This is topic Moth insanity in forum Film Handlers' Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.
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Posted by Erika Hellgren (Member # 22) on 06-25-1999, 07:19 PM:
Well, it's moth season again here in Colorado, and these little buggers are driving me crazy as they do every year. We get billions of them here, so it's practically impossible to keep them out of the auditoriums. They love to fly in front of the porthole ... or land ON the porthole. We got a complaint from a customer the other day saying that a moth was casting a shadow on the screen that "looked like a bird". We, of course couldn't do anything about what with it being inside the auditorium.
A few years ago, I was running The Rock at my theatre and I got a complaint that the sound was cutting in and out. This was before we had digital set up in that auditorium, so it was playing in SR. I was rather new to the projection world at the time, so all I could think was to check the exciter bulb, which of course was fine. After listening to the booth monitor confirming the complaints, and staring at the projector for a while, I noticed something ... a MOTH caught in the sounddrum -- still alive, and trying to escape 
I've also heard of moths getting caught in a rewinding print, or flying through, and getting mangled in, the projector. I can't stand the little buggers. Thanks for letting me vent Only you guys can truly understand my boggle.
Sorry for the triple post ... getting used to a new computer 
I'm just a dummy
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[This message has been edited by Erika Hellgren (edited 06-25-99).]
[This message has been edited by Erika Hellgren (edited 06-25-99).]
Posted by Stephen Jones (Member # 16) on 06-25-1999, 11:29 PM:
Iunderstand what you are talking about as i have worked in a few Drive Ins here in Australia and the moths are a bit of a problem as you say they get everywhere in the projctor head sound head and even find their way into the lamp houses though they soon perish in there. Even when winding back film they end up in there as well but there is nothing much we can do about it. Moths are big down here about 2inches long and about 1/4 inch thick so they are a little on the big side and make a mess on the nice clean bio floor when you walk on them in the dim light of the bio.------------------
Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 06-28-1999, 01:03 PM:
I wonder if blowing a fan across the port glass would keep the moths away? At least they wouldn't be able to land. (Just a theory)You think moths are bad? What about fireflies?! 
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K.Y.S.O.T.I.
Randy