[HibLaGrande]

The last time I built one was in highschool, and the only dry ice available was $11.00 a pound.The local meijers store here has dry ice for sale at 99 cents a pound. At that price I think an old fashined dry ice fog machine could be economicaly viable. a steel drum, a dipping basket, a bathroom vent fan, electric water heater element and some dryer hose. and viola' creepy clingy fog.

 

[Bone Dancer]

Do you happen to have a photo of this ancient device. I think I understand the overall idea but would like to see how you put it together.

 

[Hellrazor]

I just use crock pots and dry ice for a buck a pound. I plug in the crock pot, put in warm water, put it on high as once you add the dry ice, it cool a bit. Add the ice and watch it billow... heres a pic...

and heres a photo with one of those little cheese melting crock pots in a pumpkin with holes drilled in it and lights, you cant see the lights well and the holes should have been around the top more as the dry ice just came out the bottom mostly.. but here you go

 

[Dr Morbius]

Dry ice fog clings nice, but disapates quickly, as it's just Co2 gas. Looks great though!

 

[Vlad]

And a reminder to anyone unfamiliar with working with dry ice, it'll burn you if you touch it.

 

[HibLaGrande]

Mine was built out of a 50 gallon steel drum, it was industrial sized for school plays. my printshop teacher gave me the info on how to build it. Sorry ,I have no photos. but it worked great. eats 1 lb blocks like candy though. It's been 18 years since I built it so the details are finda fuzzy.

 

[Sickie Ickie]

For theatrical effects like smoking goblets, etc. nothing can beat it.

Prob I have with it is that it doesn't store well, whereas I can save fog juice to be used at another time.

 

[Otaku]

Storage is a problem with dry ice. If you put in your freezer for an extended period the temp controller thinks the entire system is cold, and will not turn on the compressor. The refrigerator side will warm up and the food spoils.

 

[HibLaGrande]

the crock pot idea is awsome! we have a large and a small one....plus a deep fryer. LOL . I bet something could be rigged up with a large pot and sterno in a snap too. just need to keep the water hot or it will freeze around the dry ice and stop the reaction.

 

[HibLaGrande]

I wonder what a crock pot full of hot spiced apple cider would taste like carbonated?

 

[Hellrazor]

I keep my dry ice in a cooler... I put newspapers on the bottom of the cooler, add a bag of dry ice (tablet style) and put newspapers around and on top. I bought 10 lbs last year for Halloween and it lasted until the next day like that. I keep the little hole in the bottom open so the oxygen can get in and so it doesnt collapse the cooler. I would never put it in the freezer. I keep my work gloves in the cooler with the ice so I remember to put them on before grabbing at the ice.

For a Girl Guide thing, I used it too and only bought 5 lbs, lasted all night as well. For my party I bought 10 lbs and it lasted well into the wee am of the morning. I had 5 large pots going and 1 small one in my pumpkin..

The only thing I dont like is the maintenance of it. You keep having to add the dry ice. On halloween it was great as I kept the cooler beside me and as the peeps were coming up the walkway, I quickly added some to the cauldron. The kiddies loved it!

 

[gmacted]

The only other problem with dry ice is that you should use it outside. You don't want to be breathing it. A little to dangerous for my taste.

 

[HibLaGrande]

why is breathing it a problem? co2 is in the air already. and you would need to be lying on the floor to suffocate.

 

[mrklaw]

This is what the EPA has to say about CO2.

Exposures to 4 to 7 percent carbon dioxide can result in headache; hearing and visual disturbances; increased blood pressure; dyspnea, or difficulty breathing; mental depression; and tremors.

Within a few minutes to an hour after exposure to concentrations between 7 and 10 percent, unconsciousness, dizziness, headache, visual and hearing dysfunction, mental depression, shortness of breath, and sweating have been observed

http://www.epa.gov/Ozone/snap/fire/co2/co2report.html

 

[Hellrazor]

hey I had it going all night in 5 crock pots in my basement, and no probs. windows open, its all good

 

[HibLaGrande]

This is what the EPA has to say about CO2.

http://www.epa.gov/Ozone/snap/fire/co2/co2report.html

seems that it would take alot of cubic feet of CO2 to raise the mix in a standard livingroom to that level. normal air has like 1/3 of a % CO2. think of how happy the house plants will be.

 

[gmacted]

There was a "CSI" episode where two people died from exposure to dry ice gas. Somehow passing-out and dying isn't all that appealing to me. I'll stick to my glycol-based fog machines.

 

[Death's Door]

Hey Hellrazor - I like the dry ice/pumkin effect you had going. I think I'm going to steal your idea and use it for all the pumpkins that I carve out (10-12 altogether). I line them along the sidewalk and that would definitely look great because I could put a small glass bowl inside the pumpkin with water and just watch the fog creep out onto the sidewalk. Ah, I feel the smile on my face right now!!!!!!!

 

[mrklaw]

I could put a small glass bowl inside the pumpkin with water and just watch the fog creep out onto the sidewalk.

Everyone has been talking about using crock pots because the water tends to get very cold very quickly and freeze into a layer of water ice around the dry ice. Once this happens, you won't get any more fog. Using a crock pot keeps the water hot enough to keep the water liquid so that the dry ice keeps smoking.

 

[Death's Door]

True - I just don't want to use any extension cords right in the area where the pumpkins line the sidewalk. I can use a crock pot in my cauldron and any pumkins that will be close to the house. I don't want it to look tacky in the daylight with all the extension cords showing - the nighttime you don't see them as much but I don't have any shrubs to hide where I line up the pumpkins - but definitely I will use the smaller crockpots near the house.