adam2

I agree that "if it works, why change it." Halogen lighting in general has a rather limited future life, so it seems a waste to renew or upgrade existing dimming equipment. If this has not been done recently, an electrical safety examination might be prudent. If required this should be done by some experienced in theatre type electrics and not by a local builder nor by a PAT test monkey. If you need recommendations, try asking other local venues.

Very sensible, but in this case only one small tent, (more of a garden gazebo than a proper tent) with a maximum occupancy of 4 persons and two exits. No trailers, no grandstands, no raised stage, actors stand directly on the grass. No vehicles near enough to be a danger in the event of fire. In the unlikely event that a vehicle catches fire, less risk than in a supermarket car park.

Not as far as I know. This event is being held in the extensive grounds of a fee paying school. Only open to invited guests who have some connection with the school, not to the general public. The school buildings are equipped with emergency lighting, fire exits, and fire alarms, but they consider such to be not needed outdoors. Or in more detail. Fire alarm not needed in a field. Emergency lighting is provided by use of two independent supplies for the normal lighting. Fire proofing, curtains and drapes are fire retardant, the rest of the field is not. In the event of severe drought the surroundings will be watered to reduce risks of grass catching fire.

I am not in charge of this event, but simply advising WRT lighting and electricity supply. The organisers consider that less elaborate safety requirements are fine for a grass field rather than a building. Both vehicles are well equipped with fire extinguishers.

There is no question of parallel operation, the two inverters will remain independent. Footlights on one inverter and chandelier on the other. "House" lights half on each inverter. Failure of either inverter will be no worse than a power cut in a proper venue that extinguishes most of the lights and leave only the emergency lights lit. The two vehicles each have duplicated batteries of large capacity, and any subsequent failure to start would be most inconvenient but not endanger anyone.

I do not believe that emergency lighting equipment of any normal type is required. The lighting is split over two inverters, powered from two vehicles. Failure of either supply would leave enough lighting for safe evacuation. simultaneous failure of both supplies is so unlikely as to be an acceptable risk, comparable perhaps to the chance of a power cut immediately followed by total failure of a central battery system in a proper venue. And of course being in the open air almost eliminates risk of fire. All stewards will have torches, customers are advised to bring a torch. The chandelier is plastic and relatively lightweight at about 10 kilos, it will be suspended from an overhanging tree branch. A tree surgeon advises that the tree branch is sound and well able to support this load. The stage area is not roofed. A small tented area is available for storage and changing in the dry in the event of rain.

Flame retardant bed sheets are available, primarily for use in old folks homes and other places in which the users may lack the mental or physical capacity to take basic precautions against fire.

Use of the very temporary outdoor "stage" will be confined to a few weeks in high summer, performances will be cancelled in the event of HEAVY rain, but are planned to go ahead in moderate showers. Lighting will be desirable for the first half and required for the second half. One planned production is to feature a gas street lamp, this will use actual gas from a cylinder. Punters will be advised to dress for the conditions and to bring a blanket.

The total installed load is about 500 watts. The maximum at any time will be half that or less. There is to be no question of use of stage lighting and full house lighting at the same time. The different colours of lamps in the foot lights will not be all used together. The chosen LED lamps work fine on the inverter, confirmed by practical test. The chandelier will be between the front row of seats and the front of the stage, at high level. Both vehicles have 24 volt electrical systems and large batteries.

No mains power is available, and a generator not wanted due to cost. I propose home made footlights than can be simply laid on the grass, containing multiple 230 volt, 4 watt, coloured LED lamps. Blue, red, amber, and cool white. No dimming, just selective switching so as to give 3 intensities from each colour. Power from duplicated inverters, one fed from each of two vehicles that are required in any case. Supplemented by a chandelier above and forward of the stage, fitted with 16 number 3.8 watt warm white lamps and selective switching. This chandelier is all insulated to avoid any concerns regarding earthing. Two improvised follow spots based on 24 volt 35 watt HID vehicle headlights. "House lighting" to be building site festoons strung between trees and fitted with 230 volt 3.8 watt lamps. These are made with twin cable and need no earthing. The footlights are to be home made, not by myself. Wooden construction and all insulated lamp holders to avoid any need for earthing. Fire risk considered negligible with a total loading of under 400 watts, and that spread over a considerable area. My only slight concern is that the so called amber LED lamps are in fact more of a lemon yellow, and if lit with the cool white lamps might tend to produce a greenish tint. My input is limited to electrical matters, and not the artistic merits of the proposed production.

I have used a king size sheet as a back projection screen, it worked fine. There is presumably some loss of image brightness if compared to a purpose made back projection screen, but for a non critical application it works fine. Use the sheet on your bed afterwards. If a king size sheet is not big enough, several suppliers offer similar material in almost unlimited lengths.

Yet another delay has been announced, and another debut act cancelled. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-68937492. Very poor. Reported to be due to a "technical issue" My personal suspicion is that over complication and over computerisation is probably to blame.

The lamp rating is most unlikely to be that critical. It must not introduce significant voltage drop in normal operation, a six or twelve volt lamp will only drop a volt or so if glowing dimly. The current rating must be large enough to not blow during operation, but to blow fairly reliably under fault conditions.

I suspect that the lamps may be of a standard rating. To solder or spot weld wires to an already existing standard type of lamp is trivial, To manufacture a non standard rating of lamp is more involved and expensive. If anyone has an intact example it should be possible to determine the rating by experiment. Connect the lamp to a variable voltage power supply and adjust the voltage until the lamp lights at a reasonable intensity and colour temperature for a small incandescent lamp, measure the current drawn at this voltage.

For a true blacklight, with minimum visible light I would recommend UV blacklight fluorescent tubes as these give more UV and less visible light. Be sure to obtain the correct blacklight tubes, the ones that look black when not lit. Do not use other lamps intended for sun tanning, insect killers, printing, or water treatment. UV LEDs are still not a match for blacklight tubes. Four foot is the most common size but others exist. They operate in standard fittings. Blacklight CFLs are also available and are a bit more limited in output but are easier to store and transport.