Hello. A short post tonight to show off two major accomplishments: building a fire and adding video to this post. Actually, I've been all over the place working on the Manchester this week--flooring, figuring out wallpaper, and finishing the center island for the kitchen, but this afternoon I made a fire. I ordered the three 3 volt fire kits from Evans Designs, with 1 3 volt nickel batter pack, and two 3 volt flashing blue lights to simulate the bit of blue flame in our gas log fireplace to add interest and depth the flames.
You can find them here: 
https://evandesigns.com/search?q=Fire. I ordered the smallest LED chips because of the small space, but wonder if I should have gone the next size up?
https://evandesigns.com/search?q=Fire. I ordered the smallest LED chips because of the small space, but wonder if I should have gone the next size up?I baked and painted the "gas logs" that I showed in a previous post so that they would be ready to install when the lights arrived this week.
I wired two LED fire kits and one blue light to the 3 volt nickel batter. The plan was to hide the battery pack in the cabinet, so I drilled a hole in the side of the cabinet and pulled the wires from the battery into the cavity where the fire would be.
These little pico chips are very bright. The red, yellow, and orange fire flicker as does the blue, but they seem to over power the blue flicker here on the table top. I realized right away, though, that the logs I made are stacked too tightly, so the fire doesn't glow as I had envisioned . There should be more space between them for the flickering light to shine through. I may do them over, so it was tricky getting the lights placed to give a nice flickering glow rather than blinking light.
I cut a grate from corrugated scrapbook paper, smeared some black craft paint on it to dull the grayness, hoping for a bit of burned coals effect, but it really won't show. I punched a hole at the end to pull the lights through. It's very hard to see, but the wiring is hidden underneath the fireplace unit. I am actually happy with the way I was able hide wiring in the bottom of the cabinet. The fire lights have 8 inch long wires, so I cut about 4 inches off to reduce the bulk.
I am not very happy, though, with the fireplace itself. I used 1/16 inch bass wood, which is quite flimsy, especially once painted. After I painted it, the wood also swelled a little, so it fits very tightly in the space. I may remake it using 3/32 basswood. The Maker will cut it and I think it will make a stronger, sturdier fireplace and I can remake the logs to get more glow. I will also add the second blue light and the 3rd Fire Kit, storing the batter pack in the left cabinet.
Still despite the the faults, I was able to accomplish this task and now I know how to build a better fire--place. And I even learned how to add a video to my posts. I promise not over do. View the video in full screen for a better effect.
I'm glad you stopped by. Thank you.
The fireplace and fire look great. I often do projects twice, once to figure out how to do it and another time to make it right. Your whole built-in looks wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThank you. I'm glad I'm not the only one to do "do-overs." Unless you have proven plans it does take more than one effort to get things right.
ReplyDeleteThis is just wonderful, Ann! I love the idea of adding the blue flames to emulate the gas feature! And rarely does an idea come out it's best on the first try, as Sherrill says. But the best learning comes in the retries, so all is not lost! I have had the same experience with 1/16" basswood, which is why I generally use the 2 mm chipboard for most things now. I hope you have better luck with the 3/32" basswood. One new wrinkle I have experienced with wood recently is twisting. Apparently, woodworkers have known for a long time that harder woods can be pressurized as it grows. It sometimes releases when cut, causing the wood to twist. There is always more to learn but keep trying until you persevere! Your ideas are too good to let languish!
ReplyDeleteYes, you are right there is always more to learn, but think you have me convinced to use chipboard more often. I do think that it is more stable. I always appreciate your advice.
DeleteWood is a fickle friend and has a mind of its own so I hope your second go plays nice. Well done on all that figuring out and you are almost there for sure,
ReplyDeleteNothing like a fire glowing in the fireplace especially at this time of year as the weather turns blustery.
ReplyDeleteI think that you've done a Really good job of building your fire and fireplace and of hiding the battery pack too!
Thank you, Elizabeth. It needs a bit of tweaking--I've got one more fire kit and another blue light. Those tin wires are are very hard to contain. Wiggly little things.
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