Thread: Wireless Fog Remotes...

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So I was playing around with my fog machines the other day, trying to make sure they all worked, and I found that I have 3 Broken fog machines with wireless remotes like these:

http://www.frightcatalog.com/i/360x360/1405011.jpg

Since the fog machines aren't worth fixing, and I already have more than I know what to do with, I was wondering if these remotes could be hacked to trigger props.

I'm assuming that they derive power from the Fog Machine, and are simply an Open/Close circuit of some sort.

Has anyone ever attempted this?

Yeah, those should be hackable. You may want to take the part that connects to your fog machine apart, and hit the various connections with a volt meter to see how many volts it runs off of. (and if it's running of DC or AC) My guess is that the fog machine converts your 120v AC wall power down to something between 3v and 12v DC to the timer circuit and trigger. But that is just a guess, so bust out a volt meter so you don't A) Shock yourself or B) blow the components.

The remote is likely triggering a small relay that closes a circuit every time you push the button. This type of remote relay is both common and extremely useful.

I've done a lot of prop work in the past using relatively cheep remote relays from china. (Search for "12 channel remote" on ebay, and you'll find multiple models)

Good luck!