Stage Designs

Light Towers Plus

Chad from Harvest Chapel in West Bradenton, FL brings us this fresh take on the Coroplast light tower idea.

They painted their walls a flat black paint and added a large center screen for flexibility in future designs. They has a small budget so they purchases six sheets of Natural Coroplast and a bunch of black gorilla duct tape.

They scored the Coroplast and made 1’x1′ square tube towers. They capped them with tin foil caps, added the black tape to both hold it together and separate the light. Then they stuck a par can inside to light them up.

They also added simple 2×6 frames black platforms to add some height and depth to the stage.

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Grunge on Wood Legends of the Rainforest

19 responses to “Light Towers Plus”

  1. Tyler Wachter says:

    These towers look awesome! Where did you buy the coroplast and what gauge was it? Also how did you make the sheets just a foot wide?

    • Chad W says:

      Tyler,
      Thank you. I got the coroplast from a local sign shop here in town, it was just a standard sign gage -I forget- but it wasn’t anything too thick. They cost about $15-20 per 4×8 sheet. I also bought a coro-cutter there (A tool for cutting/scoring coroplast easily) cost about $20. I used the full 4×8 sheet (plus another 1/2 sheet for the tall ones) and I just measured from one side 12″ – 24″ – 36″ and then used the coro cutter to just cut/score one side of the material, then I folded the 4 sides together to make a tube, and used black gorilla duck tape (walmart)to cover the seam, repeat on all 4 sides, the measure out 12″ vertically and use the 1″ black gorilla tape (walmart) to make a horizontal line around the entire tube.
      End result… Looks kinda like a Chinese lamp or a bunch of boxes.

  2. Greg says:

    For the foil tops, how did you make those?

  3. Chad says:

    I just used a small piece of coroplast and wrapped it in kitchen aluminum foil. I think a mirror might perform better but this is what I used because of cost and weight.

  4. Tammy says:

    Chad,

    You mentioned that you used Natural Coroplast. Is that white or clear? I’m concerned that not enough light will shine through the white.

  5. Alan says:

    hey Chad how did you keep the coroplast from not tipping over ? would like constant movement on stage cause it to move a bit or did you use a different base ? thanks

    • Chad W says:

      I actually just set them over the top of the light. I didn’t even put a bottom cap-plate on it. I just made sure the bottom edges were even and the surface was flat.
      They only weigh about 10 lbs each so they are not very tippy.
      I am sure that you could easily put a piece of black painted plywood on there or scrap coroplast.

  6. Sean S says:

    What is the structure holding these up? Wood? Is that just tape? basically what is creating the black boxes? Thanks

    • Chad W says:

      All that it is is a 4×8 sheet of coroplast spliced to make a tall 1 for square tube. Then black tape to hold the cut edge. Then the rest of the tape is just for looks. Makes it look like its a chinese latter sort of thing, which are normally made of cloth and wood. this was much cheaper and lighter and easier to make.

  7. Pastor says:

    What kind of par can was used?

  8. Chad W says:

    Blizzard puck q6 i believe. around $200

  9. Dana K says:

    Does the color show up well with white stage lights on? I am helping with a junior high school show choir and they perform on a lighted stage. THis idea looks awesome. I just wanted to make sure they were bright enough to compete with stage lights on them. Thanks.

    • Chad w says:

      On the question about brightness, it is a substantial difference between “no white stage lights” & “white lights all over” it still looks good but I would say that the intensity is about 50% less color when the whites are on. There is of coarse the option of stronger lights… But this was in “our” budget range.
      If you choose to do them and want the most brightness I would recommend just doing the single 8′ tower, cause the 12′ ones do wash out some towards the peak. And maybe even try a mirror at the top to reflect even more. But obviously, the brighter and stronger the light the better the color.
      I hope this helps

  10. Jessica says:

    Hi Chad. I am trying to build a simple set for a talk show and would love to have 2 of these purple towers. Can you make one post and all the material you used with the estimated price of each, as well as step by step directions? I know it’s a lot to ask but I am trying to get my uncle to build this for me if I just buy the supplies. Thanks so much in advance!

  11. Randy says:

    Do you think Cut-away embroidery stabilizer fastened to a thin wood frame would work similarly?

  12. Randy says:

    Also, is it just a white light inside the tower? If so, where is the color coming from?

  13. Danny says:

    How much in your estimate would be the total cost for this?

  14. Karen says:

    How long did it take you to build the towers

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