My glass tree was an interesting last minute project. I had plastic rgb pixels I wasn't using, and my wife saw some used glass block available on craigslist from a gutted building. so, i thought it would be nice to try this out.
when doing my sequencing I applied the same effects from my large megapixel tree over this glass tree... so the sequencing was "nothing".
Failure #1: i stacked up the blocks 4 feet high, and it really wasnt that stable -- and it didn't have the height i wanted... in the morning it had blown over and 4 blocks were shattered and a few more chipped. I found that using duct tape to affix the lights did not work. But I did find that there was not a lot of light pollution between blocks due to the finish on the sides -- so there was no need to paint the sides or put in dividers (I had plenty of spares, so on to the next attempt...
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Failure #2: I had some old 3/4" outdoor plywood left by the prior home owners. I cut it into a 8ft tall tree shape, 4ft at the base, and 8in at the top. I drew lines for all of the blocks, staggering each row from the prior row. 42 blocks total. I then stapled lights to the back. I decided to put 2 pixels behind each block (grouping=2) for a total of 84 pixels to get a lot of light to the street. (This worked well.) I hammered some wooden poles into the back/top of the wooden tree, leaning it back slightly, and created a flat base on the ground. I stacked up the glass blocks so that they leaned against the wood. (The wind knocked this over within hours and more broken blocks.)
Success #1: I grabbed an old aluminum step ladder and leaned the wood back even further against the ladder. I hung a 5-gallon bucket filled with heavy rocks from that ladder with the center of mass hanging, but low to the ground. I put the wood poles back in place. I then leaned all of the blocks (and replacement blocks) back against the wood (and ladder). This time I ALSO got plastic wrap which is used in shipping large boxes. I wrapped the tree -- holding the glass blocks to the wood form. with a few more passes, I also wrapped the ladder. The clear plastic did not interfere with light getting out. For the next couple of weeks -- no problems!
Success?? #2: This year I am simplifying. I have built a new coro tree that is similar to coroflakes -- light is inside, and the light is diffused by the coro. The tree has the same measurements 8ft tall, 4ft at the base, and it has the same pixels inside. There is black coro in the back, and about 3in side walls and a white coro face. Inside the tree, I create a simple interlocking set of light baffles with the white coro... this baffle keeps light contained into a "block-like" cell so that it still resembles glass blocks. But the whole thing is easier to setup, carry away and store. It is also "unbreakable" but I will ensure that the wind does not catch it and send it across the street to the neighbor's yard. Maybe I'll use the same ladder.
I'm contemplating putting pixels on the outside as "garlands" on the tree.
I was happy with 8ft. I would not be happy with the original 4ft... it would have been lost.
I liked the 8in block look as large pixels.
xlights made the sequencing easy, but the tree provided an entirely different look with the same effects.
Hope this helps.
I will post this to the forum for others to consider and add their ideas.
Hi Steve,
I'm wondering if you have any information that you could share on how you made your glass block tree? I too saw that on TV last winter and thought it was really neat looking. I have my plate full already for this upcoming seasons display (first year), but I'm already thinking ahead for the following year.
My questions about the blocks are...
1. How did you keep it together, and from tipping over since it was so tall.
2. Did you have to mask off between layers to keep the lights from bleeding into other blocks.
I'm sure I could come up with a lot more questions, but I'll leave it at that for now.
Thanks,
Kevin
