gels if you can't find anything else for coloring white lights.


----------



## doombuddy

Very nice I might try this around my cauldron.


----------



## CupcakeKiller702

I can't wait to try and replicate one of these. I am going hunting today.


----------



## Ghost Ninja

This is a great idea. I was just on Instructables last night thinking about how I would do this very thing. Thanks for the tut!


----------



## Raven's Hollow Cemetery

I'm in the middle of revamping my Hell Hole, & thought I'd share how the lava flow is turning out. For the most part, it's sticking with the same formula. Built in sound (demonic whispers, screams of tortured souls, and such), starter flicker circuits x2, & the piped in fog of course. Plus the skeleton is getting the leering effect for a little more animation & I'm considering swapping to aural exciters instead of the traditional speakers. 



I need another string of lights before I can do the inside of the "hole", but I think it's turning out pretty realistic. What say you?


----------



## jpbaily1

Very Nice!


----------



## Raven's Hollow Cemetery

Thanks jp, much obliged.  A little feedback is always nice.


----------



## DaveintheGrave

That's an awesome looking Hell-Hole, Raven's Hollow!


----------



## Raven's Hollow Cemetery

Many thanks Dave! I keep saying I'm going to do a tutorial on this thing, since so many have requested it. Now's about the perfect time to do so, I'd guess. 


The only thing that worries me, is that most aren't going to go through the trouble of digging a 2 1/2' diameter, 2' deep hole that it needs to sit the basket down in. I'd be disappointed if no one bothered to give it a go.


----------



## ThakingDbb

I like the green around the rim of the cauldron. I made my glowing coals by taking a big chip bowl on the ground. Then covering it with plastic wrap. Then great stuffed the upsidedown bowl. Once it was set some orange and black spray paint layers for coals. No this is where it really got cool, I put 2 strings of orange string lights and 1 string of "random sparkle" white Christmas lights and I swear it looks like real fire glowing. I'll try and post pic or video soon.


----------



## Ellie13

ThakingDbb said:


> II'll try and post pic or video soon.


Please do.


----------



## ThakingDbb

I started different thread with video of it


----------

