Hello, all. In this article, I will be showing you how to make one of the most useful products known to man. I am talking, of course, about charcoal. You might be surprised at just how many uses this stuff has. You can use it to purify your drinking water, replace your aquari ...more
Struggling to keep up your wireless signal? If you're struggling to stream Hulu from the backyard DocZee's got an idea. Pull that old DirecTV satellite dish off the roof. Mod it into a 2.4GHz 802.11 WiFi booster antenna. Oh make that an antenna, that swivels! This hack is a ...more
This week, I've been working on a project that sort of takes a spin off an old-style potato gun. Using PVC pipe and the rapid combustion of hairspray, we can launch a rocket hundreds of feet into the sky. As usual for my projects, I tried to use only materials and parts that a ...more
This instructional video series is on how to build any type of 2/5th (40%) scale, fully functional tank. The specific model demonstrated is the M60 Patton. An MBT. A destructive force. If you have any questions about your backyard tank build, please address them to "Dave's Tan ...more
Building a DIY Alarm System: The Concept So, you want to protect your property, or maybe a room, car, or even your backyard. The concept of an alarm system is to notify the "alarm administrator" that there is an intruder entering the previously designated boundaries. The trig ...more
Give an 18-month-old a shoe, check back 10 minutes later, and it's a very big maybe he will have it on his foot. But give him your smartphone, and in a mere five minutes, he can take 100 pictures of the carpet, send weird messages, and delete essential apps. Imagine what your ...more
Whether or not you have a feline companion at home, a bag of cat litter makes for a handy household staple that can help prevent grease fires, add traction to slippery icy steps, remove grease spots, preserve your fresh flowers, and clear algae from your backyard koi pond. No ...more
Okay you saw the super-detailed reproduction of Freddy Krueger's clawed glove, now complete the Freddy costume with this "burning" makeup tutorial. In celebration of the return of "A Nightmare On Elm Street", starring Jackie Earle Haley as Freddy Krueger, Indy Mogul's BFX brou ...more
If you're a filmmaker on a budget and you've got some farce up your sleeve, this video is for you. Watch Indy Mogul's Backyard FX explain how to build a really realistic looking latex pregnancy belly, so that your romantic comedy can grow!
It's medieval mayhem and you need a sword prop. Maybe you're larping, or maybe you just need a fake, dull movie prop blade for your action epic. Either way, this is a great weapons build project for a cool replica wooden sword. Watch this video tutorial to learn how to build a ...more
Spring is here and you are excited to use your in-ground swimming pool again. Problem is, you find your pool filled with green water after opening it. What do you do? Watch this two-part video tutorial to learn how to backwash your pool filter and clear up that swampy green po ...more
The next time you're out camping, whether it's outdoors in the wilderness or right outside in your own backyard, try this hack out for an effortless campfire all night long. While there is definitely some prep work involved, it's well worth it if you don't need a huge bonfire, ...more
An eye splice is the best way to create a permanent loop on the end of a multi-strand rope. Whether you need an eye splice loop to hold a hammock up in your backyard or need one for your nautical voyages, this survival training video will teach you step by step how to tie one. ...more
We all know that movies now-a-days don't use real rocks, but fake rocks for their film sets. Why? Because it's safer, lighter, easier to movie, and you can design them exactly how you want them. So if you need a rock for your indie film project, make it yourself. There's nothi ...more
When I was 12, for some mysterious reason, my dad put my little brothers and me in charge of cooking the Thanksgiving turkey. Naturally, my brothers and I spent the rest of the day playing hide-in-seek in the backyard and forgot all about the humble bird defrosting in the sink ...more
Freddy's Alive! No, it's not the next part of the Nightmare On Elm Street series, it's the new remake coming out in a theater near you. And in celebration of the return of "A Nightmare On Elm Street", starring Jackie Earle Haley as Freddy Krueger, Indy Mogul's BFX made this gr ...more
What started as an accessibility setting for hearing aids turned out to be a super helpful tool for anyone with a good set of Bluetooth headphones. The problem is that most iPhone and iPad users still don't know about it. If you're one of them, you need to see what this underr ...more
"We all want to escape our circumstances, don't we?" Benedict Cumberbatch may have been talking about acting, but the sentiment rings true for all of us at some point or another. Whether it's work, school, or just boredom at home—we all wish for an escape sometimes. If only. ...more
Using an empty Gatorade bottle, empty 5 oz. food container, power drill, string, and some red nail polish, you can easily construct your own DIY hummingbird feeder in less than 10 minutes to attract hummingbirds to your own backyard garden. The bottle serves as a vessel for t ...more
Ever wanted to build a backyard teepee? Here's your chance! In this two-part tutorial, learn how to contruct an inexpensive teepee out of a tarp. Easy to set-up, this teepee is roomy and fun to play in no matter what age you are! If in the wilderness, use this teepee for relia ...more
YouTube's massive user base comprises almost one third of all people on the internet, and collectively, users spend well over 100 million hours on the site watching billions of videos each day. Add it all up, and this means that YouTube is viewed by more people than any U.S. c ...more
Blueberries are one of the tastiest berries around, and if you just happen to have a blueberry bush in your backyard, consider yourself lucky. But you can't just let a blueberry bush fend for itself—it's needs help—it needs pruning. This video will outline how to prune your b ...more
For the novice cook, fungi can be weird because, well, they're fungi. However, if you've been afraid to get acquainted with mushrooms, you've been missing out. Vegetarians love mushrooms and with good reason. Their rich, savory flavor comes a close second to umami-rich meat. ...more
The final chapter of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy is here, The Dark Knight Rises, and if you're anything like me, it made you want to immediately don a cowl of your own and run around punching criminals. Don't forget though, one of the most awesome aspects of Batman is h ...more
This video tutorial from IndyMogul shows you how to build a cheap and portable green screen. This week on Backyard FX, Indy Mogul build a portable green screen for under $40 that you can take with you on shoots. Erik also gives you the basics on how to correctly light a green ...more
If you want to put a fire pit in your backyard, but don't want to spend a lot of time or money on it, this $10 DIY Upcycled Fire Pit designed by Sarah and Joe over on House & Fig is the perfect weekend project. It's simple, looks great, and shouldn't take much more than an hou ...more
I want my Halloween costume to take as little effort as possible and be cheap—extremely cheap. That means I don't want to pay 50 bucks for some costume online or spend all day playing with liquid latex, and I most definitely do not want to visit a super crowded costume store i ...more
If you're not an everyday woodworker, then building a deck may be a challenge for you. But it's not as hard as it might seem. If you follow all of the required steps for deck building, you'll have one of the best ones on the block, and be pretty darn proud of it, too! So, che ...more
This homemade hairspray-powered PVC rocket takes less than an hour to construct and only costs about 20 dollars to make. Check out my video below for the step-by-step instructions on building your own backyard rocket, and follow the written guide below for reference. Video: . ...more
In this how-to video, you will learn how to build a fire pit. This will be useful if you want to enhance your backyard. You will need the required fire pit tools such as 55 york blocks, 25 wall caps, two tubes of masonry adhesive, ten 50 pound bags of crushed rock, 6 50 pound ...more
So cute, so furry, and so chock full of parasites. While raccoons are fun to watch, they are neither friendly nor clean — and they can make you sick in more ways than one. Native to North America, you can find raccoons just about everywhere except for parts of the Rocky Mount ...more
WonderHowTo is made up of niche communities called Worlds. If you've yet to join one (or create your own), get a taste below of what's going on in the community. Check in every Wednesday for a roundup of new activities and projects. Thanks to all of our active moderators and ...more
We love shredded chicken in our tacos, casseroles, quesadillas, salads, sandwiches... okay, we just love shredded chicken. What we don't love is the actual process of shredding it. Don't Miss: Save Money by Breaking Down Your Own Chicken Often, we use the ol' forks method o ...more
I like to call Netflix my quiet, digital friend. She's been there for me on many many occasions—from when I had to move home for a few months, to when the cable was down for days. Without my instant streaming friend, who knows where I would be right now. My boredom could have ...more
You can't have a werewolf movie without a werewolf, but how do you make one. Well, you should start of small. Try your hands at the wolf claws. To create these furry werewolf claws, you'll need a glove and some other materials. Watch this video tutorial to learn how to make a ...more
If you're ever paranoid about locking yourself out of your house, the worst thing you can do is to hide your spare key in an obvious spot, like under the doormat, under a planter, or anywhere near the front door. One of the most fool-proof ways to hide your keys is to give a ...more
In this 2 part how-to video, Simon Leach, who normally shows you how to make pottery, instead shows you something else. In this tutorial, Leach shows you how to make and build a small propane downdraft kiln. Follow along with Simon Leach, and you too could be building your own ...more
Not many people fly kites anymore. Most of us don't have the patience or attention span because, let's face it, we're used to smartphones and other gadgets that have games and apps galore to entertain us. Heck, you can even fly a kite on them if you really want. Though, there ...more
This video from Backyard FX and Indy Mogul shows you how to make a fake brain. Making a brain is not hard but it does take time and creativity. You can make cauliflower brains, gelatin brains or the one I am going to show you out of bread and glue.
There's nothing better than sitting around a fire in your own backyard, but store-bought fire pits can get pretty expensive, and unfortunately (but understandably), most states have pretty strict regulations on outdoor fires. Want to have your cake and eat it, too? This DIY f ...more
While it is convenient to buy avocados from the local supermarket, you can also start investing in the long-term goal of having free avocados coming from your own backyard by growing an avocado tree straight from the pit. To get started, remove the seed from the avocado fruit ...more
We've always loved a good summertime hot dog, placed lovingly in a soft simple bun with ample ketchup and mustard. But after eating hot dogs this way and this way alone for the majority of our lives, we grew tired of the same old thing. Enter: The search for the 10 best hot d ...more
Giveaway Tuesdays has officially ended! But don't sweat it, WonderHowTo has another World that's taken its place. Every Tuesday, Phone Snap! invites you to show off your cell phone photography skills. Submit your best shot to our weekly competition for a chance to win an awes ...more
If you don't have the backyard space to make a Japanese rock garden where you can spend long afternoons meditatively raking ripple-like patterns into the sand below your feet, settle for the next best thing by making a simple, miniature zen garden that can easily fit on the co ...more
If you're looking to give your Mafia movie a real, authentic, look, but don't have a ton of cash check out this great Indy Mogul Backyard FX video to learn how to build a Tommy Gun. It may not fire bullets, but this fifty dollar prop packs some real punch.
Want to attract more birds into your backyard for your viewing pleasure? With a simple household objects and bird seeds, you can easily turn your backyard or outdoor balcony into a bustling destination for your neighborhood birds. Cover a toilet paper cardboard roll or a pine ...more
Here's a quick backyard trick to put your frogs to sleep by petting their belly.
Home security is as important as having a job. You have to protect your family and your valuables. If you can't afford a high tech security system, then maybe a fake security camera will do the trick. This security camera dud is also a cheap alternative for a film prop. Watch ...more
Backyard FX shows how to build a real lightsaber. Erik Beck unearths the original lightsaber blueprints from the special effects creator for Star Wars, and show you how to buy parts to a real lightsaber so you can have your own custom Star Wars weapon. In the test film you'll ...more
WonderHowTo is a how-to website made up of niche communities called Worlds, with topics ranging from Minecraft to science experiments to Scrabble and everything in-between. Check in every Wednesday evening for a roundup of user-run activities and how-to projects from the most ...more
A couple months ago, I attended a Pokémon-themed party. Everyone dressed as their favorite Pokémon or trainer, Poké balls flew around the backyard, and more importantly, there was a lot of Poké booze. My friend who created the colorful drinks you see below informed me that the ...more
Below is a great video that shows a classic illusion designed and built by Jerry Andrus. Jerry is a backyard magician and illusionist who created his own kind of special magic tricks for his entire life, up until his death in 2007. Jerry Andrus and his amazing illusions, feat ...more
A fake brick is a great movie prop for any action film. You can break through brick walls, smash a brick in two, or throw a brick at someone without being charged with murder. The majority of this fake brick is made of foam. Watch this video tutorial to learn how to make a fak ...more
Dynamite your way to movie success with an explosive bomb. A fake explosive bomb, of course. TNT on a timer is a great movie effect for you action flick. Watch this video tutorial to learn how to make a prop movie bomb. ParkersTutorials is a DIY filmmaking show for all of you ...more
A grenade is the best way to make your indie action war flick more realistic, but anyway you try it, it's not going to be completely "realistic". You need a prop grenade, and you can eerily make it yourself out of cheap household materials. Watch this video tutorial to learn h ...more
Looking to create the look of a blockbuster Sci-Fi epic, for the price of a student film? This Indy Mogul Backyard FX video will show you how to build incredible looking science fiction armor out of foam for about eighty dollars. Be sure to follow these instructions carefully ...more
If you've ever played the game of Would You Rather, you've probably been given the ultimatum between eating insects or doing something else that sounds absurd, like licking a cactus. I'm advising you to always choose the insects, and here's why: Entomophagy, the practice of c ...more
Have Sony Vegas, but don't know all that it can do, like masking? Well, this video tutorial about masking in Vegas Pro 9 will get you started in movie visual effects. As in the video, you can give an illusion that there is a real tank in your backyard with masking. See how to ...more
What's a proton pack without a ghost trap? Useless, that's what. Don't pay megabucks for some fake Ghostbusters costume when you can build your own with household materials. This is a perfect movie prop for your indie Ghostbusters fan flick. Watch this video from Parker's Tut ...more
Trampolines are just for backyard fun… there's skill involved, so let Trampoline Tricks 1080 show you some cool trampoline tricks. This short video tutorial will show you how to do a trampoline misty 540 trick. It is an off axis 540 degree rotation with a sweet grab. Do the M ...more