schemes for itinerant gel storage

[Anvilx]

I use PVC pipes for my uncut gel. Since I deal with small volumes I use smaller pipes then Dereklefew recommended, 2" if I remember correctly. My PVC pipes are covered in a layer of gaff tape. No I didn't do it, they were covered long before I arrived. The benefit of this is that I can stack them up easily and rearrange them.

 

[rochem]

I keep a large (and steadily growing) inventory of gel which I've aquired over time, and a lot of it is full or partial sheets. To store these, I have a couple poster storage tubes which I carry with me. Two are for full, uncut sheets (one for Rosco and one for Lee/Apollo/Gam) and two are for partial (again, Rosco and Lee/Apollo/Gam). I think I got them for free when I ordered some posters from JR Clancy, but they're small and very easy to carry and even came with caps so I can close them up. I maintain an updated inventory list on the tube, so knowing at a glance what I have isn't as important.

As for the minion thing - good luck. Usually, when I have other people cut gel for me, I pull out the sheets they'll need and give them a list of how many cuts of what size of what color, and I give them a color frame for each size they'll need so they can trace an outline onto the gel. For inventory, I always update that myself, and I end up putting everything away myself, since I will often be moving a sheet from one of the "New" tubes to one of the "Partial" tubes.

 

[LampyTom]

I just use a plastic bin. Nothing fancy but it does the job.

Just pick up a plastic bin from a cheap store or wherever, roll up the sheets and plonk them in the bin (obviously remove the bin lid so it's an open bin for easy access). You could then have separate colours in separate bins (e.g. bin 1 = 010 - 100) or a different bin for every manufacturor.


Works for me and is what all the other techies in the local area do!

 

[Kelite]

As for the minion thing - good luck. Usually, when I have other people cut gel for me, I pull out the sheets they'll need and give them a list of how many cuts of what size of what color, and I give them a color frame for each size they'll need so they can trace an outline onto the gel.

FWIW- the Apollo PerfGel is a free feature provided to users with these problems. The gel sheets arrive to the venue ready to tear apart and install.
(The minions will have to do something more minion-ish, such as gaffer taping some cabling down or running for coffee...)


Apollo Design | PerfGel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epa2Oe5gNVY

 

[OnWithTheShow]

For cut sheets we have a regular filing cabinet with drawers for each brand and then files for each color.

For full and near full sheets we have a drafting file with drawers for each brand and the sheets organized numerically.

Of course this doesnt work for a portable set up.

 

[wolf825]

FWIW you can find Blueprint storage drawers used or in most cases being tossed out instead of having to pay the full brand new price. Brand New they run about $1k+ but as I said--many office buildings, schools and similar businesses will routinely toss them out rather frequently because they outgrow them...so just go looking...found tons of them used or for free just for the hauling (they weigh a lot!)

They are great for full sheet storage and easy organization by brand or color...

-w

 

[venuetech]

I think when large color orders are shipped from the manufacturer to the vendor they some times ship in a flat cardboard box. you could ask your vendor if they have any of these.

or you could go to a art/crafts store and look for a Portfolio of suitable size.
ArtSuppliesOnline.com - Alvin Prestige Elegance Heavy-Duty Nylon Portfolios

another source of a large cardboard flat box may be the "flip chart" easel pads these ship in boxes of 5-10 so if you could find one of those boxes and cut to size.

 

[willbb123]

If one prefers "rolling one's own," 3 or 4" PVC pipe with end caps makes a nice tube.

Stuck On Now – Englert Civic Theatre, Iowa City | iSquint.net

That pic looks familiar.

I'd really prefer shelves but there really isn't room for them.
The PVC is heaver then the cardboard, but I know they aren't going to fall apart.

I did the same tubes for a community theater.

 

[WooferHound]

Filing Gels ?

How do you file your gels for reuse. I have tried many ways and attempt to keep them in numbered order, but many brands duplicate the numbers with other brands, not to mention that there are 1000 different colors. In the spot booth I keep them in a small file with about 20 folders of general colors and it's not too hard to keep up with. In the coves FOH it's a little bit of a combination of both. How do you do it ?

• by number
• by brand
• by color
• they always stay in the light/frame​
• stashed in the bottom of a big drawer randomly
• scattered on the catwalk

 

[derekleffew]

Re: Filing Gels ?

... I have tried many ways and attempt to keep them in numbered order, but many brands duplicate the numbers with other brands, ...

Yeah, Roscolux 132 is quite different than Lee 132.

The most common prefixes are:
R00, R000, R0000 = Roscolux, (Some use X00)
L000 = Lee Filters
G000 = GamColor
AP0000 = ApolloGel

Usually, one can get by with one box or cabinet for the primary brand (most often Roscolux, see here), and another box or cabinet for the others combined.

 

[photoatdv]

Okay, so I know this has been discussed a lot, but none of the ideas really work for me. I have probably around 200 sheets of gel (mostly full but some partial) and hundreds of cuts in assorted sizes. I currently have them roughly sorted by color. Many I also do not know the actual color because they are not marked (I've acquired leftovers over the years-- I didn't do it!), believe it or not this includes some full sheets (not sure how). I need a way to store them where they will not get messed up and I can go through and find the needed colors relatively easily. Inventory is not so important because my shows usually fall under the categories of either I order all the needed gel for the show or I'm pulling all or most from my stock (and just look through for what I have enough of that works).

To add to the fun storage space is at a premium and it needs to be easily transportable as well. For the cut sheets I have new and like new cuts, and the starting to go ones that I use schools and such (no, I don't use badly faded ones or ones with holes even for that-- but the ones that you can tell have seen better days).

Thanks everyone.

 

[sk8rsdad]

I have never come up with a system that survived the next person along to pull gel, even when the next person along is me. That being said, my best success has been using artist portfolios for full sheets and expandable folders for cut sheets.

 

[adirks]

We file cuts in standard manila office file folders by color number in milk crates, separate series by size up to 6-7.5" (S4s, parnels) and 8-10"(pars, fresnels) - and limited 4" (strips). The half-dozen crates store on shelves under the cutting/repair bench. Full and partial sheets store in an old flat drawing drawer cabinet layered by number. The crates can move easily out to the rolling work table for the hang and strike. Quick, easy, and our color costs on any show are fairly low to cover burnouts and adding a few more cuts or an occasional new color. The bottom line for any system is somebody has to file color at every strike/changeover.

 

[avkid]

File folders in a short filing cabinet.
If you add wheels to the cabinet or build it into a road case it becomes portable.

 

[zuixro]

We have a 5 drawer filing cabinet, 4 feet wide, 6 feet high, on casters. It even has a flip down table for cutting gel. Top two drawers are for Lamps, adapters, etc. Next drawer is Rosco gel #'s 01 through 99 (roughly), 2-3 manila file folders per color (Sorted by size Fresnel, S-4, and one other size, I don't remember what it goes to). Next drawer is R100 and above, and the few Lee colors that we use. Most of these only have 1 folder since they are used less. Bottom drawer is full sheets and large scraps.

It would work well, except the people who sort the gel don't care and just throw it in whatever folder looks close. I pulled the folder for R34 the other day and it was full of R37.

 

[JChenault]

I have come to be a believer in the 'Don't keep any partial sheets - cut them all up and file them'. I keep my cut gel in manila file folders. One color per folder in numeric order by manufacturer. I keep my whole sheets rolled up with a listing on the outside of what I have.

If I have a cut sheet that is not labeled ( or is even slightly burned ) it is not gel it is garbage.

 

[Kelite]

Okay, so I know this has been discussed a lot, but none of the ideas really work for me. I have probably around 200 sheets of gel (mostly full but some partial) and hundreds of cuts in assorted sizes.

One solution our dealers use in their showrooms and also provide to theaters is the Apollo Gel Cabinet- Apollo Design | Gel Cabinet - Module

Many theaters have vertical storage space for gel while other ME's prefer horizontal storage of gel sheets. It really depends upon your available storage space and preference.

 

[carsonld]

I am trying to find a way to store our stock gel sheets that we have. Being a high school, we cannot afford the gel cabinets. We have about 20 colors on hand (some full and some partially cut) that I need to find a place to store, preferably by each color (R80, R26, R01, and so on) but with a growing inventory I dont know if it would bet better to just store them in red, green, blue, white, tan, etc. Any suggestions?

 

[petercav17]

Are you able to get a normal filing cabinet? You could organize gel by number and put them in folders. That works well for cuts 12" or less, and you can roll up larger sheets and put them in another drawer. Talk to the janitors and see if they have old filing cabinets.
Never put different cuts of gel in the same folder (ie red, blue, etc.) because you're going to end up forgetting to label a cut, plop it in the "red" folder, and confuse it as something else when you go to hang and your plot is going to end up as all different assorted shades of "red".

 

[Dionysus]

I am trying to find a way to store our stock gel sheets that we have. Being a high school, we cannot afford the gel cabinets. We have about 20 colors on hand (some full and some partially cut) that I need to find a place to store, preferably by each color (R80, R26, R01, and so on) but with a growing inventory I dont know if it would bet better to just store them in red, green, blue, white, tan, etc. Any suggestions?

I agree that filing cabinets work fine, and I am sure the school board can get you one fairly easily. This is exactly the system I work with it three venues. An old filing cabinet or three. "Legal" sized cabinets work best, you can fit two 7.5" frames (6" fixtures) side by side just barely. Hanging file folders work as well, especially for loose cut gel not in frames.
I keep sheets that haven't been cut, on top of the cabinet.