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I'm looking for information on vapour tricks - the basic hows, safety and fuel information, and any other details regarding how to carry them off. I am a fire eater, fire breather and fire fan dancer of two years experience, fully insured. I'm based in Glasgow, Scotland and so have been taught to use paraffin (which i believe is a different thing in the states than it is here in scotland) for all of my fire tricks. Trouble is either I'm doing something completely wrong or paraffin doesn't work for vapour tricks - it isn't working for me at least. After being taught the basics of fire performance two years ago I've basically been teaching myself the rest so any help you could give me or even point me in the right direction would be really appreciated, i've trawled the net but haven't had any luck finding help about this. Thanks!
Originally posted in Fire Arts FAQ by Cat from the UK.
Originally posted in Fire Arts FAQ by Cat from the UK.
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Re: From the FAQ: Vapor Tricks
Sat, June 13, 2009 - 6:13 PMParaffin doesn't work for vapor tricks.
Most vapor tricks require fuel that readily produces vapor. That excludes kerosene, lamp oil, and paraffin. The preferred fuel for this in the US seems to be Coleman Camp Fuel, which is mostly naphtha. Naphtha is also the main ingredient in various lighter fluid brands, and is commonly called white gas in Europe. You'll need to check for additives to be sure to get the least toxic brew of naphtha (watch for benzene, etc.). See the NAFAA site for details.
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Re: From the FAQ: Vapor Tricks
Sat, June 13, 2009 - 8:27 PMTechnically, Naphtha is parafinnic, so it's really hard to say what exactly it was that you used in the UK. On your side of the pond "paraffin" is the common name for a group of light, sweet hydrocarbons, generally referred to as "aliphatic hydrocarbons". This is anything without extra atoms, or double bonds. So THAT term can apply to a large grouping of chemicals in the US: white gas, crystal K, lamp oil, vasoline, white petroleum grease. There is no trade restrictions in the US on the use of the term Paraffin. Generally, in the US it's used to refer to longer chain, higher flash point fuels like lamp oils and certain specialized kerosenes. And yes, this is all covered in detail here:
nafaa.pbworks.com/FuelBusters
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