A conic fountain resembles a volcano in shape and it's not far off with its effects too! This is because conic fountains normally contain just one single type of effect which is pressed inside the cone-shaped casing. Starting slowly, these can build up to quite magnificent plumes and look particularly good used in a line across the display area.

All fountains create a column of sparks from ground level and except for crackling versions, are quiet in operation, giving just a "roar". Machine-pressed cones offer a more consistent effect during the fountain's life and have become the standard.

Regardless of the price, size or brand, the simpler, brighter effects (such as silver) are more powerful than colourful or crackling ones, where some of the energy is lost to colour or noise (or both). Gold versions of these cones are generally the weakest, creating more of a gold flame rather than a plume.

Many fountains are multi-effect, and resemble cakes or other shapes. These contain a number of tubes, each with a different effect packed into it, and the fountain burns from one to another.

These have the advantage over conic fountains of providing a number of varying effects, for example, colours to silver, to crackles and so on, all in the same firework. Their main disadvantage is that each effect is much smaller in height than a dedicated conic or gerb.

There are many extremely good multi-effect fountains in the Garden classification (5m spectator distance) and for smaller displays these are well worth the investment.

A gerb is a professional version of the conic fountain, dispensing with the eye-pleasing conic shape in favour of practicality. Gerbs have the key advantage of a consistent and "instantly full" plume of sparks (whereas cones start small and build up). They are also easier to mount on posts or at angles than cones - but they tend to be more expensive.

Because the powder in a gerb is pressed into a tube rather than a cone, combinations of effects are possible such as colour changes part way through.

The ground based strobe (or Bengal Blinker) is becoming an increasingly popular firework in many displays. This very small - and cheap - firework sits on the ground and flashes on and off like a strobe light. Reflecting off the surroundings or illuminating its own smoke, the effect is very unusual. These work well in multiples and are normally silent in action except for the "phut phut phut" of the strobe.



Bengal Flares are small tubular fountains which create a coloured flame. These are not intended to be fountains, but do offer a specific colour. Due to their small flame, these also work best in multiples. You can use these to create a specific colour theme (team colour, anniversary etc) or to focus attention to ground level with a quiet effect. They're not too exciting used on their own though.