When I first opened our haunted hayride back in 1990,
I used products that I was familiar with. My background was in
automotive electronics and later, commercial security systems.
I discovered that there were many items that I used in these businesses
that I could adapt to my haunt.
I have always been a fan of adding music and sound effects
to our hayride and found that my auto sound background was a big
help. From the first year, we installed standard car stereos,
speakers and amps on our tractors, and played a soundtrack during
the ride through our attraction. This added a "movie"
quality to the ride and also allowed the drivers to stay in sync
with the time-track. Last year, we upgraded our sound systems
to MP-3 players. These are digital recorders that will give you
the same audio track every time. They tie into the car stereo
amps (I use 400 watt Lanszar Vibe amps) and are controlled by
the driver. We use a 10" stereo, full range sub cabinet,
supplied by Radio Shack, and mounted to the back of each tractor.
This speaker system will give you good quality bass and good volume
without costing so much.
When we opened our haunted house a few years later, I found
that my access to burglar alarm products was instrumental in setting
up automation, sound effects, and lighting. First, we set up a
sound system for background music. Then, we wanted to add sound
effects at different scenes. For this I used a digital recorder
manufactured by ELK electronics. The model ELK-120 allowed me
to record any sound bite, 5, 10 or 20 seconds, and activate it
with a 12 volt spike. You can use a mat switch, motion sensor
or manual switch to start the sound sequence. This unit has an
onboard amp and will run a standard 8 ohm speaker at 110 decibels
at 10 feet. There is also an onboard volume control and microphone,
making it easy to record screams or other sound effects. There
is a computer interface available that will let you download sound
wave files. These boards only cost about $60.00 and can be located
anywhere. They operate on 12-24 volts DC and draw less than 100
mA.
Another item we use frequently is a time delay relay. I use
one made by Altronix, that uses 12-24 volts DC and can be adjusted
from 1 second to 60 minutes. It has a built in form "C"
SPDT relay that can be programmed to activate at the beginning
or end of the timing cycle. This product has 4 DIP switches that
allow you to custom tailor it for your specific needs. One of
the nice features of this timer is that it can be triggered by
either a normally open device or a normally closed device. The
standby draw is 3 mA and the activated draw is 40 mA. They can
be ordered with snap track adapter or DIN rail mount. The best
thing is that they are only about $20.00, as compared to Allen
Bradley units costing up to $60.00 each. The model number for
this unit is 6062Al.
If you are looking for basic DPDT relays, the Altronix RB-5
unit is perfect. It is energized by 6 or 12 volts, DC and has
5 amp, 120 volt contacts. They cost less than $15.00 and have
standard screw terminals.
Another item we have used in both our haunted house and our
hayride is the Linear DXR-701 wireless remote control relay. There
are 4 output configurations; relay on for 1 second, relay on for
4 seconds, relay latch, and relay toggles on and off. The range
is 300 feet unobstructed and 150 feet indoors. This unit operates
on 11-17 VDC or 16-16 VAC and the contacts are rated at 1 amp
at 12-24 volts AC/DC.
We used this item in several locations last year, including activating
a corpselator in our Wild West scene. An actor/operator can activate
a prop at the optimum moment to give the best scare. Another place
that we used this device was at our hanging Osama fundraiser.
Customers who wanted to participate were given the remote button
and told to push it when they were ready. The relay activated
the timed sequence as well as the audio board. Doors opened on
the second floor dormer window, and exposed the bearded rat. The
audio sequence began, with Osama begging for mercy. The timer
timed out and released the pneumatic solenoid that made Osama
fall forward and hang. Everyone cheers. Pressing the remote button
for a second time reversed the whole sequence, thus resetting
the hanging dummy and closing the doors. We charged $5.00 to hang
him and all proceeds went to a local family in need.
Anyone who is interested in these products and how to locate
them, please e-mail me at rbateshh@erols.com
Randy Bates
The Bates Motel
www.thebatesmotel.com