Fog Chillers

[NukeGuard]

Halloween is just around the corner and this year I've got a haunted maze going on. I purchased a 1000 watt fog machine and now I'm trying to decide on the best design to chill the fog so that it hugs the ground instead of flying everywhere.

Have any of you guys built one? I've looked at using the ice chest version and the garbage can version, but it seems like there is a better way to cool the fog....I just can't figure it out. What I need is something simple and portable with lots of cold surface area.

Any ideas :shrug:

 

[NukeGuard]

Nobody?

 

[oldmodman]

Yeah.

Go here;
Halloween Forum

Lots of good info on foggers. I just use a cheapo 400w fogger and run it through a trash can full of ice. It chills the for and it hugs the ground. I only need to for a really small area.

Here is one make it yourself chiller
http://www.halloweenforum.com/tutorials-step-step/71815-build-your-own-vortex-fusion-chiller.html

 

[NukeGuard]

I've looked at those designs. I'm trying to figure out if there is another way to get the fog super cold. Dry ice is the only solution I can think of so far.

 

[sixt5]

run it through an intercooler! lol

 

[SNCBOOM]

I'm not sure if you would be able to get it down to a size this small [pressure issues with the machine itself :shrug:] But you could try an aquarium chiller but instead of a refrigerator use dry ice or a salty ice water mixture.

Diagram & Instructions

 

[03 DSG Snake]

Man for a Halloween party I did 2 years ago I bought a 'Low Level' Fog Machine that used ice, along with about 3 gallons of fluid. The machine didn't work at all. :cuss:



Fog Chiller

 

[NukeGuard]

Yeah, I've heard of a lot of people having trouble with the low lying fog machines. I tested mine today (not a low lying machine) and it fogged up the whole house, lol.

Basically, from what I've read, the key to making an efficient fog chiller is contact area. The quicker you can cool the fog and the colder you can make it, the better the results.

I've thought about using one of the designs floating around and just replacing the regular ice with dry ice, but I'm not sure how long the dry ice will last coming in contact with the hot fog.

The aquarium chiller has my attention, but is more than what I want to spend on building one. The other hurdle to get across would be how to get the fog in to the tubing. The fog fluid requires air upon exiting the nozzle to expand.

Keep the ideas rolling. If all else fails I'll just build one of the existing designs.

 

[NukeGuard]

Man for a Halloween party I did 2 years ago I bought a 'Low Level' Fog Machine that used ice, along with about 3 gallons of fluid. The machine didn't work at all. :cuss:



Fog Chiller

That's close to the design I have in mind to build right now. The differences are that I'm using a cooler for better insulation. The inlet tube rises above an ice bed. The fog releases in to the "upper chamber". From the pressure of the incoming fog, everything is forced down through the ice bed and through the outlet tube. Basically it has 3 sections. The bottom is open with only the outlet. The middle is the ice bed. The top is sort of an expansion chamber.

 

[THE_STIG]

Just take dry ice and pour hot water on it.

 

[Krwy]

Just take dry ice and pour hot water on it.

That what I did one year. Bought a bunch of dry ice, then had pots of water against the house. Had a HUGE pot on the stove to supply me with hot water.

 

[TwinTurbo4vGT]

liquid nitrogen :shrug:

 

[nofire]

Seriously, just find you an old radiator or something and immerse it in a ice/saltwater mixture. Run the fog through it and it should have more than enough surface area to cool it off. If you're concerned about size, use one from a small car like a hyundai or something.

 

[NukeGuard]

Just take dry ice and pour hot water on it.

I tried that last year in the house. It works great, for about 5-10 minutes, and then you have to add more ice and hot water. It also dissapates quick. This is for a haunted maze out side. I need something that I don't have to check on often and that will hang in the air for awhile.

The radiator idea is something I may look further in to, but how do you keep the radiator chilled? The fog has to be colder than the outside temperature in order for it to lay low to the ground.

 

[VirtualSVT]

60 pound block of dry ice and a kiddie pool.

 

[nofire]

I'd build a small box and line the inside with some thick plastic bags and use that for a container for the liquid and the radiator. Sort of like the design above, but going a little more beyond than the wire tunnel.