Bubble Machines

[Norfolk DJ 0]

 

A need machine for occasional use which is reasonably priced for small/medium venues.

 

Any recommendations?

 

Rob

[mikeyb 0]

Hi,

 

After chatting to other DJs I would recommend Antari. They do bigger ones, but also smaller budget machines and they are a good reliable make for bubbles in my opinion. Looking to get one myself soon. Avoid the 'high street' electrical shops wink wink versions as i have heard they are so bad one DJ I know just left it at the gig.

 

They're a good effect used wisely, just watch the dancefloor isn't getting wet (I only use one at kid's parties normally, and only with a full dancefloor)

 

PM me if u need any links etc

 

cheers have a good weekend!

Edited May 29, 2009 by mikeyb

[dj_dex 0]

I have to echo mikeyb's comments on watching out for the dancefloor, I gave up using my m/c on wooden floors as they quickly get very slippery if you keep the bubbles going for long. That said - kiddies birthday parties love 'em!

[Norfolk DJ 0]

 

Brides seem to like them. I try to pleasently put them off re the H&S issues of a slippery floor, but a few still want them.

[Bouncy Dancefloor 0]

we've covered the H&S side of things

 

i recommend the Antari bubble machine that Maplins sell, it chucks out loads and they go very high too! It was about £40 and i do 2-3 kids parties a week

 

i compared it to lots of different (cheap end) bubble machines and it blew them out of the water. Funny enough, Maplins were the cheapest too by a mile and free delivery!

 

Make sure you buy decent fluid though, as the fluid is more important than the machine!

[Norfolk DJ 0]

we've covered the H&S side of things

 

i recommend the Antari bubble machine that Maplins sell, it chucks out loads and they go very high too! It was about £40 and i do 2-3 kids parties a week

 

i compared it to lots of different (cheap end) bubble machines and it blew them out of the water. Funny enough, Maplins were the cheapest too by a mile and free delivery!

 

Make sure you buy decent fluid though, as the fluid is more important than the machine!

 

Is Maplins bubble fluid any good?

 

[Bouncy Dancefloor 0]

i didnt want to try it if im honest

 

i can say that Skytronic fluid is terrible

 

Im currently using the Prolight stuff and im very happy with it, going rate about £15 for 5 litres. Ive had the same 5L bottle since November and my bubble machine is used 2-3 times a week

[McCardle 1]

Im currently using the Prolight stuff and im very happy with it, going rate about £15 for 5 litres

 

Makes you wonder if DJ's are being taken for a ride as an industry with this fluid doesn't it?. I mean, surely its just some kind of mild detergent or soap residue / by product?. You can get all singing - all dancing classic car shampoo for less than that for much the same quantity. But manufacture it for entertainment and stage purposes and you can basically name your price

[gadget 0]

Makes you wonder if DJ's are being taken for a ride as an industry with this fluid doesn't it?. I mean, surely its just some kind of mild detergent or soap residue / by product?. You can get all singing - all dancing classic car shampoo for less than that for much the same quantity. But manufacture it for entertainment and stage purposes and you can basically name your price

 

It's certainly more expensive than petrol, at 3 quid a litre?

 

Did that 15 quid include delivery? postage cost on 5kg (+ packaging) can add up to about 8 quid courier.. €

 

In fact I'd bet that most of the cost of these liquids would probably be made up of transportation than the actual liquid itself!

 

David

[Paul The Party DJ 0]

I'm so glad this thread came up - I've been waiting to get a new bubble machine too.

So a big thank you to Rob (Norfolk DJ) for starting it and Bouncy Dancefloor for recommending the Maplins £40 machine.

I got that one and used it for my two back to back school discos yesterday - it was fine.

Hundreds of bubbles very quickly and (unlike my old machine) the fan pushes them out quite a distance.

This was helped by a high ceiling and a lot of very hot kids.

First session (year 3 & 4) I used it sparingly in the last 30 minutes, after the kids had gone I checked and there was no residue on the floor at all.

Second session (year 5 & 6) I used it even more, although I never just left it to run for more than 2 minutes at a time, but it was on a lot. Again at the end no residue on the floor and I even checked with the cleaner as she ran her big brush/duster thing around the room and she couldn't see any either.

My only criticism is that the bubbles are smaller than some but I'm very happy.

I didn't buy the fluid from Maplins, I got some from Toys-R-Us (£1.99 for 1 litre).

Cheers

Paul The Party DJ

[Norfolk DJ 0]

I didn't buy the fluid from Maplins, I got some from Toys-R-Us (£1.99 for 1 litre).

Cheers

Paul The Party DJ

 

Great tip :Thumbup:

[McCardle 1]

The toys R Us tip is a good one, and somewhat highlights the point I made earlier about fluid which is destined for stage use being sold at a much higher price than that which is sold to the 'domestic' market for use in toys and novelties. I wouldn't be at all surprised if it was discovered that the fluid was pretty much identical in chemistry and cost the same to produce, and it was just the end application which determined its value ;thumbdown:

 

I don't know what it is about this industry but whether its copyright authorities, insurance companies or manufacturers the whole philosophy seems to be screw the Dj's over on the price of things

 

Incidentally, if you are feeling creative, or want something for the kids to do during the holidays, then why not have a go at making your own bubble fluid?

 

Homemade Bubbles (Makes approx 5 litres of fluid)

 

500 ml dishwashing detergent (You may need to try a few brands for the best results but antibacterial seems to work the best)

4.5 litre Distilled Water (Halfrauds or any car factors) alternatively just boil tap water and allow to cool

4 tablespoons (60 ml) glycerin (available in pharmacies or online chemical supply houses)

 

Measure out the water, detergent, and glycerin into container with a cover and stir gently, then leave overnight for the initial bubbles to settle out. The longer you let the mixture set, the larger the bubbles are and the longer they seem to last.

 

Some people have reported successfully adding small amounts of food colouring to the mixture in order to colour the bubbles .

 

Also placing a colour changer or DMX lighting effect behind the bubble machine, also has the same effect!.

Edited June 5, 2009 by McCardle

[gadget 0]

Food colouring in the bubble mixture... and white shirts... That'll be fun for the parents to get out of their clothes... :)

 

 

[McCardle 1]

Food colouring in the bubble mixture... and white shirts... That'll be fun for the parents to get out of their clothes... :)

 

I can't take the credit for that one, i'm just following the herd and excercising use of the cut and paste function .

 

But I can think of worse things to stain clothing. Blood for example is a right pain to shift, and there could be plenty of that on their clothes if they slip over and bash their skulls on the floor or a sharp corner of a venue heater because of the residue on the floor etc, but thats an acceptable risk I guess.

 

Interesting, on some threads we have people actively and seriously talking about turning off smoke detectors in hotels and potentially putting the lives at risk of sleeping residents just so that they can use their smoke machines, and that is often deemed 'okay' because 10 or 15 replies follow and yet nobody says a thing. But mention something which might stain clothing........... .

 

I'm all for discussing potential drawbacks and risks posed by ideas, I just wish there was some equal priority as to where and when they were highlighted

Edited June 5, 2009 by McCardle

[gadget 0]

 

Interesting, on some threads we have people actively and seriously talking about turning off smoke detectors in hotels and potentially putting the lives at risk of sleeping residents just so that they can use their smoke machines, and that is often deemed 'okay' because 10 or 15 replies follow and yet nobody says a thing. But mention something which might stain clothing........... .

 

I'm all for discussing potential drawbacks and risks posed by ideas, I just wish there was some equal priority as to where and when they were highlighted

 

What about the spray smoke in the aerosol can (I think maplin does it), its some sorta oil based "fog". about 6 quid a can, and the particles are supposed to be bigger than normal fog machine and not supposed to set off fire alarms. Anyone tried one (was going to get one from Maplin a couple of months ago, but borrowed an over-sized marting fog machine from a theatre instead).

 

Cheers,

[fester 0]

I bought a can of spray smoke from maplins about a year ago just to see what it's like and if it's the same stuff I bought then i'm afraid it's rubbish.

I had to spray the smoke literally a few feet in front of each light to see any effect as it has a very small spread/range and it was also very very short-lived and quick to disperse.

Also thought I probably looked like a bit of a nutter spraying a tin of deodorant around his lighting lol :-)

Waste of a fiver in my opinion.

[gadget 0]

I bought a can of spray smoke from maplins about a year ago just to see what it's like and if it's the same stuff I bought then i'm afraid it's rubbish.

I had to spray the smoke literally a few feet in front of each light to see any effect as it has a very small spread/range and it was also very very short-lived and quick to disperse.

Also thought I probably looked like a bit of a nutter spraying a tin of deodorant around his lighting lol :-)

Waste of a fiver in my opinion.

 

Thanks for the feedback, i'd have guessed would have looked a bit of an odd-ball spraying the stuff around!

 

 

One to avoid methinks...

 

 

David

[Bouncy Dancefloor 0]

as i previously said i use the prolight stuff, ive tried the skytec stuff and it was very poor indeed

 

so im not sure what the difference was

 

i have heard of dj's using the toys r us stuff, but im not in a position to compare. I also saw Tesco's selling it cheap yesterday too

[Tommo55 0]

Yes I used two tins of the stuff at a gig before I bought my Antari Hazer, and the tins are :crap:

 

It says on the tin that it gives a long lasting fog that stays in the air all night, well if all night means 10 minuets then great any longer it just disappears!

 

And picture yourself behind your decks looking foir all the world as though you are fixing your hair and going over board with the hairspray!

 

Will never use them again! Waste of money!