# What did you learn from your 2013 setup?



## Huntress (Nov 1, 2012)

1. Need to seal the fog chiller around the lid. The fog was creeping out. This was the first time we tried this.
2. Gutter ghost needs to go or be revamped. Part of him blew on to the roof and you couldn't tell what it was.
3. Bubble machine was a big hit. Need to try the black light reflective bubbles next year.

We got a lot of compliments too. Comments like "glad you add something new every year". So now I have to find something to add!


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## sookie (Sep 19, 2010)

That smaller is better, I scaled back this year and I am glad I did. Next year I think I will do the same. It was much easier to set up and take down.


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## jeepercreeper (Aug 19, 2013)

1. I need 2 maybe 3 fog machines for my graveyard and the standard switch works better than the crappy $20 timer switch from Spirit.
2. Fog chiller made out of a 50 gallon cooler is huge and hard to maneuver around. Smaller chillers would probably work just as well with less strain on the back if I have to move it.
3. I thought my skeleton remains entryway was pretty sturdy until a woman trying to console her scared and crying child bumped it with her behind. The roof fell down on top of her (fortunately it was only styrofoam so it wasn't heavy and no one got hurt). It scared her little boy even worse though. Poor guy will probably be scarred for life. She kept apologizing about it, and told her it was fine. A little black spray paint to cover the gash and we were back in service.
4. When dressed in scary masks and costumes and a kid is freaking out nearby you, don't walk closer to them to try to convince them it's ok without first removing your mask...
5. It was colder this year, so I broke out my portable fire pit and had a fire going in my driveway next to my yard. This added some needed warmth, but also looked really cool when a big ghoul is warming their hands over an open fire. Going to keep this going every year!
6. Light sensor props don't work once it gets dark, unless you have a light pointed directly at them...stobe lights don't work...


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## Janice (Oct 16, 2013)

1. Build some kind of barrier (more tombstones?) around the cauldron creep so little kids don't walk up to it and stick things inside the cauldron. I swear, some of them were mesmerized by the special effects. 
2. Definitely going to add black light effects next year over the skeletons sitting in our porch chairs. They got kind of washed out in the darkness.
3. We had only one creepy guy in the front window with light-up eyes but got lots of comments on it. Will add more next year to this display.
4. Remember to have a good time and give the kids compliments on their costumes 

Edit: Oh - and I like the portable fire-pit idea.


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## ondeko (Oct 14, 2008)

1. Apparently my idea of a kinder, gentler Halloween display is still pretty scary. Two groups of kids passed by without even coming up the driveway.
2. My idea of what a scaled back display should look like still has an awful lot of stuff to put out.
3. The 10 year old next door was really disappointed that I didn't go all out this year.
4. I need to figure out how to get just a little more light where the candy is. 
5. I have a lot more blow molds than my wife thought I had.
6. Buy less candy. We got 2 big bags of candy from Costco and we still have 2 big bags of candy. Even giving the stuff out by the handful, we still have a lot of candy.
7. I'm glad I decided to get out the fog machine. Everyone loves the fog machine.
8. I need a kid friendly soundtrack for a kinder, gentler display. I knew not to use my regular soundtrack, but I didn't think about it until the first ToT came up and I realized it was absolutely silent. Grim Grinning Ghosts would have been perfect AND it would have given the neighbor across the street an earworm.
9. We really need to find a way to have a cute, toddler friendly pumpkin patch for the little kids while still having my scary gothic cemetery. Whatever the plan ends up being, I have to have a way to keep the wife from freezing in her pumpkin patch.
10. I still need to figure out the lighting for the whole display. I feel like a Halloween Goldilocks: This cemetery is too dark; this cemetery is too light. This cemetery is too dark again. When do I get the one that is just right?

EDIT: 11. The LED candles in the windows of the dark house looked really cool. I need to remember to do it in all the windows next year.


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## shsukats (Oct 7, 2013)

I need better lighting for my graveyard and other props

A lot of my issues came from being rushed by the rain. It stopped raining about 4 and I had everything set up before the first TOT at 5:30 

We also had a clear painters tarp with "blood" splattered all over it. People used it as a backdrop for family pictures. Really neat idea that wasn't intended. I'll be doing that again next year with better lighting there too.


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## Maxiboots (Aug 31, 2010)

" When dressed in scary masks and costumes and a kid is freaking out nearby you, don't walk closer to them to try to convince them it's ok without first removing your mask." Jeepercreeper, my husband learned that this year as well.


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## zombieprincess (Nov 1, 2013)

1. To post signs NOT to touch the actors.  Stupid teenage boys.
2. Create a walkway or signs that direct people to the candy. An open driveway with lots of distractions is confusing for people apparently.
3. Maybe cover our candy pot so that people can't see how much we have. Pretty sure some of the kids came back at least twice.
4. Don't use plastic decor to cover garage opening. Scared kids will bolt anywhere without looking. (Tore right through our wall mural and ran into the car.)
5. Whatever isn't done on Oct 30th doesn't get done. Only makeup and costumes on 31st
6. Buy MORE candy.


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## kuroneko (Mar 31, 2011)

Stop procrastinating on projects!
Set up earlier so my landlord's friend can take pictures and write an article for the local paper.
Make signs and flyers.
Figure out a better system for handing out candy and treat bags.
Figure out what I need ahead of time from Lowe's so I don't make 3 trips on the 30th.


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## JLWII2000 (Sep 13, 2010)

I'm only 30, but I'm already getting too old for this $%^&! That's what I learned.


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## RCIAG (Jul 19, 2010)

Make everything windproof which will ensure that there's ZERO WIND next year. We had some rain but the 10-15 mph winds just killed the cemetery & all the standing figures had to be staked or tied down. I expect some wind every year so we have to shore up the tombstones, but this year was just ridiculous.


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## kuroneko (Mar 31, 2011)

RCIAG said:


> Make everything windproof which will ensure that there's ZERO WIND next year. We had some rain but the 10-15 mph winds just killed the cemetery & all the standing figures had to be staked or tied down. I expect some wind every year so we have to shore up the tombstones, but this year was just ridiculous.


I learned that last year. Between the wind and the uneven ground my one figure would not stay up. So this year I used a big wooden stake, a spare piece of PVC pipe that fit snuggly over the stake and the one of the original metal rods for my figure. To be sure she didn't "walk away", I drilled a hole in the pipe and tied her to it, because it would take some effort just to pull the pipe off the stake (I dreading taking it out today).


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## myerman82 (Aug 2, 2011)

Luckily this year nothing in my yard display feel over or got destroyed from wind or rain. However, I think next year I will scale back. I know people love my display and all but every year I go in the garage and I realize how much of a pain it is to take everything out, fix it up, and get it put in the yard. Then, once I take it all down I have to shift everything around and get the holiday stuff out so I can put Halloween in the back of the garage again. It does become a pain and I really would like to just not deal with decorating the outside next year. Besides, I learned something this year that I will have to fix next year. I have a fencing all around the display to keep kids out. In the middle I have a cemetery entrance gate that is for display only. I noticed that a lot of kids were walking through the gate and through my display (lots of cords and wires that they could trip over) to get to my house. I got some caution tape and taped up the entrance and kids were still trying to walk through the caution tape even though I had a sign to please stay out of the yard and use the sidewalk to get to the front door. I just think it would be better if next year I retired the gate entrance and just do all fencing.


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## mementomori (Aug 19, 2009)

I leaned not to freak out or feel like the night is ruined if stuff goes wrong


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## seth (Apr 17, 2004)

Buy good stuff, I have went through so many smoke machines, bit the bullet bought $300 one did the whole street well built, and I'm sure if I added up how many replacements I've been through it would add up to well over what this new one cost


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## skullnbones (Aug 7, 2010)

Buy more candy
Buy more cords and outlets
Buy more spot lights
Pass out the candy, its much more fund to see the kids and hear the comments
Winds, Rain and snow proof everything possible

It was a great year!


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## Shift (Oct 19, 2013)

More lighting 
Louder volume for my ghost projections as the props drowned them out


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## Mad Mad Mark (Oct 24, 2009)

1. Buy about 6 to 10 Lbs. MORE candy than I think is enough (emergency candy trips to store = lost TOT fun time)

2. Take more video of nights festivities to look back on and enjoy till next Halloween.

3. buy or make more Ice ahead of time form Rum and Cider drinks.....scaring kids is hot thirsty work in a mask!


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## BeaconSamurai (Nov 5, 2009)

That I could set up all my props in 2 hours and that it takes 3 to 4 hours for lighting / electronic's. I have to find a better way to do that.


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## DexterSinister (Aug 13, 2011)

1. Don't get too invested in a prop/idea to change it if necessary. This year I really wanted to do the UnLiving Portraits and made them the focus of the garage portion, putting the Magic Mirror off to the side. I was a little concerned that it was a little too much for the younger TOTs, but forged ahead. It would have been better off to the side. Since we felt the portraits were a little too scary for the younger TOTs, it went unused for about half of the walkthroughs. It got some good responses but the mirror felt a little short-changed

2. Return the candy distribution to the Magic Mirror. I rebuilt the mirror with a larger screen and didn't get around to incorporating a candy chute because of dimension limits. Return visitors were expecting to get candy from the mirror, new visitors needed prompting to interact with the mirror.

3. Don't rely on too many helpers for key functions - use more props. I built a cage for one of our helpers to play wicked witch at, keeping her daughter and ours occupied in the cage. She showed late and had trouble manning her post (for valid reasons), but we planned on distributing candy from there, so that threw things off. 

4. Better lighting for the cage. The cage still was interesting and made for a few photo ops, but would have benefited from better lighting.

5. Pumpkin Projection was a BIG hit. Everyone loved it and many stayed to watch the whole loop.

6. Next year, I'm planning to do the Magic Mirror as a large rear projection in the garage (in place of this year's portraits). It'll be less of a mirror effect and more of a Wizard of Oz large, floating head kind of thing with the loud 5.1 speakers. The candy will be distributed somehow from the mirror. Might try the fans, billowing sheets and red lights fire effect on either side.


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## kakugori (Aug 26, 2013)

If it's gonna rain, don't put the plastic and burlap net up on the overhead fog rig - think inverted umbrella. Wet burlap is smelly, even more than dry burlap, and very heavy. No bueno.

On that note, go ahead and set up the altar to the weather gods now.

That cheap faux-leather fabric is too stretchy, and will tear out. Reinforce it, and not just around the button holes.


Really need more than 3 people for this.


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## DesertSasquatch2011 (Sep 28, 2011)

- I hate to admit but know your limitations
- Don't have a Universal Studios or Disneyland account balance so don't look bad on homemade stuff they are the best and best of all unique
- Hey its a free haunt walkthrough
- Some unfinished projects can be used for next year (time saver)
- Never categorize what you love to do each year as work its not. When it becomes that, then its not fun anymore and the love for the holiday is lost. I was on the verge or crossing that line not fun. Glad I had sense to make it fun again would have kicked myself all year if I hadn't.


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## GhostTown (Jul 6, 2011)

1. That I've spent enough money on the right things in previous years that I can be lazy and not create a damn thing and still pull off Halloween.

2. Confirmed that if you have a strong fog machine and ample lighting, you can pretty much set up anything in the yard and make it look cool.

3. That being lazy for a year does create some internal guilt and makes ya want to come at the next year with all guns blazing.


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## Jack Skellington (Oct 25, 2005)

GhostTown said:


> 1. That I've spent enough money on the right things in previous years that I can be lazy and not create a damn thing and still pull off Halloween.
> 
> 2. Confirmed that if you have a strong fog machine and ample lighting, you can pretty much set up anything in the yard and make it look cool.
> 
> 3. That being lazy for a year does create some internal guilt and makes ya want to come at the next year with all guns blazing.


Yes, yes and yes.


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## Paint It Black (Sep 15, 2011)

1. Get the family involved. They came up with some ideas that really improved the haunt, plus I didn't have to do everything by myself.
2. Not everything has to look scary. Adding some humor/cheesiness lightens things up.
3. Spotlights bring props to life! I never used them before this year because we have a street light that already illuminates our display, but it truly did help to highlight some of the major props with colored spotlights
4. It was lots of fun for our family and friends to have a theme (carnival) that went from outdoors to indoors. I provided extra costumes, makeup and masks. They all got into character and loved it.
5. Mannequins and skeletons are the best life-sized props. You can change them up for each year's theme. Our life-size witch didn't even make it out this year.


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## deveds2 (Nov 3, 2006)

1. Put out a tip jar.
2. I can never have enough amps, pneumatic valves, sound-to-light boards, and triggerable sound players.
3. I can never have enough speaker wire and connectors.
4. I can never have enough time.

Here's how it all came out: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10200857258899118


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## JustWhisper (Nov 16, 2008)

1. Start building MUCH earlier, including the making of costumes.
2. No matter how much earlier I start setting up, on Halloween night I will STILL not be done and everything will still go wrong at opening.
3. Not everything that goes wrong is a disaster.
4. Figure out which way the wind is blowing before setting out foggers.
5. Scale back. That was a BIG help this year.
6. Serving free beer, coke and juice was a big hit.
*Most useful tip*: while building and setting up ALWAYS keep your tools and building supplies in neat order. Keep empty boxes put away.


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## ChrisW (Sep 19, 2006)

That when I start setting up early, I use the extra time adding to the display, and setting up more items.

Lighting is key. I had the extra time to consider the lighting inside for our party. I switched out bulbs with color party bulbs, added some LED spots shining up the walls for effect and left other lights off entirely. Created a much nicer, otherworldly atmosphere, but it was light enough for people to see.

Take the time to allow things to dry before storing them. There were no issues, but we had rain Halloween night. I waited until a dry front passed through, ensuring everything was nice and dry before I put them away.


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## Penumbra (Jul 28, 2011)

1: that I need to get out of Oregon. 

2: Monster Mud is a lot harder to work with than I had thought.


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## deveds2 (Nov 3, 2006)

Tools and boxes... that is REALLY important to one's sanity!


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## SkeleTom (Oct 5, 2007)

1. Taking the time to complete props early adds to the satisfaction/ reduces frustration. Having stuff that doesn't fall apart while you are trying to set it up makes a world of difference.
2. Extra time for setup reduces frustration
3. Yes, it really is worthwhile to draw out a design first. Results come out better. You can often spot a mistake in the design just by drawing it. Sometimes thinking about the drawing excites your visual brain centers and lets you figure out something that had you stuck.
4. Taking notes and keeping a to do list means more likely success next year.
5. Make notes on _all_ the after-halloween sales you intend to hit, and go after them early. (I missed Michael's by one day, dang it! No fancy skeleton invitations for next year's party.)


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## Scatterbrains (Nov 16, 2008)

Some of these were mentioned above:
1. Put your tools away when finished with them. I can't wait to see what I find when clean up is done
2. If you take it out of a box, put the box away until you are ready to put it back in the box, then put the box away immediately
3. Label everything. I missed a few pieces, but sheets of black plastic, 2x4 frames, etc...makes setup a lot easier
4. Label both ends of your Lightorama cords and cables well in advance so you don't have to sort through that again.
5. Can't emphasize enough, keep your work area clean.
6. No test runs on electrical cords and pneumatic hoses. Put them where they need to go the first time so you are not rerouting them to get rid of tripping hazards on the 31st.
7. Test fog machines a week in advance. I didn't have issues this year, but if I had, no time to fix.
8. Test pneumatics early. Again, all worked fine, but if it hadn't, there was no time to fix
9. Put a couple of those steel green fence posts next to the cemetery entrance. Its blown down two years in a row, time to fortify it
10. Quit saying you're going to build everything the Haunt Group builds. (I start projects and never finish them and for the most part, after the initial rush to do something Halloweenish, I usually end up not wanting the prop anyway.) Keep going to the meetings though because they are a great collective of people and have some skillz that you can pick up on for other projects.
11. Figure out a new method to secure black plastic roof to keep wind from blowing it away. It hasn't blown away yet, but it needs to be more secured to where I can set it up and not worry about it. 
12. Plan storage before you build. I have plenty of storage, I just don't use it effectively.
13. At a minimun I need six people. I had that this year and again, that's a minimum. Need at least ten for the haunt I really want to run. Of the six I had, four were on their way home from work when ToTing started...created a mini cluster to start with...had to chose activating props or guarding candy. Defaulted to guarding candy.
14. Post a sign with specific hours next year. We're doing this on my time, not yours.
15. Cut back on treats. Handing out full size candy bars creates greedy little and big liars. See what happens when we go back to one small fun size per kid and if that cuts down on attendance the following year.
16. Replace batteries at the beginning of October or you never will
17. Quit running half marathons the weekend before Halloween...


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## doto (Nov 20, 2009)

* Don't reprogram things last minute. A 7 out of ten is better than a zero if it doesn't work. Fortunately after some tense moments I got things working and achieved a 9 that I was very pleased with. 
* Test pneumatics in final position even if garage is colder than basement. Transfering to final position might cause leakages and more time. 
* Taking an extra day off before Halloween was a fantastic idea...it allowed for reprogramming and fixing air leaks.
* Take pictures Halloween night, the next night might be too late if you get a major wind storm that reaps havoc on your tombstone collection.
* Broken tombstones means new ones for 2014. 
* When doing video of haunt remember what year it is. Apparently my video is of next years display, Does this mean I already missed next years cemetery photos too?


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

Sooooo many items i agree with from your posts , getting props ready sooner , better planning , and budgeting better , better organize setup for quicker dis assembling and definitely putting tools back etc saving time searching , but for me the massive thing i have taken from this years haunt even after seeing it said a thousand times on this forum was i finally i invested in colored lighting , and boy what a difference it makes .


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## Cloe (Mar 18, 2013)

This year I started my outdoor set up at the end of September. I didn't feel rushed, still was decent out weather wise, took my time and really made sure everything was secure. Everything stayed put through quite a few windy days. Nov. 1st. was another story as winds were strong enough to topple my large back yard gazebo and topple my pillars, literally bending a good size diameter metal rod. But my stones and figures were still standing. I'll make sure even if it may seem a little early, to do this again as it definitely paid off and saved a lot of headaches.


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## DavyKnoles (Dec 5, 2009)

I learned three things:
1. If you have a serious procrastinator on your team, don't give him anything critical to do.
2. Anything to do with fog machines -- especially homemade chiller devises -- seriously needs to be tested prior to Halloween night.
3. Remember thing number one, and thing number two won't be a problem.


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## BarryJ (Oct 17, 2009)

Don't put so much time into tombstones. In the dark, a lot of details disappear. Also add bit more lighting. Finally , fire my candy hander outer. There were a lot of kids, but 1500 pieces should have lasted.


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## LT Scare (May 21, 2008)

We started Labor Day weekend, my son helped a couple of weekends - as schoolwork allowed - and I devoted three days of vacation to the haunt. We still didn't finish. For the first time ever, the witches coven on the far side of the driveway didn't open this year. We didn't finish the still or the hay bales for the Hillbilly banjo players. We didn't set up the projector supposed to show the large snake on the driveway. There were also several other planned small projects that didn't get done. Fortunately the neighbors said they saw plenty of changes from last year and other than the Coven, they didn't know we weren't finished. 

What did I learn? Can't start earlier than Labor Day, so I need to make sure I have access to everything I need to complete the little non-construction projects in the "off" season. So I need to plan and consider this when I put the rest of the Halloween stuff away ... and get the projects done long before Labor Day.


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## Abunai (Jan 28, 2008)

I'm tired of spending 45 days to put up the maze for 10 days of visitors.
I want a permanent, indoor, professional haunt.
Controlling the pace and group size of the visitors through the haunt makes a BIG difference to the visitor experience....set the pace. 
I learned years ago, but this year reinforced the lesson that some people don't really appreciate something that they get for free.


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## oaklawn Crematory (Jun 25, 2010)

What did I learn or discover?: planning makes perfect. Test everything and have full mock setups before hand. Have an alternate back up plan for bad weather. Never put something off till "the day of". This year was the smoothest Halloween I have ever had despite the weather. My sound system and lightening machine was the best ever. All due to testing and planning.


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

TOP TIP oaklawn Crematory on the back up plan for the weather . Because of our weather we always have to plan for rain but hope it wont come , thankfully when it came this year it was heavy but in the morning so had time to re adjust to original plan , a rush but it worked , think this is one of the top tips so far .


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## MacEricG (May 26, 2009)

JLWII2000 said:


> I'm only 30, but I'm already getting too old for this $%^&! That's what I learned.


It gets worse at 40.


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## LT Scare (May 21, 2008)

Tough up guys. I just did this at 64 while "training" my second new boss of the year and generating our 3 year Plan.










That structure is 2x4s screwed together with metal brackets, covered by 4 to 6 mil black plastic + scene setters. I've been doing this each year for a bunch of years.


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## Dminor (Jul 21, 2006)

1. My RCA connectors for my LED lights was a BRILLIANT idea. It made teardown SOOOOO much easier.
2. Don't leave the canned food drive collection bin out over night. People will steal from it (whether they need it or not)
3. Animate a few more props, give people a reason to want to come and see your display.
4. Get louder speakers/amps 
5. Put up signage to direct traffic to our haunt (we're the only house on the street that decorates and we're right in the middle of the block)


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## Abunai (Jan 28, 2008)

Dminor said:


> 1. My RCA connectors for my LED lights was a BRILLIANT idea. It made teardown SOOOOO much easier.


I stole your idea and used the RCA jacks for my spot lights and my laser vortex lights.
I agree it was brilliant. 

Thank you.

I need to do a better job of soldering my connector boxes, however. I created several closed, plastic boxes. Each with 8 RCA ports. Some of the ports ended up being a little flaky, and I couldn't get full use out of them.

I bought several 12 ft. long female to male RCA cables from monoprice.com for dirt cheap and was able to position my LED spots exactly where I wanted them. It really upped my lighting game this year.


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## LT Scare (May 21, 2008)

How do you bring in multiple lines to a single power source with the RCAs?

I run ~1500+ LED off one Malibu Light Transformer. I use quick connect speaker female fixtures sunk into the back of my pillars for quick hook up. I can see why RCAs would work well for many of the others I have, but back at the transformer I don't think the RCA's would be practical. 

Currently I mount the 12 V transformer on a 2x4 at the side of the haunt near the roof. The wires from the transformer are wrapped around two 3" screws that are about 1/2" into the 2x4 and 6 inches apart. I bring in very cheap speaker wire from the LEDs all over the haunt and wrap them around the screws with a spring clip to hold them in place. There are several places where I consolidate two wires into a single wire that then goes on to the transformer. How do you do that with RCAs? Currently I twist them and cover with duct tape which is a pain during dis-assembly of the haunt.


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## matrixmom (Oct 29, 2010)

Like Beacon Samurai - setup is easy, hooking up all the LEDS to 2 outlets, ugh. It rains, they dont light up.Then go looking for where water got in.
Buy some more spirit outdoor led spots. Also, I think setting up 1 week before is better, then I dont have to fixing everything everyday.


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## matrixmom (Oct 29, 2010)

I know we are a bunch of wimps aren't we?




LT Scare said:


> Tough up guys. I just did this at 64 while "training" my second new boss of the year and generating our 3 year Plan.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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## matrixmom (Oct 29, 2010)

Creepy Creations where are you? We need another tutorial here! Its like somone is speaking another language!



LT Scare said:


> How do you bring in multiple lines to a single power source with the RCAs?
> 
> I run ~1500+ LED off one Malibu Light Transformer. I use quick connect speaker female fixtures sunk into the back of my pillars for quick hook up. I can see why RCAs would work well for many of the others I have, but back at the transformer I don't think the RCA's would be practical.
> 
> Currently I mount the 12 V transformer on a 2x4 at the side of the haunt near the roof. The wires from the transformer are wrapped around two 3" screws that are about 1/2" into the 2x4 and 6 inches apart. I bring in very cheap speaker wire from the LEDs all over the haunt and wrap them around the screws with a spring clip to hold them in place. There are several places where I consolidate two wires into a single wire that then goes on to the transformer. How do you do that with RCAs? Currently I twist them and cover with duct tape which is a pain during dis-assembly of the haunt.


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## Dminor (Jul 21, 2006)

LT Scare said:


> How do you bring in multiple lines to a single power source with the RCAs?


I made a box with power running to 32 female RCA inputs. I also use stereo to mono RCA adapters so that I can run one line with two connections at the end. For example, I had a LED pin spot and LED lantern situated in front of a tombstone. I ran one length of speaker wire with a single RCA connection at the end and then plugged in the adapter to give me 2 connections.

I have a tutorial on the RCA connector box (http://www.halloweenforum.com/tutorials-step-step/125647-diy-led-mini-spot-style.html) but here's a picture of it. 










Here's a video:






It was spawned from another member's use of spring loaded speaker connectors.


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## Col. Fryght (Oct 23, 2012)

Black zip ties and black duct tape go a long way to saving the day.


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## Defenestrator (Jul 27, 2009)

Col. Fryght said:


> Black zip ties and black duct tape go a long way to saving the day.



Truth ^. 

This is not necessarily a lesson I took from 2013, as I consider these items to be Halloween 'bare necessities', but it certainly is worth stating, and repeating for the record.


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## mariem (Oct 7, 2012)

Make time to fill ALL the holes the dog had dug in the yard. A couple kids tripped in the same hole and the second kid landed on one of my tombstones and broke it. I guess I deserved that but the kids didn't. Next year I will do better.

Next year I need to add lighting to my cemetery. I bought two lights this year for the cemetery but I need more. Budget is tight with my new car so I need to get some more before next year so we can see all the stones and no more tripping.

Chill out and what deosn't get done it's okay. I found this year very relaxing and enjoyable when I didn't worry about getting everything out. I only put about 1/2 the stuff out and nobody knew but me. They seemed to enjoy what was put out. In fact I had more visitors (adults) this year than ever who came to check out the decorations in the yard and on the deck. We had fun in spite of the weather.


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

I found that out as well mariem , its true that sometimes we over worry as we are the only one who knows what we envisioned for our haunts , and of course sometimes what we might have imagined in our heads never quite happens , if your like me i always set my target a bit too high anyway lol . And good luck with your lighting i definitely agree there as well as this year was my first with proper lighting and i want some more as well when my budget may allow .


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## mariem (Oct 7, 2012)

Yes pacman I agree that we probably always imagine more in our heads than we can pull off. 

I had two lights that I bought this year but one light was pointed toward the deck stairs so people could see because the stairs are painted black. So only one light was pointed toward the cemetery and it sorely needed more. I never bothered with lights before because there is a streetlight at each end of my yard so I didn't think it would really make much difference but I found out this year that it does especially when the light is landing on tombstones. It sure gives a nice effect. So hopefully before next Halloween I will have bought at least a couple more.


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## LairMistress (Jul 31, 2009)

I learned that having a street light directly across from our house wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I only bought one colored light for the cemetery, because I thought that a second one would be washed out, if placed near the center of the yard, closer to the street light. As it turns out, the cemetery was darker than I'd expected, so two lights would have been great.

I also thought that having small bulbs in our porch light was going to work out in our favor, but it actually lit it too well. Next year, I will put flicker bulbs in the four small candelabra bulb spots, and maybe just unscrew the center bulb enough to not light it.

In previous years, I always used two Feit black light bulbs for my ghost, and she was gorgeous! This year, I tried it with just one (due to lack of outlet availability), and I really needed both on her. I don't know if I made a mistake in washing her cheesecloth this year or not, I don't recall ever washing it before. I did soak it in RIT again afterwards, but the glow just wasn't the same, so I have to assume it was due to only using one light stake.

We are definitely adding outdoor outlets, but we'd planned on doing that anyway. Stringing extension cords out the windows wasn't great, but at least it was a fairly warm two nights.

I learned that I really, really need a tree in my front yard.  We won't be planting one though, so I will have to make a sturdy fake one, or put a big branch in an urn full of cement!


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

I learned the same as well LairMistress i have a street light directly outside my house about 15 foot from my door and figured it would blot out any colored lighting i may buy , like you i was totally wrong , the colored lights [ 4 in total 1 x blue 1 x red 1 yellow and 1 x green ] even though they were only 80 watt each really improved it and set the aura perfectly and the street light did not affect it at all . Outdoor outlets sound good for your setup up hope you get them sorted before next Halloween , i think after seeing all four colors my favorite was green and blue and i will definitely get more of them for next year when finances allow .


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## Shift (Oct 19, 2013)

I learned that I need more storage for all my halloween goods. I installed an attic ladder into the roof yesterday. Next is some boards for flooring and a new home for all my props


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## SF Haunt (Nov 8, 2013)

1: Buy more candy if the weather is nice. We went through six Costco bags and most of the evening we resorted to one candy per TOT. We still ran out at about 8:30, everyone else on the street did too so I didn't feel too bad, but still.
2. If using motors or any moving props give them plenty of time to run to get the bugs worked out. I set up October 1st and run my lights and props for about three hours a night for the whole month. I definitely had to do some tweaking that first week to keep things going for hours at a time. 
3. Wiper motors are metric and metric all-thread is hard to find. I combined a metric socket and a standard socket using a small brace bar and some gorilla tape. Then I attached that to a standard all-thread with bolts, washers, and casters. It worked great for my breathing grave.
4. Bulb lights are not nearly as nice as LEDs. Get more LEDs and lose the bulbs.
5. Tent stakes work okay for securing things to the grass but there has to be something better if it is windy.


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## Scary Firefighter (Sep 13, 2009)

1. I learned that being behind a façade wall (my asylum prop in the garage door entrance) was the best thing I've ever done in regards to yard haunting. Since I wasn't "out in the open" and had a barrier of sorts between me and the TOTs, I think that helped a lot in avoiding any bad situations. Allowing the TOTs to walk right up into the garage like I have done in years past I think lends itself to unpleasant things like TOTs lingering around too long and trying to grab the candy themselves. Nothing like that happened this year and I think the drop panel walls and asylum set up had a lot to do with that.

2. Don't waste my time with foggers. Everyone I've had only works about half the time and isn't worth the trouble.

3. Dipping jack o'lanterns in bleach water does not help them last longer. If anything it made them rot faster. 

4. I'm getting quite the rep in the neighborhood. Many parents told me that my house has been their kid's favorite part of Halloween for several years now. 

5. One bundle of corn stalks goes a long way.... didn't need to buy that second one. 

6. I need more storage space.


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## JustWhisper (Nov 16, 2008)

I think I forgot a couple things on my previous post...probably already mentioned by others.

1. I learned this 2 yrs ago actually. Don't bother with candy if you have a large walk through style haunt. I just spent $500 or more to build you a professional style attraction. You don't need a candy bar. So far after 2 yrs of no candy no one has complained or even mentioned it.

2. As mentioned by others, don't waste time on prop details that no one will see. I believe most of the detail work we put into our props are for the benefit of showing them off on here. This year I really stopped worrying about the little stuff.

3. Again, as mentioned by someone else, have a plan. Each year I choose a theme (if I am using a theme). I have a scale blueprint of my back yard that I keep copies of to work with. 
I make a list of what ideas I want to work with, which props I want to use, where I want my actors stationed, etc. Every detail is planned out and drawn on the blueprint. Everything is measured for accuracy. 
I make a list of what I have, a list of what I need, a list for projects I need to complete, and a diagram with description of exactly how the haunt will run.
So this year I learned to make sure all lighting is on the diagram as well.


Scary Firefighter...where does one go about buying corn stalks?


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## creeeepycathy (Jul 12, 2011)

I've learned:
1- Someone will always try to steal my props..._ always_... expect it & prepare for it.
2- ToTers & adults love my display, regardless of how big/ small or what the theme is. . (Since I changed themes this year, I was concerned they wouldn't like it.)
3- Even though my heart/ mind is stuck at age 25, my body is still 56. ugh.


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## stick (Apr 2, 2009)

creeeepycathy said:


> I've learned:
> Even though my heart/ mind is stuck at age 25, my body is still 56. ugh.


Cathy that is the best out there. I think like I am young but the body keeps telling me otherwise.


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## JustWhisper (Nov 16, 2008)

Sadly, I couldn't agree more.

Mental age: 25
Real age: 54
Physical age: 60

Every year I come up with better ideas but less energy and more pain which limits being able to pull it off.


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

same again .....

mental age 21 .... most of my friends and family would say 6
real age 46 ..... most say look like 56 .....
physical age 55 ...... on a good day 
on a bad day off the scale


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## tomanderson (Dec 6, 2007)

I learned that having fun is the most important thing. Stressing over multitudes of details at the expense of having fun will make for a sad time. You gotta enjoy yourself, and then, you will find that you are enjoying yourself!


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## mariem (Oct 7, 2012)

pacman said:


> same again .....
> 
> mental age 21 .... most of my friends and family would say 6
> real age 46 ..... most say look like 56 .....
> ...


Yeah I'm with you guys on that. Sucks don't it?
mental age - 25
real age 51....on a good day feel 41
physical age 60...until arthritic hips, tendonitis and carpal tunnel act up then I feel 80. Some days I look at my Aunt who is 74 and I envy her. She still chops and packs wood for her stove.


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## booswife02 (Apr 2, 2013)

I definitely need better lighting. I used led black light stakes but they just didn't project far enough. I also used black light led bulbs and they just looked purple. Nothing really glowed. I need to do some research. I have two huge street lights that I can't do anything about.


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## LT Scare (May 21, 2008)

FWIW, I've been using black lights in the Haunt for over 10 years. I've tried LED (UV), incandescent, and florescent. Only the be$t multi-LED bulbs project good blacklight. By far, the best black light for the buck is 24" and 48" Florescent tubes. I wrap fixture and bulb in clear plastic trash bags and use clear shipping tape to seal everything. Works really well - generates lots of light.


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## Mcshrimpton (May 1, 2010)

I learned to never trust any battery powered light to last the whole night unless a brand new one is put in immediately before trick or treating.


Also, I realized it's a good idea to make sure your audio files levels are normalized before playing through the speakers...the quiet parts were too quiet and the loud parts got way too loud sometimes.


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## Mcshrimpton (May 1, 2010)

I learned to never trust any battery powered light to last the whole night unless a brand new one is put in immediately before trick or treating.


Also, I realized it's a good idea to make sure your audio files levels are normalized before playing through the speakers...the quiet parts were too quiet and the loud parts got way too loud sometimes.


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## jdubbya (Oct 4, 2003)

Fun thread to read! Even some of the "old timers" who have been in the game for several years can still learn something new. Some stuff I started doing a few years back; do a dry run of your entire set-up a few nights before Halloween. Place props and lights and mark where stuff goes (if you do as we do and not put big stuff out until the big night.) Keep your work space organized and neat. Makes finding stuff so much easier if you need it last minute. Go through stuff before Halloween and before you pack it away and purge things you can live without or won't likely use again. Don't be a Halloween hoarder! We fuss and stress over so many little details that we tend to drive ourselves a little batty. Remember that most TOT's and their parents aren't used to seeing more than a lit jack 'o lantern or some paper cut outs. Anything you do above and beyond that is simply awesome and they will remember it! You will be that "Halloween house" they talk about years down the road. Don't fret over the weather. You can't control it so work around it and have a plan B, even if that means scaling back or not putting out certain things. If you are feeling that what you do is more work than fun, then consider cutting back. Once the holiday becomes a chore and you aren't enjoying it any more due to the work involved, then scale back to where it's fun again. We are doing this for next year and already feel like a weight has been lifted!
One last thing; remember to light your jack o'lanterns! Of all the preparations we did on Halloween. I forgot to light the damn candles in the jacks! It wasn't until the first news crew showed up and I walked out front that I noticed them unlit. I ran inside and ransacked the house for a box of matches and quickly lit them. Can't have Halloween w/o lit jacks!


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

jdubbya your totally right , FUN that is the key word , thats what the whole nights about for me and i hope the kids too , yeah your got it right there one word that should some the whole Halloween night up.


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## oaklawn Crematory (Jun 25, 2010)

jdubbya said:


> Fun thread to read! Even some of the "old timers" who have been in the game for several years can still learn something new. Some stuff I started doing a few years back; do a dry run of your entire set-up a few nights before Halloween. Place props and lights and mark where stuff goes (if you do as we do and not put big stuff out until the big night.) Keep your work space organized and neat. Makes finding stuff so much easier if you need it last minute. Go through stuff before Halloween and before you pack it away and purge things you can live without or won't likely use again. Don't be a Halloween hoarder! We fuss and stress over so many little details that we tend to drive ourselves a little batty. Remember that most TOT's and their parents aren't used to seeing more than a lit jack 'o lantern or some paper cut outs. Anything you do above and beyond that is simply awesome and they will remember it! You will be that "Halloween house" they talk about years down the road. Don't fret over the weather. You can't control it so work around it and have a plan B, even if that means scaling back or not putting out certain things. If you are feeling that what you do is more work than fun, then consider cutting back. Once the holiday becomes a chore and you aren't enjoying it any more due to the work involved, then scale back to where it's fun again. We are doing this for next year and already feel like a weight has been lifted!
> One last thing; remember to light your jack o'lanterns! Of all the preparations we did on Halloween. I forgot to light the damn candles in the jacks! It wasn't until the first news crew showed up and I walked out front that I noticed them unlit. I ran inside and ransacked the house for a box of matches and quickly lit them. Can't have Halloween w/o lit jacks!


. 
True DAT!


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## booswife02 (Apr 2, 2013)

LT Scare said:


> FWIW, I've been using black lights in the Haunt for over 10 years. I've tried LED (UV), incandescent, and florescent. Only the be$t multi-LED bulbs project good blacklight. By far, the best black light for the buck is 24" and 48" Florescent tubes. I wrap fixture and bulb in clear plastic trash bags and use clear shipping tape to seal everything. Works really well - generates lots of light.


Thanks so much for this info. I saw on a how to haunt your home dvd that they used the tube lights and I said no because I was afraid to store them, didn't want to waste money if they got broken. Bad decision, I should have just went with it. I spent more money on those LED stakes then the fixture and tube bulb combined. Total waste of money. I will get the tube lights for next year. Could have saved a couple hundred dollars if id just done this to begin with. Hopefully my Secret Reaper Vicitim will be into LED blacklights and i can just send them the whole lot of them. Thanks so much for the help!


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## Shift (Oct 19, 2013)

I learned I need more storage and built an opening and floor board in my attic mainly dedicated to halloween


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## LT Scare (May 21, 2008)

booswife02 said:


> Thanks so much for this info. I saw on a how to haunt your home dvd that they used the tube lights and I said no because I was afraid to store them, didn't want to waste money if they got broken. Bad decision, I should have just went with it. I spent more money on those LED stakes then the fixture and tube bulb combined. Total waste of money. I will get the tube lights for next year. Could have saved a couple hundred dollars if id just done this to begin with. Hopefully my Secret Reaper Vicitim will be into LED blacklights and i can just send them the whole lot of them. Thanks so much for the help!


I know I'm inviting catastrophe here, but we've never broken a black light in storage and only one small one during set up.
We have an empty 48" bulb shipping box (Home Depot will give you one if you ask). We keep it against the wall in a corner of the storage. We remove all of the 48" bulbs from the fixtures and stack them in the box using the original bulb holders that came in the box. The fixtures are piled next to the box. The smaller 18" and 24" bulbs and fixtures are gently stacked on top of the bulb box - all at the top of the garage. We also store 3-4 regular 48" florescent light bulbs in that box for fixtures in the house. We also find that waiting until almost everything else is finished in the haunt, before installing the black lights really reduces their exposure to possible breakage.

Another trick, get the shiniest [silver / chrome / metalic silver] spray paint you can find at HD and spray the fixture reflector before you put the bulbs in. IMO it is a little bit more efficient in reflecting the black light than the usual white fixture. BTW, HD just started carrying some low cost 2 bulb, 48" fixtures. You have to wire them yourself, but just by a cheap extension cord and cut off the recepticle (females) and use wire nuts to connect that end to the fixture. Walmart has the cheapest extension cords.

Hope that helps.


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## LT Scare (May 21, 2008)

Some good points have been made about storage in this thread. 

We always drag EVERYTHING Halloween out into the garage. Then when Halloween is over, I put everything that was IN THE HAUNT away first. Next the items that I will definitely use again (we actually rotate / cycle the display of some props to try to keep it different each year). Then looking at what is left we ask ourselves, "Will we [Fix / complete / use] this next year. If the answer is "No" or even "Probably not" then it either gets tossed or donated. 

Even then we still have too much Halloween stuff.


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## Baron Samedi (Jan 15, 2009)

1. Even if you advertise the main part of your haunt as "unsuitable for younger children" and verbally warn parents at the entrance, some will not believe you.

2. Scare actors will not "ease up" or break character because people are daft enough to disregard warnings.

3. Having _this_ suddenly appear in a totally darkened room 2 feet away from a six year old will lead to either a) Hysterics, b) A toilet related accident or c) total panic.








4. A child that has broken away from it's parents in total panic and has run full pelt into a 250 pound guy dressed as Leatherface c/w real chainsaw is not at all easy to calm down after recapture.

5. Some parents are downright stupid or ignorant and really need to realise that warnings are there for a reason.


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

Damn Baron , forget the 6 year old , i think i would have a toilet issue if he popped out at me from the dark .......

And i totally agree with you about the parents .


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## Baron Samedi (Jan 15, 2009)

pacman said:


> Damn Baron , forgot the 6 year old , i think i would have a toilet issue if he popped out at me from the dark .......
> 
> And i totally agree with you about the parents .


I will quantify my last post by saying that my scareactors do not target children, however young kids do become extremely upset if they see their parents or older siblings being distressed, targeted or threatened. 
As for "Our Jack"..He is my son's creation and even I find him somewhat disturbing. The small room he is in is pitch dark, and he emerges from behind a black screen. He cannot see any more than the 6 or 8 ToT's that are in the room, so it's entirely random who he happens to be in front of when the strobe light goes on.


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## pacman (Oct 18, 2009)

I think the character is great Baron , and as you stated if you put up a warning sign then enough said , it is as though these people think that they are a better judge than you what will scare their kids , which sometimes that may be correct but without seeing the scares they cannot tell , until there's a stampede for the exit ..... shows how bad i am i would target the biggest kid anyway that way all the smaller ones think crap if the big guys frightened we haven't got a chance .....
any more luck with your photos yet ?


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## z0mbie st0mp (Oct 3, 2010)

1. I learned that even though its raining, the kids were not letting it stop them... So I didn't let it ruin my day. I may have been dripping wet by the end of the night, but I had a blast!

2. I also learned that my covered side porch would make a great mini haunt maze area or a good place to display the props that cannot get wet next year


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## ptbounce (May 8, 2013)

1. I learned that my neighbor is an overcompetitive prick

2. He was jealous of my haunt

3. Setting up bouncey castles for churches while playing halloween was fun


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## Scary Firefighter (Sep 13, 2009)

JustWhisper said:


> Scary Firefighter...where does one go about buying corn stalks?



I have always bought mine at Farmer's Markets but I've seen them all over during Halloween. I think even Wal Marts sell them and I know local pumpkin patches always sold them also.


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