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  • Emergency Shutoff Relays

    So what emergency shutoff relays do others out there use in their haunts? What functions do they perform?

    I'm sure every municipality is different, has different requirements, etc. I am assuming that at the very least, if power is lost, or a fire detected, all "confusing lights and sounds" must be turned off (per what I have read about Special Amusement codes) and emergency lighting must be automatically activated. Do you also need a recording informing people to get to the closest emergency exit? Do you need any special emergency strobes or beacons?

    There seem to be lot of options out there but I wanted to see what others in the haunt industry rely on.

    Thanks!
    -Eric
    Chief Engineer/Co-Creative Director
    HUSH Haunted Attraction

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  • #2
    When we built our haunted house 3 years ago, we installed all new electrical drops and a full monitored fire alarm system. The fire alarm system consisted of about 10 pull stations, 70 heat detectors, and 30 horn/strobes. Also included was an emergency annunciation system that activated and directed everyone out of the event. All the new electrical drops and emergency lighting that were installed were ran thru a panel of contactors. These contactors were held on by power that ran thru the fire alarm panel. If the fire alarm was activated, or we had a loss of power, the contactors all opened which shut down all the haunt lighting, audio, and animatronics, and forced all the emergency lighting and exit signs in to power off mode, which lit the place up bright white. IF it was an emergency situation and not a power loss, then the over head lights for the building were also automatically switched on.

    The contactor system was designed and installed by me, but all the new electrical runs were installed by a proper contractor, and the fire alarm system was designed and installed by the monitoring company.
    Brian Warner
    Owner of Evilusions www.EVILUSIONS.com
    Technical Director of Forsaken Haunted House www.Forsakenhaunt.com
    Mechanical Designer (animatronics) at Gore Galore www.Gore-Galore.com

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    • #3
      Pretty much what Brian said BUT check with your local AHJ before spending a penny. It is very surprising the different interpretations/requirements between different locations, even in the same city.

      Our weirdest requirement is that our outside strobe lights (in a chain link metal maze), located 300' from any of our haunts, must automatically be turned off by the fire alarm control panel. Why you might ask (i sure did)? Because the Fire Marshall showed up way late for an opening night fire drill, saw the outside strobes going and thought we were still in a drill mode! Her interpretation was the strobes were confusing (to her anyway).

      Mind you she didn't care if our large animations, like the Impaler, and the flame cannons turned off or not!
      http://www.piratesofemerson.com

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      • #4
        thanks!

        Thanks for the input. We had a fire alarm company come out and quote a system before, which included a Honeywell Fire-Lite MS-5U-3 control panel and a bunch of beacons and pull switches. The part that was missing was to shut off the AC power to our haunt and turn the house lights on (if power was not lost). I was wondering about what to connect to the 24VDC relays on the control panel...guess it is a contactor.

        Brian,
        How did you hook everything up so that you got the correct function on the AC side? Did you put the contactor between the main breaker panel and a new "haunt-specific" breaker panel?
        -Eric
        Chief Engineer/Co-Creative Director
        HUSH Haunted Attraction

        sigpic

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        • #5
          and....

          Also very expensive!!!!!
          Joe Phillips
          The Shallow Grave
          Winter Haven FL
          http://www.theshallowgrave.com/

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          • #6
            Every penny spent on safety is worth it. Here are some pictures. Transformer feeds breaker panel. Breaker panel feeds contactor panel. Contactor panel feeds drops in haunts.
            Brian Warner
            Owner of Evilusions www.EVILUSIONS.com
            Technical Director of Forsaken Haunted House www.Forsakenhaunt.com
            Mechanical Designer (animatronics) at Gore Galore www.Gore-Galore.com

            Comment


            • #7
              Brian Warner
              Owner of Evilusions www.EVILUSIONS.com
              Technical Director of Forsaken Haunted House www.Forsakenhaunt.com
              Mechanical Designer (animatronics) at Gore Galore www.Gore-Galore.com

              Comment


              • #8
                Brian Warner
                Owner of Evilusions www.EVILUSIONS.com
                Technical Director of Forsaken Haunted House www.Forsakenhaunt.com
                Mechanical Designer (animatronics) at Gore Galore www.Gore-Galore.com

                Comment

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