# Sparkler

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For other uses, see [Sparkler (disambiguation)](/source/Sparkler_(disambiguation)).

A **sparkler** is a type of hand-held [firework](/source/Firework) that burns slowly while emitting bright, colored sparks. It burns at a high temperature (over 1000 °C), so it can be [very dangerous](/source/Sparkler#Safety_issues).

Sparklers are particularly popular with children. In the [United Kingdom](/source/United_Kingdom), a sparkler is often used by children at bonfire and fireworks displays on [Guy Fawkes Night](/source/Guy_Fawkes_Night), the fifth of November,[1] and in the United States on [Independence Day](/source/Independence_Day_(United_States)).[2] They are called *phuljhadi* in Hindi – hence "Bengali" torches, candles, etc.[3][4][5] – and are especially popular during the [Diwali](/source/Diwali) festival.[6]

## Composition

Main article: [Pyrotechnic composition](/source/Pyrotechnic_composition)

Sparklers are generally formed around a thin non-combustible metallic wire, about 8–12 inches (20–30 cm) long, that has been dipped in a thick batter of slow-burning [pyrotechnic composition](/source/Pyrotechnic_composition) and allowed to dry. The combustible coating contains the following components; multiple ingredients can be used[7]:[8]

- [Metallic](/source/Metal) [fuel](/source/Fuel), main reactive ingredient; type of metals influences the color of sparks; size of particles influences shape and size of the sparks - [Aluminium](/source/Aluminium), [magnesium](/source/Magnesium) or [magnalium](/source/Magnalium), for white sparks - [Iron](/source/Iron), for orange branching sparks - [Titanium](/source/Titanium), for rich white sparks - [Ferrotitanium](/source/Ferrotitanium), for yellow-gold sparks
- [Oxidizer](/source/Oxidizer), main reactive ingredient - [Potassium nitrate](/source/Potassium_nitrate) - [Barium nitrate](/source/Barium_nitrate) - [Strontium nitrate](/source/Strontium_nitrate) - [Potassium perchlorate](/source/Potassium_perchlorate), more powerful but potentially explosive - [Ammonium perchlorate](/source/Ammonium_perchlorate)[9]
- [Combustible binder](/source/Binder_(material)), to hold the composition together - [Dextrin](/source/Dextrin) - [Nitrocellulose](/source/Nitrocellulose)
- Additional fuel (optional), to modify the burning speed - [Sulfur](/source/Sulfur) - [Charcoal](/source/Charcoal)
- [Pyrotechnic colorants](/source/Pyrotechnic_colorant) (optional), to color the sparks - chlorides and nitrates of metals, e.g. barium, strontium, or copper

The colored spot on the top of each rod indicates the color of the sparkles emitted when ignited.

## Uses

Sparklers are usually used for celebrations. They can be used for [light painting](/source/Light_painting). Due to the high (over 1000°C) burning temperature of certain compositions, they can also be used to ignite [thermite](/source/Thermite).

## Fountain candles

Fountain candles are variants of the traditional sparklers. Instead of being coated onto a wire, the chemicals are packed into a cardboard tube. Those small tubes filled with chemicals that when ignited spew out a plume of glowing sparks into the air. The effect can last a few seconds (cake fountain candles), up to a minute (bottle fountain sparklers) or several minutes (special effects for stage shows and concerts). These devices all consist of some combustible materials packed into a cardboard tube with the length of the visual effect being determined by the amount and specific composition of the chemicals packed into the tube[10]

Press reports have stated that fountain candles are believed to have been the cause of the [2026 Crans-Montana bar fire](/source/2026_Crans-Montana_bar_fire).[11]

Also known as Bengal lights, Bengal candles or Bengal fountains, they are different from [Bengal fire](/source/Bengal_fire), a form of outdoor firework.

## Safety issues

A 2009 report from the National Council on Fireworks Safety indicated that sparklers are responsible for 16 percent of legal firework-related injuries in the United States.[12] The [U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission](/source/U.S._Consumer_Product_Safety_Commission)'s statistics from the Fourth of July festivities in 2003 indicate that sparklers were involved in a majority (57%) of fireworks injuries sustained by children under five years of age.[13]

Subsequent reports from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission about "Fireworks-Related Deaths, Emergency Department-Treated Injuries, and Enforcement Activities" indicate:[needs update]

Year Estimated injuries % Estimated sparklers-related injuries On all fireworks- related injuries For children under 5 years old 2011[14] 1100 17% 36% 2012[15] 600 12% 30% 2013[16] 2300 31% 79% 2014[17] 1400 19% 61%

The devices burn at a high temperature (as hot as 1000°[C](/source/Celsius) to 1600°C, or 1800°[F](/source/Fahrenheit) to 3000°F), depending on the fuel and oxidizer used, more than sufficient to cause severe skin burns or ignite clothing.[18] Safety experts recommend that adults ensure children who handle sparklers be properly warned, supervised and wearing [non-flammable](/source/Flammability) [clothing](/source/Clothing).

As with all fireworks, sparklers are also capable of accidentally initiating wildfires. That is especially true in drier areas; in Australia, for instance, sparkler-related [bushfire](/source/Bushfires_in_Australia) accidents have led to their banning at public outdoor events during summer, such as at [Australia Day](/source/Australia_Day) celebrations.[19]

**Sparkler bombs** are home-made devices constructed by binding together as many as 300 sparklers with tape, leaving one extended to use as a fuse. In 2008, three deaths were attributed to the devices,[20] which can be ignited accidentally by heat or friction. Since they usually contain more than 50 milligrams of the same explosive powder found in [firecrackers](/source/Firecracker), they are illegal in the U.S. under [Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives](/source/Bureau_of_Alcohol,_Tobacco,_Firearms_and_Explosives) (ATF) regulations.[20]

## In art and popular culture

In 1999, the artists Tobias Kipp and Timo Pitkämö developed a technique of drawing portraits with burning sparklers on paper, which they called [pyrografie](/source/Pyrography). Since then the two artists have drawn more than 20,000 pyroportraits.[21] In 2007, art group [Monochrom](/source/Monochrom) lit 10,000 bound sparklers which it described as "symbolic liberation" from [monotheistic](/source/Monotheistic) traditions.[22] A large group from Toronto, Ontario, Canada also held an event displaying 10,000 sparklers to symbolize brightness, intensity, warmth and creativity.[23]

## See also

- [Consumer fireworks](/source/Consumer_fireworks)
- [Senko hanabi](/source/Senko_hanabi), Japanese-style sparkler

## References

1. ["10 safety tips for Guy Fawkes"](http://www.health24.com/Parenting/Child/Home/10-safety-tips-for-Guy-Fawkes-20131105). 5 November 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2014.

1. ["Fireworks Information Center"](http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Safety-Education/Safety-Education-Centers/Fireworks/). United States Condumer Product Safety Commission. Retrieved 11 August 2014.

1. [https://www.bol.com/be/nl/p/bengali-torch-set-5-stuks/9300000026057851/](https://www.bol.com/be/nl/p/bengali-torch-set-5-stuks/9300000026057851/)

1. Incendie en Suisse, à Crans-Montana : le dernier bilan fait état de 40 personnes tuées et 119 blessées, des « bougies et des feux de Bengale » au cœur de l’enquête

1. ["Bengali torch at DuckDuckGo"](https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Bengali+torch&t=h_&ia=web). *duckduckgo.com*

1. ["Sparklers for Diwali celebrations"](http://weddingsparklersusa.com/sparklers-for-diwali/). 27 October 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2014.

1. ["How do sparklers work?"](https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/technology-you-asked-general-science/how-do-sparklers-work). *Office for Science and Society*. Retrieved 2026-01-14.

1. ["Sparkler compositions"](https://web.archive.org/web/20050213035708/http://www.pyrocreations.com/sparkler_compositions). *Pyrocreations.com*. Archived from [the original](http://www.pyrocreations.com/sparkler_compositions) on 2005-02-13. Retrieved 2016-12-25.

1. ["Sparkler composition"](https://patents.google.com/patent/US3862865A/en)

1. ["If You Play With Fire, You Can Get Burned"](https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/critical-thinking-technology-history-general-science/if-you-play-fire-you-can-get-burned). *Office for Science and Society*. Retrieved 2026-01-16.

1. ["Sparklers on champagne bottles ‘likely’ cause of Swiss ski resort fire that killed 40"](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/switzerland-ski-resort-fire-sparklers-crans-montana-b2893623.html). *The Independent*. 2026-01-02. Retrieved 2026-01-06.

1. ["Sparklers 16 percent of fireworks harm."](http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2009/06/22/Sparklers-16-percent-of-fireworks-harm/UPI-86421245710485/). United Press International. June 22, 2009.

1. ["The Dangers of Fireworks"](https://web.archive.org/web/20101207052451/http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/downloads/pdf/tfrs/v5i4.pdf). *Topical Fire Research Series*. **5** (4). U.S. Fire Administration/National Fire Data Center. June 2005. Archived from [the original](http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/downloads/pdf/tfrs/v5i4.pdf) on 2010-12-07. Retrieved 2011-06-28.

1. "[Fireworks-Related Deaths, Emergency Department-Treated Injuries, and Enforcement Activities During 2011](https://www.cpsc.gov/PageFiles/113888/2011fwreport.pdf)", [U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission](/source/U.S._Consumer_Product_Safety_Commission), June 2012.

1. "[Fireworks-Related Deaths, Emergency Department-Treated Injuries, and Enforcement Activities During 2012](https://cpsc.gov/Global/Research-and-Statistics/Injury-Statistics/Fuel-Lighters-and-Fireworks/Fireworks_Report_2012.pdf)", [U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission](/source/U.S._Consumer_Product_Safety_Commission), June 2013.

1. "[Fireworks-Related Deaths, Emergency Department-Treated Injuries, and Enforcement Activities During 2013](https://www.cpsc.gov/Global/Research-and-Statistics/Injury-Statistics/Fuel-Lighters-and-Fireworks/2013FireworksReport.pdf)", [U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission](/source/U.S._Consumer_Product_Safety_Commission), June 2014

1. "[Fireworks-Related Deaths, Emergency Department-Treated Injuries, and Enforcement Activities During 2014](https://www.cpsc.gov/Global/Research-and-Statistics/Injury-Statistics/Fuel-Lighters-and-Fireworks/Fireworks_Report_2014.pdf)", [U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission](/source/U.S._Consumer_Product_Safety_Commission), June 2015

1. ["Sparklers Can Burn at 2,000 Degrees Fahrenheit"](http://www.cpsc.gov/PageFiles/149699/fireworksparkler.pdf). United States Consumer Product Safety Commission. Retrieved 11 August 2014.

1. [Put Safety First This Australia Day](https://www.dfes.wa.gov.au/mediareleases/Pages/MediaRelease.aspx?ItemId=588), DFES, January 2012

1. ['Sparkler Bombs' Mar Celebrations](https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704699604575343214252663030), Wall Street Journal

1. ["Pyrografie – Live-Porträts für Events"](https://www.pyrografie.de/pyrografie/). *Pyrografie*

1. ["Free Bariumnitrate // Polytheism #1"](https://web.archive.org/web/20070227002952/http://www.monochrom.at/free-bariumnitrate/). *www.monochrom.at*. Archived from [the original](https://www.monochrom.at/free-bariumnitrate/) on February 27, 2007.

1. [Article title](https://web.archive.org/web/20110724031634/http://reinventwinter.net/) Reinventwinter.net

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Sparkler](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sparkler) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sparkler?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.