Burning Waste Bin on Stage

[Malcolm Gordon]

How easy is the smoke pellet to light? How big is it? Le Maitre's website gives a burn time of 30 to 40 seconds, but doesn't mention a size. Perhaps we could sellotape one to the back of the print to be lit, away from the corner, so that the flame reaches it, and starts the smoke, once it has been dropped in the bin?

[ImagineerTom]

Smoke pellet = nasty staining, foul smelling, un-natural looking effect. Any sort of artifical smoke (smoke machines, pyro's etc) will look ridiculous as anyone knows a burning bit of paper will only produce a bit of smoke not clouds.

 

There's far too much over-engineering going on here that's turning this into a stupidly complicated and expensive set-up that will produce a less convincing effect and require considerably more paperwork/assessment than actually burning a piece of paper will actually require. In this situation even I wouldn't try and sell you a mechanical/gimmicked solution; just burn a bit of paper!

 

As others have said there's no reason why burning a piece of paper + pre-arranged plan and a stage hand with a fire extinguisher isn't perfectly feasible. Do some research to play with different types of paper to find one that takes easily and produces some nice smoke; as a rule "glossy" paper tends to burn slower and produce more of a show than plane white computer paper.

 

As others have said simply have duplicates of anything you have to pull out "charred" which have been spray-painted black and kept in a separate compartment within the bin so they don't get accidentally charred by the real flame.

[Brian]

There's far too much over-engineering going on here that's turning this into a stupidly complicated and expensive set-up that will produce a less convincing effect and require considerably more paperwork/assessment than actually burning a piece of paper will actually require.

Amen to that.

[WiLL]

How easy is the smoke pellet to light? How big is it? Le Maitre's website gives a burn time of 30 to 40 seconds, but doesn't mention a size. Perhaps we could sellotape one to the back of the print to be lit, away from the corner, so that the flame reaches it, and starts the smoke, once it has been dropped in the bin?

 

Easy enough to light, equivalent to lighting a candle. The smoke stinks though, normally they smoke pellet is a plastic cartridge roughly the size of a large thimble, filled with a solid combustible. The cartridge is open topped so that the combustible is exposed on the top, and you apply a naked flame directly to it.

[boswell]

Use a smoke match taped to the back of the photo, lights easily, does not burn as long as a pellet but should produce enough. Easy to obtain from screwfix, plumbers merchants etc in small quantities. Also cheap

[Malcolm Gordon]

Thank you for all the contributions. I have enough ideas now. I certainly haven't decided to go with any particular "over-engineered" solution. In fact, looking at the smoke pellet video on Le Maitre's Website, it seems that there is far more smoke than I need.

 

Since it seems that people are starting to get cross, I rather wish I had never asked in the first place. Mods please feel free to close the thread.

[Brian]

...I rather wish I had never asked in the first place...

Please don't feel like that. Whilst discussion on here can sometimes be a bit 'robust', that is down to the nature of the 'net. In cyberspace it's easy to be brave. Well thought out questions, with further input where needed, are always welcome.

[Jivemaster]

..........The (edited) stage directions say

"She drops 4 or 5 photos in the metal waste-paper bin; takes a further photo, sets fire to a corner; it burns well but when dropped into the bin it belches out black smoke. To extinguish it she tips a vase of flowers and water into it. It continues to smoke; she then retrieves a charred and blackened flower."......

Malcolm

 

Despite two pages of posts we havent found BLACK smoke, and lighting a print will not result in the bin belching out black smoke.

[ImagineerTom]

//coughs//

 

Setting fire to glossy paper produces a "dark" smoke which is what most people would call black smoke.

[Andrew Edwards]

I have seen many many different burning things when I assisted my father in his days as a brigade Fire Prevention Officer. We used to tour the county with the burning living room trailer demonstration.

 

I would say that the items that produced black smoke were exactly the sorts of things that one should not be burning, or more to the point inhaling, in any way. Synthetics generally produce the worst smoke. Hence the glossy paper producing a darker smoke than just paper alone. Obviously there are plenty of other things that produce a so called dirty burn.

 

One off exposure to 'black' smoke would probably be ok, but I would not want to be anywhere near it personally.

 

I would reconsider the black smoke idea.

[tnt-dennis]

You did´t tell us about the background colour of your scene jet.

Depending on the background you will see the smoke or not. You need contrasts. If the background is dark, the grey or black smoke will be invisible. In that case you would have to use white smoke anyway so it will be visible for the audience. Most black smoke powders on the market produce more grey than black smoke. The only thing I know that produces real black smoke, is burning naphthalene. And I think whether you nor your audience want to breathe that. And also the grey stuff is not made for indoor use.

 

Dennis