Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Ripped Awning

This is topic Ripped Awning in forum Film-Yak at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Ian Price (Member # 14) on 12-19-2002, 03:02 PM:

This is what greeted me when I arrived at work today. The Awning is very old and not that attractive anyway. In fact we had already priced recovering it. They wanted $8,000! [Eek!]

Now we are leaning towards removing the awning and putting up a lighted Rialto sign. Unfortunately we will be living with this through the holidays. When it stops raining, I may get up on the roof and cut the flap away.

We have been having some very intense rainstorms here in California due to El Nino. We have received more rain this week than we had all last year. There was a windstorm that moved through early this morning and that's probably what did the damage to the Awning.

Posted by Gerard S. Cohen (Member # 994) on 12-19-2002, 05:33 PM:

You haven't been showing "Swept Away" perchance?
But your lineup shows an impressive list of features!

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 12-19-2002, 09:49 PM:

Wish you could send some of that rain to eastern Montana. Dry as a bone up here.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 12-20-2002, 04:45 AM:

[eyes]

Mark

Posted by William Hooper (Member # 71) on 12-20-2002, 06:56 AM:

Make sure you're not dealing with a sign company, but a canvas company that concentrates on boats (where most of the business is, in coastal communities). They typically do awnings & other protective coverings, too.

Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 12-20-2002, 11:39 AM:

We could use the rain MORE here in Colorado. We're so dry that we actually OWE water.

Posted by Ian Price (Member # 14) on 12-20-2002, 12:00 PM:

Santa Rosa rainfall total last 24 hours 1.56 inches
Rainfall total this month 14.81 inches
Rainfall percent of normal 157%

We are very wet right now.

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 12-20-2002, 06:02 PM:

$8,000 for replacing the face of the awning? Dang.

If your theater was within suitable driving distance to our shop we could get it repaired for quite a bit less than that. The sign company where I work doesn't really like handling awnings all that much (the frames can be a pain in the ass to build, and stretching the flex face canvas over the frame can be an even bigger pain).

I used to hate dealing with any kind of sign using flex face material years ago, mainly because the flexible canvas didn't have a good lifespan. But newer flex materials have improved a great deal.

At any rate, I really like neon filled channel letters, lots of rows of exposed neon and flashing chase lights for movie theater signs.

Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 12-20-2002, 10:20 PM:

Sorry, Ian, but this is probably all my fault. My first year in a new place is usually accompanied by bizarre winter weather. If it's any consolation, the trip to Vegas gave me a cold.

Say ... I need to come visit you soon ...

Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 12-21-2002, 12:43 AM:

Bobby,

Neon channel letters (of teh enclosed variety) are simply a waste of money in my book. Seems like it would be drasticaly cheaper to use flourescent tubes behind the channeling, or even in it if space permits. We have a few of the channel lettering signs with neon in them and due to the fact that the faces are covered, you can't even tell it's neon in there.. quite defeats the purpose if you ask me.. [Confused]

Now open faced neon, that's a whole 'nother story.. [Smile]

Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 12-21-2002, 01:25 AM:

Neon is used to evenly illuminate the channel letters because it can be shaped. AFAIK, you can't get florescent lights that way.

In this photo, "Alpine" is channel lettering and the reader boards use zip-change lettering, which happens to be flat letter panels that sit in channels. Channels may or may not have a plastic face over the neon.

Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 12-21-2002, 01:28 AM:

Ian, I checked UPS today as well as FedEx and the regular mail, and you still haven't sent us any of that rain you're getting! [Mad]

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 12-21-2002, 02:07 AM:

Jason,

For channel letters, neon is extremely hard to beat for internal illumination for a variety of reasons. First, neon is not quite as expensive as you might imagine, and you save a lot of money on power consumption versus other methods. And neon certainly is not the most costly option either. I could price you out a set of channel letters illuminated with LEDs or fiber optic cabling. Then neon would appear to be a bargain.

Fluorescent lighting can rarely ever be used in any kind of channel letter assembly. Basically, the letters would have to be gigantic to properly fit the lamp housings. Second, high output light tubes only come in straight units. They cannot conform to the curves of many letter shapes in the manner neon can. There is just no way. That point alone puts HO lighting at a very serious disadvantage on proper light coverage. Light up some channel letters with HO lighting and you'll be bound to have lots of hot spots and dark spots behind the acrylic letter faces. One could make the returns deeper to get the lamps farther away from the trimcapped faces. But a 20" deep return on a channel letter would look pretty stupid. It is a lot better to fill it with neon and be anywhere from 3" to 8" deep.

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 12-21-2002, 12:59 PM:

And besides, neon is very cool. [thumbsup]

(And I'm not just saying that because we have a neon-covered marquee, either.)

Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 12-21-2002, 01:09 PM:

Bobby,

Points well taken. I guess I thought I knew more than I actually do about signs [Smile]

And yes, properly colored (for the atmosphere) neon is really cool, no doubt about it.

Posted by Robert Golding (Member # 746) on 12-22-2002, 01:23 AM:

I've also had a very interesting time this past week. This is not the time to be a drive in, here in California. I closed last weekend because of wind & water damage. I had so much water in the projection room that it wasn't safe to turn the power on. This was caused by water coming through our doors. One of my awnings lost a 2' x 8' x 20' face board and I still haven't found it. It makes a person think about taking a couple of months off.
Also it seems our wonderful govenor is thinking about putting a amusment tax in place, what next??????