Jivemaster

AFAIK lots depends on the actual DMX chips and the true nature of the DMX cable. It's far better to spilt the desk output into 4/5/6 than to take a used line and try to boost it with any accumulated errors. The concept of a loop is totally alien to DMX it should be (electrically) a straight line from source(desk or splitter) to the terminator at the end. The problem always is that we all know a DMX rig that's functioned perfectly for years that actually doesn't comply with the tech spec. I knew a DJ who made his living from it who had a DMX controller and lights but at the top of a Tbar the DMX was all carried in twin flex. Fortunately the total length was about 5 metres and he got away with it.

Check to see whether any intended load including computer based lighting drivers will shut down nicely when the power goes off. Many nice 12v devices really don't like 15v charging voltages.

The first problem is to define the necessary load and duration.

One previous member had a like thread long ago, his experience was that a sealed lead acid car battery totally died in about a week (not just went flat, wouldn't charge or discharge). Selecting a deep discharge lead acid battery would be better, selecting LiFePO4 would be more expensive but longer life and need a special charger. One supplier (www.fogstar.co.uk) is local to you, but I've never used them and have no connection there.

Every one of us here knows of a PAT23 and a PARcan that's still intact, fully functionable and testable but the lamps are extinct. Now the integrated fittings mean that once the first few LEDs go out the whole thing is landfill. ALL in the name of eco friendly.

The " DMX in " connector that you have found is a good start BUT it's a £15 component that's a very minor part of the whole system probably valued at £25000. Probably a good idea is to find the company who installed the system and get them to return to you to inspect the system for function and completeness and make very sure that they leave you with good written instructions. If you use your own laptop beware the internal politics that will assume that your laptop now belongs to the system, unless you intend to donate a laptop and the software. Remember that the need for lighting assumes some kind of blackout in the room. If the room will not be dark don't bother overmuch with lighting. In a school it's important that each parent can see their child, lighting to support the drama is an alien concept.

You need to find all the parts of your lighting system. You have the DMX input, where does it go to? Somewhere there should be a cable from the DMX input to a big electrical box (moderate cupboard size) with an obvious "main switch" Then there should be wires to the obvious lamps, some of which may work.

Even if you find the right connector and a suitable laptop you then have to find all the rest of the kit and how to address each lantern from the desk. In a primary school the principal aim may just be to ensure that every child is clearly visible, a task well done by leaving some room lights on.

Let's just hope that your mobile (sim) has a high enough priority indicator. During the London tube bombings the mobile phones went off including the bomb disposal teams phones.

Was there no employer's liability insurance at the time of the accident, shouldn't the insurers have had a responsibility too? Assuming that the incident occurred at a time when the insurance was in place, the company and it's insurers should have each had a liability, -it's what insurance is for.

Adaptors to use SkyHigh products with the LeMaitre firing systems were once available, I guess they still are. SkyHigh having become Illusion Pyrotechnics, and their products being available through a few trade wholesalers.

I personally have used four other manufacturers' products over the years, whether they are all still in trade sales now who knows. Le Maitre had a fair range and had a distributor near me.

LeMaitre set themselves up to be the major pyro supplier to the theatre industry, wiping out all the previous suppliers, so now without leMaitre there is little or nothing available for the whole industry.

With dry ice someone else has paid for the electricity to cool it at bulk rates. With the coolers needed to chill smoke you pay for power at the time of needing low smoke, be sure you have enough power available.

Always compare the cost of time and money to do a repair against the cost of a new machine. Remember that the cheapest smokers had connectors for the remote control with total disregard for the connector rating or intended use, sometimes involving live mains on one pin on a connector normally intended for audio.

In the least expensive smoker I'd expect there to be a single bimetalic thermal switch. When the (NC) switch is cool it switches the heater on, when the switch operates and goes off the (live side) pump is enabled and switched by the remote or timer. In the better engineered there will be safety features like a thermal fuse to prevent thermal meltdown. As a guess the temperature is chosen that the fluid base (water) vapourises rapidly but the smoke component (glycol???) doesn't decompose (much)! The duration of the "Smoke available " period will be controlled by the initial turn off temperature and the (lower) reset temperature and the thermal mass of the heater block. It's important that the reset temperature for the thermal switch is hot enough that liquid never settles in the heater. Good smokers will have MUCH better design of heat control and fluid control. For a basic thermal switch the temperature differential is typically 30 - 40 degrees Centigrade.

Usually the best idea of temperature rating is found by reading the rating on the old one. Likely, but as a guess, it's a NC bimetalic thermal switch probably rated at 150, or 160 centigrade. Availability depends on your local suppliers, I'd guess that there will be an electronics repairer near you. RS in the UK stock such things, so I's likely that Mouser and/or Digikey will have something. If it's an economy Chinese smoker than it may be as cheap to buy a new one rather that doing a repair.

Years ago in the era of the London Tube bombings, I was an ambulance driver and a good mate was in EOD. My mobile phone went offline, his official phone went offline just as his team got in the van to race towards the problem. I haven't seen any improvement in reliability of service since then.

Everyone who uses a hearing aid is different, BUT many people can be helped by providing a signal without noise or interference, hisses crackles and pops really interfere with hearing.

When "Frozen" was the only music little girls wanted to dance to Disney managed to rip several dancing schools to pieces for their unpaid use of their music. With your production, any Disney rights must be paid for, or you get approval to change the script to something that you can get the rights to perform OR you chose another play. That the rights owner of your play requires a Disney track devalues their product to zero unless they can include the Disney rights in their fee.

Read the rating plate! A few say 300W the rest say 500W. The 500w lamps are available.

Papier mache cast done round the real leg with straps and buckles. Make it long enough that it restricts knee and ankle movement and reminds him to walk a prosthetic not a real leg. A real prosthetic would be a really sickly looking "flesh" colour. A PANTO prosthetic could be anything from plank shape to branch shape and anything else. In a real prosthetic the ankle joint would have very limited articulation -if any, which is what makes the gait impaired.

Occupancy is a big part of the premises licence. If the licence is current then stick to those figures, otherwise you could enter a whole realm of hurt by getting a licence terminated and having to make a new application to current standards. I used to be very familiar with a Listed venue that let their licence lapse and had to reapply for a licence including a total rewire, new emergency lighting system, and total new toilets system, plus they were closed for six months. It's your Licence Holder who has the paperwork of the licence and they should refer to the licence document to find these figures. NEVER tweak the licence Issuing Officer they can say NO.

The lamps in trade satisfy the requirement for light from low volts by any means that may or may not be DC suitable. Onsolar.co.uk specialise in lamps intended for use from DC, off grid, battery type applications. Whether they have something you can use.... Likely there will be other suppliers that I haven't found.

If the "nail gun" is a dummy with no (air) power then it will not fire all three times it's scripted, however a tiny special effect is placed at the third target and fired remotely the appearance may be that the dummy gun fired something. All depends on the actors and their acting.