jb007 Posted March 2, 2006 Share Posted March 2, 2006 hi, does haze harm the body at all? does it make breathing harder?what if its used in a small auditorium? thanks, Marco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ynot Posted March 2, 2006 Share Posted March 2, 2006 does haze harm the body at all? does it make breathing harder?what if its used in a small auditorium?Another age-old topic!On the whole, theatrical haze and fog products are NOT harmful to the 99% of theatre people (or their audiences!) otherwise they would not be used for a variety of reasons. SOME people MAY be susceptible to exhibit symptoms should they be severely asthmatic, but very FEW asthmatics (in my 30 year experience in theatre) actually have ANY reaction whatsoever. LOTS of ill-informed and ignorant cast members, however, have exhibited a WIDE range of PSYCHO-SYMATIC (sp) symptoms such as coughs, wheezes, breathing difficulties, general moans and whines at the merest suggestion of using either product. IMHO, 100% of this group of individuals are psychologically deranged, and shouldn't be allowed within ten miles of a stage. :) Why do you ask?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Festival_wil Posted March 5, 2006 Share Posted March 5, 2006 I'm an lx engineer, and I am also a part time DJ (mobile discos) and I use a JEM model of smoke machine (so vapour thicker than haze) however I have had one lady complain more than once at several discos saying that she cant breathe what-so-ever. I can't see how a mix of water, alcohol and veg oil can cause so much discomfort? She is the only lady to complain and she complains that she can't stay in the disco as she cant breathe. I have asked if she is asthmatic and she said she wasn't. So I think personally in many cases it is a mental dislike and mentally people think they are effected. Hope I have helped. Wil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gareth Young Posted March 5, 2006 Share Posted March 5, 2006 Many artists will not like working with smoke or haze becaue they feel it dries out their throat and makes it harder for them to sing - I suspect there is a bit of truth in this, but its more of an over the top reaction. Which is why I know some lighting designers will do things like hide a hazer under the stage and switch it on just after the sound check is over. Usually the artist assumes the room is naturally that smokey by the time they get on stage because the audience have created it somehow, and don't complain about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomo Posted March 5, 2006 Share Posted March 5, 2006 What finally convinced me that it was almost entirely psychosomatic was when I first ran a show where the audience entered with the stage pretty well hazed up behind the tabs. Houselights out, open tabs, lights up. A few people all over the house started coughing - there was no smoke or haze at all at the back of the house at that point, yet people were coughing ostensibly because of the haze. Ergo, it's mostly psychosomatic. I have had a few complaints from production singers on ship about smoke drying their throats, and I think there may be something in it - they usually complained when the airflow was odd which meant haze in the wings was denser than the stage, and as they get changed in the wings they do spend a fair amount of time there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted March 5, 2006 Share Posted March 5, 2006 I have in the past come across a musician who had a allergic reaction to some of the ingredients of some brands of smoke fluid however was happy to stick his head in a large quantity to check it wasn't the brand we were using that was the problem just ten minutes before we started so I assume it wasn't a severe reaction. Knowing the musician in question I do not feel he was putting this on but it does seem strange that only some fluid types caused an effect Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niclights Posted March 5, 2006 Share Posted March 5, 2006 I also will add to the psychosomatic camp. No doubt about it in my mind. Do make sure you use it in a well ventilated area. There are no known health risks for the current methods used: Water/glycol, glycerine or mineral oil. MSDS's are available for all the fluids used and will comply with the current H&S guidelines, but any doctor will tell you that breathing in small particle should be avoided if possible. Smoking is far, far worse for the body If you are a keen Googler there have been some interesting long term studies done on water/glycol vs. oil in broadway productions. These did demonstrate that the hygroscopic properties of glycol (water absorbing) genuinely affected performers, but only those who were involved in heavy concentrations daily. The oil showed no effects, but as yet there have been no proper medical studies as to the effects of breathing small particle oil (approx 1 micron). I have a strong suspicion that this will likely be banned within a few years. After the recent self-destruction of my DF-50 I have moved back to glycol because of my personal health concerns of daily use (not to mention the horrendous residue!) Damn annoying artistically as the oil is undeniably much better :) I wish someone could discover another way! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 Os it wrong that I love the smell of DF 50?Or even better cirro haze? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 The trouble is even if the material they breath in is not harmful to heath, you are still inhaling contaminated air. Ignoring glycols, even vegetable oil doesn't sound great to injest. Most people won't have adverse symptoms, but some people are bound to be sensitive. I don't suffer myself, but I know people who do. I'm not sure if the symptoms people get are real or not - but they do react. What is pretty clear is that breathing in anything other than clean air can cause irritation to some people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p.k.roberts Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 does haze harm the body at all? does it make breathing harder?what if its used in a small auditorium? You might find the following document useful (but be warned - the monitoring equipment is NOT cheap)http://www.esta.org/tsp/documents/docs/ANSI_E1-5_2003.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Lewis Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 (but be warned - the monitoring equipment is NOT cheap) Surely everyone has a Gas Chromatograph Mass Spectrometer backstage for this very purpose? ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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