fog machine help

[Abby Normal]

I am fairly new to home haunting, I'm wondering what to do with this fog machine I have had for a few years now. problem is I need to push a button to get a blast of fog. wait for a light to turn green and then push the button. it does work well but i would like it to just make fog on its own. I think this fogger came from walmart (it was a gift from my MIL hahaha.) anyone know how i can fix it or should i just get a new one,...I dont want to get a new one as its not in my budget.
Alsoooo whats the deal with chillers? Is that simply to keep the fog on the ground. I live in canada so its pretty cold here I have never had a problem keeping fog on the ground.

thanks for your input!

[scream1973]

What you need is a fog machine timer.. You can get them from walmart as well expect to pay around 15.00 or so CAD. This will let the machine make fog every x seconds and output a blast of fog for x seconds with the timing being variable

[RoxyBlue]

Scream, if I understand the question correctly, I think Abby's problem is the button-pushing aspect, which would have to be addressed before using a timer.

Can't help with the button part, but I can say yes, the chiller is to help keep fog on the ground down here where it's sometimes a bit warmer on Halloween:)

[Scottzilla]

If I'm reading the question right, the timer would take care of the button problem (wouldn't have to push it).

Fog chillers are for making the fog lay low to the ground. The trick is to make the fog colder relative to the surrounding air, so you'd still need a chiller of some kind, even with your cold Canadian air.

[ouizul1]

It's probably a 400 watt fogger if it's from Walmart, yes? ...the little silvery guys. The heater in it is not big enough for continuous fog...that's why you have to wait for the green light. That tells you when the heater is hot enough. A thermistor monitors the temperature of the heater and enables the juice pump (and the green light) when the heater is ready...disables the pump when the heater drops below the proper temperature.

Did you want it to pump fog all on it's own, without any intervention? If so, then the timer is what you need. You can adjust how long it will fog, and how often (within the capability of the heater, that is) and it will happily fog away until it runs out of juice.

If you only want it to fog when needed, such as when a victim is in the area, you may want to use a motion sensor and a relay. The sensor to detect the victim, and the relay to operate the fogger. There are several examples of that kind of setup in this forum and they are very simple to put together.

[Abby Normal]

yup its a little 400 watt ....the motion sensor and relay is a great idea, would save on juice too! thanks for the info all of you!