Cold Spark Units ... still a fire hazard

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ittigger

ittigger

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I was reading an article the other day about a mobile DJ that has cold spark units - I don't recall if he mentioned the brand. I do recall him talking about the fact that you can put your hand in the sparks and it was cold to the touch. Also mentioned in the story was the fact that a cold spark had landed in a bouquet made of prairie grass and the bouquet went up in flames, followed by a tablecloth.

'I was demonstrating the cold spark machines to a venue manager recently and was showing her that she could put her hand into the spark Fountain and not feel anything. One of the Sparks bounced off of her hand from about 8 ft away and landed onto a bouquet similar to this [image] and it immediately lit up'

If you have these, just be aware of what they may be capable of - and what you may be responsible for.

Allegedly, these devices were formally defined as 'Special Effects Simulation Equipment' and fall under NFPA 1126, 2021 Revision, Sections 3.3.40 and 3.3.41, subjecting them all to permitting and licensing requirements. To avoid confusion in certain jurisdictions, NFPA 160, 2021 Revision, Sections 1.3.3 (12) specifically excludes them from flame effects standards and refers them to NFPA 1126.

https://www.americanpyro.com/assets/docs/Guidance/1.6FinalClarification on the use of Pyrotechnic Simulation Equipment.pdf
 
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ittigger said:
I was reading an article the other day about a mobile DJ that has cold spark units - I don't recall if he mentioned the brand. I do recall him talking about the fact that you can put your hand in the sparks and it was cold to the touch. Also mentioned in the story was the fact that a cold spark had landed in a bouquet made of prairie grass and the bouquet went up in flames, followed by a tablecloth.

'I was demonstrating the cold spark machines to a venue manager recently and was showing her that she could put her hand into the spark Fountain and not feel anything. One of the Sparks bounced off of her hand from about 8 ft away and landed onto a bouquet similar to this [image] and it immediately lit up'

If you have these, just be aware of what they may be capable of - and what you may be responsible for.

Allegedly, these devices were formally defined as 'Special Effects Simulation Equipment' and fall under NFPA 1126, 2021 Revision, Sections 3.3.40 and 3.3.41, subjecting them all to permitting and licensing requirements. To avoid confusion in certain jurisdictions, NFPA 160, 2021 Revision, Sections 1.3.3 (12) specifically excludes them from flame effects standards and refers them to NFPA 1126.

https://www.americanpyro.com/assets/docs/Guidance/1.6FinalClarification on the use of Pyrotechnic Simulation Equipment.pdf
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It seems to reiterate that a lot of this varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. In New England these are viewed as something that is very bad and fire marshalls have all but told venues that you can't allow them... although due to pressure from brides, I'm seeing more and more of these pop up in NE venues, especially in the Boston area. In NJ it's literally a town by town situation. 90% of the towns allow them with no issue or questions asked... the remaining 10% require a permit which entails an onsite inspection on the day of the event. All of them look for the same 2 criteria. That the sparklers are not within the vicinity of anything away from the guests tables, and that a class D fire extinguisher (about $1000) is owned by the dj. One jurisdiction also does not want them on carpet and requires a rubber like runner underneath the sparklers. Perhaps if this dj had them away from anything, as is recommended in the guidelines of the machines themselves, he likely wouldn't of had any issues.

It seems that this was written in 2021, so from everything I've seen personally, this hasn't had much of an impact on how these devices are viewed amongst those that actually regulate it aka the fire marshalls (the APA is just offering a recommendation, nothing more). If you ask the manufacturers of the cold spark machines, many of them will tell you that the APA frowns upon these products because they take away business from those that offer actual pyrotechnics and invested in a pyro license for fireworks and other effects. Who knows...
 
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djtaso said:
It seems to reiterate that a lot of this varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. In New England these are viewed as something that is very bad and fire marshalls have all but told venues that you can't allow them... although due to pressure from brides, I'm seeing more and more of these pop up in NE venues, especially in the Boston area. In NJ it's literally a town by town situation. 90% of the towns allow them with no issue or questions asked... the remaining 10% require a permit which entails an onsite inspection on the day of the event. All of them look for the same 2 criteria. That the sparklers are not within the vicinity of anything away from the guests tables, and that a class D fire extinguisher (about $1000) is owned by the dj. One jurisdiction also does not want them on carpet and requires a rubber like runner underneath the sparklers. Perhaps if this dj had them away from anything, as is recommended in the guidelines of the machines themselves, he likely wouldn't of had any issues.

It seems that this was written in 2021, so from everything I've seen personally, this hasn't had much of an impact on how these devices are viewed amongst those that actually regulate it aka the fire marshalls (the APA is just offering a recommendation, nothing more). If you ask the manufacturers of the cold spark machines, many of them will tell you that the APA frowns upon these products because they take away business from those that offer actual pyrotechnics and invested in a pyro license for fireworks and other effects. Who knows...
Click to expand...
I agree it may be a jurisdiction thing and I agree that APA is offering a recommendation. While the majority of areas in NJ might allow these, wait for that one fire to happen from a cold spark machine and it may all go downhill. As posted, this person was simply showing how they work and that they were cold sparks that you could touch - and a bouquet that was 8' away lit up. The Fire Marshall should also be following the NFPA (in addition to other required standards). My post was not that these are bad .. it was more of a be aware.
 
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ittigger said:
I agree it may be a jurisdiction thing and I agree that APA is offering a recommendation. While the majority of areas in NJ might allow these, wait for that one fire to happen from a cold spark machine and it may all go downhill. As posted, this person was simply showing how they work and that they were cold sparks that you could touch - and a bouquet that was 8' away lit up. The Fire Marshall should also be following the NFPA (in addition to other required standards). My post was not that these are bad .. it was more of a be aware.
Click to expand...
It already has happened with carpets catching on fire… hence the requirement from one jurisdiction saying a rubber runner has to go under them. We also have a few venues that have had mishaps and they impose their own rules. I’m not saying these are fool proof… heck even trussing was frowned upon way back when as being easy to tip over, but with proper procedures the risk is extremely low. For example, the sparktscular units only function with a proprietary controller that monitors operating temperatures as well as prevents the units from over heating and causing the materials to come out excessively hot. It also prevents you from shooting the unit should it actually overheat. On mine I can also control the actual operating temperature in case the environment requires me to. Whenever I hear a bad story about sparks I always wonder what preventative measures did they take.
 
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"Cold Spark" is a misnomer.
They may not feel hot, but it's a reactive arc - and like any 'spark' if the timing and material is right - a fire will result.

Static electricity is even weaker, but creates a small light show of it's own. That too, is a fire hazard.

I'd actually be more concerned about the particles getting into someone's eye, escpecially children who often play on floors. It's quite abrasive. Cold spark machines are something I'll never use. No one is asking for them so, it's not really an issue for me.

Risk assessment and safety are bigger issues for me than being the leader in glitzy gimmicks.
 
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