When you think of summer fun and activities, July 4th always comes to mind. No 4th of July is complete without good BBQ and beautiful fireworks displays. Do you want to put on a fireworks show and wondering how much does a fireworks show cost? Please keep reading.
How Much Does A 5 Minute Fireworks Show Cost
You can light up the sky for 5 minutes with the right selection of fireworks under $300 total. When I put together a fireworks display, I start with 2 “100 shot missile boxes”. They cost $8 and are good transition or filler items.
They will give little in the way of color but will keep the noise going while you are lighting your next items. Next, I select 3 or 4 cakes with 30 or more shots.
These are my high spots. Fireworks like “The Dirty Duck” offer 42 shots for $35 and is well worth every dollar. Friki Tiki is another great show highlight item. It offers 36 shots at 200 grams.
Here’s how my 5 minute show looked with a $300 budget
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How Much Does A 15 Minute Fireworks Show Cost
It’s important that you understand what you are getting for your money for a 15 minute fireworks show. You can buy shell fireworks or American pyrotechnics. You need to get the most value especially if you want them to last for 15 minutes.
All fireworks are graded by grams. “200 grams” noted on the side of the wireworks “cake” or “Skyrocket” means the product contains up to 200 grams of pyrotechnic powder. Pyrotechnic powder is what causes the beautiful display of colors and bang.
500 grams is the maximum pyrotechnic powder allowed in consumer fireworks. Each cake is like a professional fireworks show in a box. If you have a $500 budget, I would suggest spending most of your money on 200 to 500 gram cakes. The price for 500 gram cakes can range from $40 to $60.
A 10–shot firework cake can cost $50, and it usually includes loud noise and beautiful colors.
Know How Many Shots
Sky rockets are pretty straight forward with one shot. “Cakes” on the other hand can have as little as 9 shots with 200 grams or as much as 50 shots with 200 grams. The same amount of pyrotechnic powder will be divided. This means you’ll be getting a lot of smaller explosions vs a few bigger ones.
How To Get The Most Bang For Your Buck
It would be great if it was very straight forward and items were priced by shots or explosive powder they contained. Unfortunately, it’s a combination of the two. Just these two factors can have you paying $7 for something that is pretty amazing or $40 for what amounts to noise and a few sparks. In my experience its best to do a combination of both large and small fireworks cakes if you want a visually impressive show.
Cheap Filler Fireworks
Now that you’ve created a noise foundation with missiles and selected your high spots with your 30+ shot firework cakes, you’ll need some inexpensive filler items. Filler items are what you will set off between your big boys. These cost between $10 or $20 each and are usually around 7 to 15 shots.
Fireworks companies that produce Space Jam, Twist n Shout, and Big Blue look great as filler. The trick is to slightly overlap your filler items. Where as your highlight items can stand on their own, you want a 3 or 4 second overlap so that it looks like 1 larger item.
Fireworks Safety Is Key
This year, The Amazing Dad Newsletter covered some great 4th of July fireworks safety tips. It reminded us that putting on a big fireworks display can be a huge success or a home owner’s insurance nightmare.
Of course you want to make sure your area is clear of dry leaves or debris. You should also make sure you are not too close to your house. Fireworks can rain down and accidentally catch fire on nearby trash or debris.
Most importantly you want your spectators at a safe distance. Keep kids and pets away at least 30 feet. Pets may need to stay inside if they get nervous when hearing loud sounds.
Conclusion
Hopefully you understand now how much an average fireworks show costs. If you have a large budget of $500 or more, you can put on an amazing 15 minute fireworks show.
Alternatively $300 will put on a nice 5 minute show for your friends and family. With this amount you can purchase a few cakes and some rockets, and a few fillers.
Buy a variety of 500 gram cakes in addition to 200 gram cakes, reloadable shell kits, and rockets. With a minimum of $300 to $500, you’ll be the talk of your neighborhood (in a good way) every Independence Day.
One Response
This is such a great idea knowing what u can put together for the right price is super helpful.