Securing Fireworks

[Somersetpyro]

So how do you choose to secure your fireworks? On bfn we fire off a hard surface so use blocks or bags of sand for larger cakes, and home-built frames for smaller fireworks. However for NY we stake the cakes/big fountains and use the frames for the small stuff. But share your methods below

 

[Alexs21]

Thought about this before, don't know whether to bury them or secure them

 

[Somersetpyro]

what type of garden do you have? I'd say staking's the best option tbh, takes barely a minute to knock in a stake and tape a firework to it

 

[zephieish]

Mainly stakes and gaffa

 

[Alexs21]

what type of garden do you have? I'd say staking's the best option tbh, takes barely a minute to knock in a stake and tape a firework to it

Just a plain grass back garden. I just get two plant pots out and stick them inside them.

 

[Somersetpyro]

that method is fine for smaller bits, but for larger fireworks it's definitely worth staking

 

[Rich]

stakes and gaffa always.
The only exception is small stuff which I bury but I don't really do small stuff so it's a rarity.

 

[Alexs21]

What are the disadvantages of burying and advantage of stakes?

 

[Somersetpyro]

there is a small possibility with burying that - as the material under the cake isn't solid - recoil can cause the cake to misfire. With staking you can put a slab/sheet of wood under the cake to give it a hard base Also prevents any damp from the soil/sand soaking into the fireworks

 

[Alexs21]

Think I might switch this year then.

 

[Rich]

staking is also the better option if you want to set up multiple fireworks in one go. otherwise your gonna need a lot of pots or have to dig a lot of holes lol

 

[AnthonyUKpyro]

I treat all fireworks on their individual merits-
anything that is flat based heavy and stable or is wide and flat based I tend not to stake or secure, but I use flat wooden boards in that instance, (since these fireworks are unlikely to fall over, the flat base tends to counteract any launch thump activity keeping them stable),
anything that is likely to fall over, I tend to put bricks round,
tall barrages and roman candles will generally be buried in builders bags of sand,
tall fountains also get the same method as tall barrages and roman candles.

 

[AnthonyUKpyro]

I also tend to put fountain start mines and large multi-effect fountains with flat level bases on flat wooden boards-I find these things only generally tip if you put them on top of uneven ground, with fountain start mines on a flat level board, I find these generally stay upright, on uneven ground the thud of the top blowing off tends toward tipping the body of the mine over, large multi-effect fountains are generally quite safe/stable on level flat surfaces, as are tall 13" cone fountains too. Putting fountain start mines and large multi-effect/cone fountains on a board saves staking and burying too

 

[zephieish]

I certainly would never just place, for example a Three Fingered Jack mine loose on a board.

Always worth a bit of gaffa round it, even if its just tied around a spare launch tube dug into the ground, if you have no stakes available.

Just eliminates the risk of it falling over, which has certainly gotta be better than ducking for cover!

 

[AnthonyUKpyro]

Mines with a wide flat base are OK to use on a flat surface such as the ones by FI/Bright Star and other manufacturers that make them;i've used these on a wooden board without support and i'd never had them tip over, I've also used the tall Bright Star Razzle Dazzle mines on a flat board without any means of support and they're fine, they are heavy too and that's what keeps them upright when the top blows off and the effects emerge skyward from the casing.

 

[Vladster]

I used heavy concrete blocks last year for the cakes i fired and found it was an ideal way of securing them. In previous years, I've screwed two scaffold batons together and screwed timber around the cake which keeps them nice and secure.

It's pretty simple to make but can take a wee bit of time to do depending on how many cakes you have on it.

 

[Somersetpyro]

@zephieish is right i think, they may be unlikely to fall over, but they still could. Always better to be safe and put a couple blocks around them, or a stake. 30 seconds of extra prep is all it takes
That cake board looks ideal vlad, can't be too expensive either