# Dry Ice?



## ccscastle (Oct 5, 2004)

Where would I get dry ice? How do I store dry ice? How do I put it in a punch to make it look like a bubbling caldron and not have it touch or melt into the punch? Thanks, CC


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## LHALLOW (Aug 10, 2004)

The only time I've ever gotten dry ice is when my Omaha Steaks are shipped!

This site will tell you everything you ever wanted to know about dry ice including locations where to buy it. http://www.dryiceinfo.com/

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son! The jaws that bite, the claws that catch! Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun the frumious Bandersnatch!"


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## ccscastle (Oct 5, 2004)

Exactly what I was looking for... thanks, CC


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## CatMean (Jul 5, 2004)

Most grocery stores such as Tom Thumb or Safeway carry it, also usually has it's own section in the yellow pages.


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## great_ghoul (Aug 14, 2004)

OOOOOO...dry ice!!! My #1 prop!! Check your yellow pages for companies selling CO2 gas. Dry ice is a by-product of carbon dioxide production, and these companies LOVE to cash in on being able to sell it instead of having to get rid of it around halloween []

The cost varies greatly depending on the company (it is just WASTE for them afterall)...

Once you get it, make sure you put it in an icy cooler right away. It sublimates quickly (essentially disintegrates) - although I have managed to make about a third of a 50lb bag last 2 days in my freezer.

If you put it in punch it has a wonderful effect...it bubbles and produces fog...but WARN your guest NOT to touch it or eat the ice. It can burn..BAD! It also will disappear pretty quickly, so you will need to replenish it throughout the evening.

Also - if you want to get extra fogging effects from it, you can have other containers that you regularily fill with the dry ice and hot water...sometimes cheaper than a fog machine and it works pretty well if you have the man power to keep it going... 

I usually get between 30-50 lbs if I can use it the same day. That is for both drinks AND fog props....


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## great_ghoul (Aug 14, 2004)

oh yeah - it seems like you are worried about putting the dry ice right in the punch...it's TOTALLY ok - as long as your guests know NOT to eat or touch it. It is not toxic to consume.


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## ccscastle (Oct 5, 2004)

Yeah. I was worried about putting actually in the punch itself. I was a little freaked out when I read not to touch it or eat it. 

I will start looking for people that make co2 gas as well as stores that might carry dry ice. Thanks -CC


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## great_ghoul (Aug 14, 2004)

Sorry - I guess I made it sound a little scary, but you dont't want to get the odd person at your party who wants to check out what happens if they swallow a piece 

I hold a halloween celebration at my office every year as well and always have the dry ice. It's a great hit cause NO one there knows about it or goes in for halloween stuff. I just post a sign next to a bowl filled with dry ice cubes..."Warning! This is dry ice...USE the tongs, and don't try to swallow it!"

When you leave a bunch of dry ice in a glass or ceramic bowl, as it melts, the cubes actually vibrate...it's like it's alive..I remember people being too freaked out to even use the tongs to grab some...but most were just too excited to get it into their drink and see what would happen. When you throw it in a drink, it tends to stick to the bottom of the cup. It really isn't as scary as it sounds ~ but better to be safe than sorry!


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## ccscastle (Oct 5, 2004)

It is always better safe than sorry. I am having all adults so I think everyone will listen. How does one cut dry ice..just a regular ice pick? -CC


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## great_ghoul (Aug 14, 2004)

You don't usually need to cut the ice if you go to you local carbon dioxide producers because you can usually pick either cubes or blocks. Blocks are better if you have it in a cauldron or something and intend to add warm water throughout the evening (smaller surface area so it lasts longer). Cubes will disappear faster - but they're worth it for the drinks 

If I could only get blocks, I would probably chip away with it with my ice axe....but keep in mind the sanitary precautions


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## Marksin (Sep 18, 2004)

Make sure to use gloves and tongs when handling the dry ice.

Haunted Display
http://halloweengallery.com/thumbnails.php?album=146


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## ccscastle (Oct 5, 2004)

k


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## Velvet Vampire (Oct 5, 2004)

If you have a Publix Grocery Store in your area, you might want to check it for Dry Ice. Ours sells it. Last year, it was at the end of the frozen food aisle, next to the regular ice, but in it's own white freezer chest. This year, they've moved it to right beside the Halloween Candy. I don't remember the price offhand, but it didn't seem unreasonable.

A full moon boat ride amidst the eerie beauty of the black swamp. That's why I do it...


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## CatMean (Jul 5, 2004)

We kept throwing in dry ice chunks into our punch bowl, it was fine, no one ate any just the punch which it kept cold. We used really big chunks and the effect was awesome.


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## ccscastle (Oct 5, 2004)

None of the stores we checked had dry ice. We had seen them carrying it last year. We ended up not getting any. It seems that there is now one company that carries it and they were on the other side of Dallas. Well maybe next year. -CC


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## boo who? (Feb 28, 2005)

Dry Ice makes kid's "Fish Pond" game extra spooky. I got a huge plastic storage bin, (about 2 feet deep) draped the sides with tattered black cloth, and filled with warm water.

I placed small blocks of dry ice in 3lb. coffee cans which had been generously punctured top and bottom to allow the water to rush in. Using the cans made sure that no child would touch the ice, and I could 'pre-load' several cans and not touch the ice myself at party time.

The cans sunk to the bottom and made the "pond" fog perfectly. Instead of plastic ducks, I found some large plastic spiders that would float...each with a number on the bottom which corresponded to a prize. 

Make sure to have a towel nearby for those little drippy hands!

boo


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## widowsbluff (Nov 2, 2003)

Dry ice sublimates better in warm to hot water. Take an old crock pot, put in water. set the crock pot on a high setting, then place the punch bowl over/on top of the crock pot. The fog will come up over the edges and you wont need to worry about the guest dipping into the dry ice.


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## BlackDawn (Aug 1, 2004)

Hey CC- I was at our local Kroger and they had it in a little cooler up at the front . I know it wasn't of much help this time but I figured I would let you know.


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## sisvicki (Jan 30, 2004)

boo - that is great. behenthere, great idea, too.


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## Ooogiboogie (Sep 28, 2003)

Here is a dry ice locator that has served me well. 

http://www.dryicedirectory.com/

Hope that helps.


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## Gym Whourlfeld (Jan 22, 2003)

Not trying to be a "wet blanket" on the festivities, but dry ice can kill if it takes the place of oxygen in a small space where someone is trying to breathe.
I heard this was the case in a church-run haunted house where they had someone laying under a built-up floor reaching up for the graveyard scene. They had a real dead person in their graveyard.


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## the spooky kid (Aug 6, 2004)

you can try www.dryiceinfo.com it has lots of stuff about dry ice


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## mr_maniacal (Mar 6, 2005)

*Speaking of corpses in haunted houses...*



Gym Whourlfeld said:


> Not trying to be a "wet blanket" on the festivities, but dry ice can kill if it takes the place of oxygen in a small space where someone is trying to breathe.
> I heard this was the case in a church-run haunted house where they had someone laying under a built-up floor reaching up for the graveyard scene. They had a real dead person in their graveyard.



I've heard that before I believe it's a haunters urban legend, however it can be dangerous in a situation like you talked about. In punch the stuff is safe but don't touch it like everyone else said. Using Dry Ice is like anything else in a haunted house...learn about the products you use and use common sense.
This reminds me of a true story however I saw on HBO's Autopsy....an awesome show! Here is a link to the show where they found a real corpse as a prop in a carnival style haunted house...

http://www.hbo.com/autopsy/episode/2_index.html

Check it out it's really cool! Take care all...

Mr. Maniacal


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## frizzen (Sep 9, 2004)

I'm gonna have to go along with maniacal and say that one with church corpse is probably an Urban Legend, or else they were just really not treating it with the respect it deserved. 
A while back I heard about a school that was putting on a play, and they had a nice stage with the band pit under it. Used a lot of dry ice instead of a fogger, about half way through the play the band just stopped playing... They got a bunch of fans to dissapate it, called ambulances to check everybody out. Luckily nobody was hurt. Remember CO2 IS heavier than oxygen, and does have the potential to do bad things to a person.

I heard about the Elmer McCurdy haunt prop thing years ago. (hit google and check it out) It seems way to bizzare to be real, but everything I've ever seen on it says it happened, and the sources seemed very credible.


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## Ooogiboogie (Sep 28, 2003)

hmmm those stories about Elmer McCurdy are prettin interesting.. I wonder if they are real?


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## mr_maniacal (Mar 6, 2005)

Frizzen and Ooogi,

The story is so far fetched that one would think that it could not be real at all....just another legend, but the I agree all the sources I ever saw on the subject seemed legit and the segment and photos on the HBO Autopsy site seem to confirm it to me. None the less an interesting story. It makes you want to re-think your prop making techniques in October when you come across those idiot customers that like to ruin the experience for everyone....lol just kidding....or am I....

Mr. Maniacal


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## Gym Whourlfeld (Jan 22, 2003)

Here's another "Urban Legend" for everyone:
The little haunted house that had a woman running a chainsaw as she stood in a small, tight area, they couldn't find the wrench to remove the chain, so they didn't!
As she stood there with it running, held straight up and, a drunken customer said, "I know how they do this, they remove the chain!" They showing off to his friends reached out and grabbed the chain!
Yes, this would be an urban-myth, except for one thing, the guy telling me this told me the name of the town it happened in, he knew all the details because he was the insurance adjuster handling the claim!!!
Not a "pretty" sight!


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## frizzen (Sep 9, 2004)

Sounds like another reason not to use chainsaws in haunts!

Then again, I always hated those for anything other than cutting down trees. I mean honestly, is there *ANYONE* who actually gets scared by them? "Oh no, it's loud, annoing, and exceeds OSHA noise limits if used for more than a few seconds! Run away!"


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## mr_maniacal (Mar 6, 2005)

I wouldn't use chainsaws simply just because of the fumes. When I guest acted a haunt that depended on chainsaws for scares I never have been so sick in my life at the end of an acting night! That just plain sucks!


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## Gym Whourlfeld (Jan 22, 2003)

Many people in the haunted house business responsible for making the decisions as to what to use and what not to use in the "Show", keep using real chainsaws because they feel customer pressure to do so, people asking, (whining) "What!? The tour is over and you don't have a CHAINSAW!??"
Some others still use a chainsaw because they feel that it is a good, effective, "Guaranteed" scare for alot of their customers.
The whinners usually seem to me to be about 14 to 16 years old. This might very well be the customer base for most haunted houses.
If they persist in whining, I just suggest they frequent any one of a number of haunts who will surely provide them with all of the chainsaw ballet they need.
I feel the number of customers who express contempt for the chainsaw ballet far outweigh the ones who want to see it. These people are usually older and have the necesarry funds to drive a great distance to get to my off-the-beaten-path haunted house, these are the customers and potential customers that I really wish to cultivate and eventually please.
Many haunt customers hate chainsaws, just listen to them, and you might hear them expressing this opinion.
There are also regional differences in customers though and my thoughts and practises probably wouldn't be as popular in other markets.
I am also open almost every night of the entire year for business and a chainsaw would just be something not very cost-effective for me to be playing with for every group of 2 to 4 customers, of course my house tour is not really very cost-effective as far as the amount of time I spend with each group , but I am doing the entertaining-work here and I'm doing it my way, I guess I either just don't know any better or suffer from strange compulsions to communicate with others!
You may see my house at : hauntedravensgrin.com


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## ScaryLarry (Mar 16, 2005)

If you want to try some thing a little different take a look at these.
http://www.mainlandmart.com/foggers.html
they are ultra sonic foggers. They are usually used in water but I dont see why you couldnt add them to punch. Also unlike dry ice it will last all night and you can reuse it. They make the water bubble and fog up. Just a thought.


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## Ooogiboogie (Sep 28, 2003)

Gym that just goes to show you how dangerous it is to have little old ladies in your haunt.


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## Ooogiboogie (Sep 28, 2003)

I bought a few of those ultrasonic foggers for last year. I use one in my skull fountain (works great) and then ordered a five disc one for the bathtub. The five disc one puts out a TON of mist and it was pretty cool. Two things came out of that experience for me. First was when I payed $115 for a five disc mister and they accidently sent me two of them instead of one. LUCKY LUCKY LUCKY. And the second was the discovery that you can not dye the water and then use it with the misters. I guess the water becomes to heavy for the mister to be able to work with it.


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## Johnny Thunder (Oct 7, 2004)

Thanks for all the ideas, everyone. I think I'm going to give dry ice a whirl this year.


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