Thread: I need Help with Fake Fire prop

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OK im having a huge Halloween party and i wanted to have some Fake Fire Props. My idea was to use big Drum Barrels and put a fan in it pointed upward blowing on a sheet of silk. There will be red lights pointed at the silk to make it look like Flames. Has anybody done anything like this before or advice for me. I know they make small versions of this they sell at Halloween stores.

Just a note: For the fan to blow air effectively out the top of the drum, you will have to give some thought as to where that air comes from. Cutting a hole in the back of the drum is a pain so maybe you can create a duct inside the drum with a cardboard partition. Just placing a fan in the bottom might not create an effective blow out the top; the air also has to reenter the drum from somewhere. Best wishes!

There are several different options that I saw on hauntproject.com:

DragonFire

Dancing Ghosts

If you got a fan like this:
Aloha 20" High Velocity Fan : Target

Instead of the typical box fan, it should fit down inside a barrel with some room to spare. I'd build a shelf or something so it's not all the way on the bottom, and then rig up the faux flames the way one of the other tutorials direct.

Now is a good time to find fans on clearance, too...

Thank you guys ... this advise is very helpful

agreed with harminca... you need as much flow into the fan as it blows or you will cause convection and pull the cloth down

I suggest mostly hollowing out the bottom of the drum leaving a frame of metal for structure and elevating the base for flow

What kind of fabric do you think i need? i heard that silver silk would work good. And im not sure what kind of light would be best. Any Recommendations

What kind of fabric do you think i need? i heard that silver silk would work good. And im not sure what kind of light would be best. Any Recommendations

Most fabric stores carry a fabric called "imitation china silk" it should be about 3-4$ per yard. It is very lightweight and has a slight sheen to it; which is perfect for reflecting the colored flood lights. White is best! If your working with a non-colored flood light orange fabric is better.

Just one thought if you decide to forgo the actual flames. I just made a barrel fire prop for my haunt. It turned out better than I expected and I'd actually be hard pressed to know there wasn't a fire burning inside if you ignored the lack of smoke...

YouTube - Barrel "Bum Fire" Halloween prop

This is made of out a steel 55 gallon drum cut down to 2/3rds size (with an angle grinder and cutting wheel).

I like the effect of the fire barrel on the video i would really like it if I had a flame shooting out though. I bought a small work light and put a red flood light i bought from HomeDepot and pointed the light at the material infront of a fan and the light made the fabric look almost pink. Did i buy the wrong type of bulb ... any recomendations on a Dark Red Bulb

Home Depot has colored fluorescent bulbs in red, orange (which I'm using), green, blue and blacklight. The color is very good on the orange and red bulbs so those might be good to try.