Thread: Swirling Laser Vortex Display Ideas

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Ok. So now I have built my green Laser Vortex for $30, and it is totally AWESOME. Now what? In searching on the topic "Laser Vortex" I received 39 entries with the words in them, mostly how to's.
I was thinking those of you who use said prop could share how you present yours and we will have a boatload of idead in a single thread? So far, mine has been relegated to my kids showing it off to their friends. Please, show me a more noble use for it!

Good question.

Here are two examples of the vortex in use at yard haunts:

Pirate ship (pointed down)
YouTube - Haunted Pirate Ship House

Someone's front door pointed up:
YouTube - Laser Vortex - More Impressions from Halloween 2006

Hope this helps.

I placed mine in the middle of the graveyard pointing towards the sidewalk. This was also the location right in front of the main chill fogger. I really feel as though you have to look into the effect for maximum impact. I was also concerned that the laser itself would be a distraction because the green ring eventually has to land somewhere. It ended up on the ground, in the trees, and across the street on my neighbors house, but it was not distracting at all.

The only real problem I encountered was not having a fence around my yard making it difficult to keep the curious from wandering into it. It almost hypnotized some kids. Parents would stand and stare, too.

Oh yeah, my wife's original idea was to suspend it on a platform in front of our garage door which would be behind the giant spider web. I guess it would have been a spider portal? We ran out of time to implement the idea and delivering the essential fog was too difficult.

mikeerdas: Thanks for the links. I think I have seen the pirate one, but not the front door one. I like the reactions of the TOTS on both. I agree the swirling vortex is an awesome effect. As you can probably tell from my post, I am struggling with the back story.
Operatingnurse: I too share your concern of where the laser will finally land, and have been thinking of how to control it. They say the laser can go 5 miles (best case). I think it loses some distance when it bounces off the mirror. I don't want it going in my neighbors windows, and I am vaguely concerned about pointing it up in the air. We are about 5 miles from an airport, and depending on the wind direction, are located under a secondary approach for incoming airplanes (Flight 3407 crashed about 2 miles from my house last year). You read about idiots pointing lasers up into cockpits and having federal agents showing up at their door. I also agree that you get the best effect standing in the center of the vortex having the cone circle around you and not into your eyes. I also get the "portal" feel from the effect, and the green color to me says "Aliens". I know alot of horror purists don't like to mix sci-fi with their horror, but I think it can be done if you do it right. I am thinking of setting it up on the side of the house away from the graveyard. I will close the gate and string fake barbed wire (from LordGrimley) with an "Area 51" sign on the fence. Back near the vortex I plan to have 2 egg pods with an alien baby (also from LordGrimley), and an Alien Commander standing in the center of the vortex. It looks good in my head. I'll post pictures if it looks half as good in real life.

Operating nurse: I agree that the best display of the effect is where you look into the vortex from wide to narrow (the source). I like the garage idea. I'm thinking of having the vortex shoot down from a second story window, but possibly have the fog shoot out of a first story window beneath. It's not chilled fog, so it will rise.

Paul: You're very welcome. Yep, it's highly illegal, and incredibly stupid, to aim a laser skyward when aircraft are around. I like the reaction of the kids too. Probably perfect for a scare moment--e.g. misdirection. But I'm not doing scare stuff until the kids in my neighborhood get older--or possibly ever. I like cinematic, jaw-dropping effects, but not necessarily startling ones.

The best I came up with is build a facade out of pink building styrofoam and 2x4 ala Star treks "city on the edge of forever" or Star gate.
engrave cryptic symbols or what ever quote that refferes to the afterlife, paint as granite.

project from behind, so laser circle lands on the back. This resolves my main concernn about lasers and people looking direclty into the beam being projected.
would require a partition to keep people from seeing in sideways. this would also help to keep fog in place. This would work for my garage.

It can be a gateway to the afterlife. Seance theme, someone could throw slimy tennis balls through it. Hands reaching out from behind it etc.

How about this for an inscription:
To Ye who stand guard before this portal. Rest not, lest the evil that dwells within be released.

lay a skeleton in front of the portal with weapn and armor ala knights templar

tjlwolf did an excellent job incorporating a green laser vortex into his pirate cave in his garage.

I was thinking of building a contained "cone" out of pvc and clear drop-cloth plastic. In that way I can contain the fog (using less I would think) and display it in the bay window of the livingroom.