Depending on the number of stairs, it might disapate before reaching the bottom. I built a Vortex-style chiller using a cat litter bucket, the instructions where listed somewhere on the forum but I cant find the link. It works extremely well, mine willflow down about 4 steps before it starts to lift.
"Ice Pipe" chiller best practices..
I want to build one to use sparingly, indoors at a party, at the top of the stairs. I have a big roll of that black 4" corrugated PVC drain pipe, and was going to use maybe a 6-8 foot section with a uniform, gentle curve to it.
Wanted to know if anyone has tried this. I have seen some Youtube vids of shorter, narrower (smooth) PVC ice pipes that seem to work very, very well. Read somewhere that corrugated doesn't work all that well. I think I already have some larger diameter smooth PVC also, will try that as well in some tests.
Comments? Inputs? I am using a 400 watt fogger on a time BTW and want the fog to cascade down the stairs.
TIA
JH
Wanted to know if anyone has tried this. I have seen some Youtube vids of shorter, narrower (smooth) PVC ice pipes that seem to work very, very well. Read somewhere that corrugated doesn't work all that well. I think I already have some larger diameter smooth PVC also, will try that as well in some tests.
Comments? Inputs? I am using a 400 watt fogger on a time BTW and want the fog to cascade down the stairs.
TIA
JH
1 - 16 of 16 Posts
I saw the cat litter bucket vortex. Pretty cool. I don't expect it to flow all the way to the bottom. The stairs have a landing halfway, and go up the side of out family room with a railing along one edge. If it flows down to near the landing, and spills though the railings a bit, I will be happy. I will flow it over some white cloth with blue rope lights underneath it, so the effect should be pretty cool....
So did you get this working? Would love to see some pics.
Very nice! Put dry ice on the big day in place of ice.. no water to deal with when the ice melts..especially if you're doing this inside.
? how long is that hose and how much ice did you use???
Its a 4" diameter non perforated drain hose, maybe 5+ feet long. I need it to make about a 12 degree bend where I will put it in my house, so I might try this with some of that smooth drain pip and elbows. I read somewhere that the corrugated stuff interrupts the flow of the fog.
I dumped a 5 lb bag of ice in the pipe, it seemed to fill it just right.
I dumped a 5 lb bag of ice in the pipe, it seemed to fill it just right.
Nobody listens. It seems people like wet floorsVery nice! Put dry ice on the big day in place of ice.. no water to deal with when the ice melts..especially if you're doing this inside.
I was thinking about sloping the pipe a bit, and drilling a couple holes at the lower end putting it over a pan. But if I can get dry ice easily, I will use that. I know I can buy it at a place about 45 mins away, but don't really want to go that far. I'll check with my nearby iParty.
if you use dry ice you dont need anything nearly that big! 1 1/2" x3' pipe is all you need
I'll try some smaller diameter smooth PVC. I had a whole roll of that corrugated 4" stuff in the basement already, so I just tried that.
What about sealing off the pipe at the fogger? That is so no fog "leaks out" at the fogger end of the pipe?
How much dry ice? Fill about half the cross sectional area of the pipe?
What about sealing off the pipe at the fogger? That is so no fog "leaks out" at the fogger end of the pipe?
How much dry ice? Fill about half the cross sectional area of the pipe?
So.. to "seal off" the inlet at the fogger.. well, you really can't do that... the fogger needs a couple inches from the inlet so that the air right outside the nozzle mixes with the juice to form the fog. If you were to cover that up, I would imagine the fog output would be a lot less.. I don't know for sure tho. That said, one way to do this is to use an angled T joint as the inlet. It looks like a Y shaped PVC piece. You fire into the inlet that goes straight, with the other end of the Y near the nozzle. This is like a back flow thing or something. I forget the science behind it, but apparently it does two things.. and I think the main reason for using this is so you can do what you are suggesting.. if you put the Y join right up around the nozzle so that there is no gap between the fogger and the inlet of the Y joint, the extra leg that forms the Y allows air to be "sucked in" as the fogger sprays, so it in effect provides the air the fogger needs to product the fog. Someone with more knowledge may answer better, but I think this is why it was used, to avoid fog seeping out around the inlet.
I too would suggest using the PVC or ABS for it's smoothness and try to avoid too many elbows. It is definitely going to be harder to do a 12 degree rounded edge with it tho. With dry ice packed in it, 3" should be plenty in diameter.
I know 45 mins is a long drive, and for a slight bit of fogging it may not make much sense. If you had a big fog machine, or a couple of them, I'd recommend it. If not, perhaps you can put a ton of ice in a chest, add sea salt or whatever to help lower the temp a little bit, then stuff all that in your tubes.
If I get my 960 before halloween, I will probably end up using the PVC with dry ice chilling method this year. I built 2 fog chillers the past two years, and ended up forgetting about them when we moved and they were trashed!! So I don't know if I am up to building another one.. at $30 for the 60qt igloo, and another $15 or so in parts.. while it would be worth it, the 960 is going to be WAY too powerful for that chiller. I am hoping I can turn the output down to about 30% or so so I can get a somewhat continuous flow without the reheat cycle!
I too would suggest using the PVC or ABS for it's smoothness and try to avoid too many elbows. It is definitely going to be harder to do a 12 degree rounded edge with it tho. With dry ice packed in it, 3" should be plenty in diameter.
I know 45 mins is a long drive, and for a slight bit of fogging it may not make much sense. If you had a big fog machine, or a couple of them, I'd recommend it. If not, perhaps you can put a ton of ice in a chest, add sea salt or whatever to help lower the temp a little bit, then stuff all that in your tubes.
If I get my 960 before halloween, I will probably end up using the PVC with dry ice chilling method this year. I built 2 fog chillers the past two years, and ended up forgetting about them when we moved and they were trashed!! So I don't know if I am up to building another one.. at $30 for the 60qt igloo, and another $15 or so in parts.. while it would be worth it, the 960 is going to be WAY too powerful for that chiller. I am hoping I can turn the output down to about 30% or so so I can get a somewhat continuous flow without the reheat cycle!
Thanks for the pictures. I'd like to make a very simple chiller -- and for a person who'll only use it one or two days a year (and with dry ice readily available), this looks like the way to go.
Ed, if you get your's going sometime in the next few days, can you post pics and your thoughts on it as well. I am still debating if I should build a vortex chiller again, or just use a long pipe with dry ice filled up in it.
BTW, guys, don't forget two tips.. first, water down (if you can.. if you're inside probably not a good idea lol) the grass/area you'll put low fog. Second, use a garbage bag (black preferrably to hide it at night) on the end to "spread out" the fog a bit more. If you put a 3" or so PVC into your 4 foot or wider graveyard, you may not get much spread before the fog starts to lift/disappear. The bag I tried last year and it worked well, it spread the fog out over a good two feet and it spread out wider as it rolled down the grass. Just cut the bottom of a 33 gallon black garden bag, tape it up to the end of the tube where the fog comes out, and lay it flat on the ground. Really cheap way to get more fog spread.
BTW, guys, don't forget two tips.. first, water down (if you can.. if you're inside probably not a good idea lol) the grass/area you'll put low fog. Second, use a garbage bag (black preferrably to hide it at night) on the end to "spread out" the fog a bit more. If you put a 3" or so PVC into your 4 foot or wider graveyard, you may not get much spread before the fog starts to lift/disappear. The bag I tried last year and it worked well, it spread the fog out over a good two feet and it spread out wider as it rolled down the grass. Just cut the bottom of a 33 gallon black garden bag, tape it up to the end of the tube where the fog comes out, and lay it flat on the ground. Really cheap way to get more fog spread.
i dont seal mine. like andjarnic said bad idea. i have 2 400w and 1 1000w i slit up 10 lbs of dry ice between the 3 roughly 5 lbs for the big boy an 2.5 ea for the 400's. Here is a link to my other thread on this with diagram.I'll try some smaller diameter smooth PVC. I had a whole roll of that corrugated 4" stuff in the basement already, so I just tried that.
What about sealing off the pipe at the fogger? That is so no fog "leaks out" at the fogger end of the pipe?
How much dry ice? Fill about half the cross sectional area of the pipe?
http://www.halloweenforum.com/halloween-props/84293-all-fog-questions.html
hope it helps
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