Setup

Though you may be used to taking one firework out at a time and lighting it, you display can be greatly improved by setting up and preparing the entire show beforehand.  Even if you're only have a small display, it can benefit from the process described on this page.  There are many advantages of setting up prior to your show:

VISIBILITY: by setting up your display during the daylight hours, you will actually be able to see what you're doing.  You can figure out exactly where you want each item without having to do so by flashlight.

PACE: because each item is already set up and ready to ignite, you don't have to waste time running back and forth between the firing site and your supply of fireworks - this puts much less stress on you and allows you to think more clearly

SAFETY: you won't have to scramble to set up a firework and ignite it before another one finishes, thereby reducing the chance that an unsecured firework could tip over.

SUPPLIES

There's lots of equipment that you'll need to set up early.  Some of the equipment is only needed if you're going to be using certain types of fireworks:

Bricks: for stabilizing the fireworks.  Get at least two of these for every fountain or repeating aerial device that you plan to set off.  Cement cinder blocks are even better because fireworks can be placed inside of them.
Plywood: for setting up clusters of fireworks right next to each other.  It provides a nice flat surface to set them on, and is used along with bricks.  Or, you can use them to create "stations", as described here.
Wooden posts: for mounting set pieces, wheels, or rocket launching tubes.  It's much easier to build a mounting frame that will hold the posts vertically rather than trying to pound them into the ground.
Pipe: in case you're planning to launch rockets.  It only needs to be wide and long enough to accommodate the rocket's stick.
Plastic grocery bags, garbage bags, aluminum foil: used for protecting fireworks against rain, sparks, and fallout
Shovel: for piling dirt around racks for stabilization, and for putting out any fires or stray sparks
Gloves: not only for firing, but also to protect your hands when hauling equipment around.
Knife: for cutting fuses, wrappers, boxes.  Don't leave home without it!
Wire cutters/scissors: also used for cutting fuses.
Extra fuse: for extending fuses to create time delays, or for connecting multiple devices together.  Check out the fusing page to see how to do so.
Food/Drink:  setting up your display will probably make you hungry and thirsty.  Bring snacks and plenty to drink alone with you to the firing site so you don't have to leave to go get them later.  You never want to leave the site unattended.
Cellular phone: for emergencies
First aid kit: just in case.  You want to prepare for the worst.
Fire extinguisher/squirt gun: to put out any smoldering fireworks or stray fires.  The large "super-soaker" type water guns shoot a thick stream of water and work great for this.  It can also be used for crowd control.  They may get rowdy.
Protective clothing: safety goggles, helmet (to protect from fallout), gloves, clothing to cover bare arms/legs.
Methods of ignition:  for the love of God, DO NOT forget your lighter, matches, flares, or whatever.  Click here to learn about the different ways of lighting fireworks.

DEALING WITH WEATHER

Wind

Wind affects both the ascent of burning fireworks and the decent of the fallout.  Because of this, it is extremely important to position the audience upwind of the fireworks to reduce the chance of them getting rained on with sparks.  Remember the higher a device goes, the farther the wind will push it.  If you arrive on the firing site and find the the wind is blowing, you should seriously consider moving around the locations of the different "zones" in your display.  Of course, you must first find out which way it's blowing.  No, I don't mean lick your finger and stick it in the air.  Stand right in the middle of the firing zone and toss up a few blades of grass or a handful of dirt and watch where it goes.  If you find that it's blowing towards the area that you originally planned to hold spectators, you should rotate the spectator zone around the firework zone, maintaining the fallout zone in between.  The wind doesn't have to be blowing directly ahead of the audience: as long as the wind direction falls between the two arrows in the diagram to the left (meaning that the wind will carry the fallout away from the audience), you're fine.

Rain

Aside from tornados, meteor showers, or tactical nuclear strikes, rain is the other weather pattern you need to prepare for.  In my particular area, the Olympic Peninsula, it would be foolish to expect anything nicer than a torrential downpour on America's birthday.  Luckily for the lazy pyro, however, outwitting the rain can easily and cheaply be done using plastic garbage bags.  The setup process for each category of firework described below will include a section on how to weatherproof that particular item.  Naturally, if you live in an area that doesn't receive rain for months on end, you won't have to take these precautions.

SETUP

If you haven't already, I strongly advise that you read my page on how to use consumer fireworks before actually setting them up.  The setup procedures below contain summaries and excepts from that page, along with pictures

Aerial Shells, Mines

Aerial shell and mine tubes always need to be braced, no matter how big the plastic base is or how stable it seems.  Wind or even unstable terrain (such as grass) could cause it to fall over.  The easiest way to stabilize it is to simply place a couple bricks on top of the base, which will keep it from moving.  If you plan on doing lots of shells, however, you may want to consider building a mortar rack.

Spark proofing a mortar like this is very important - since all of the shells/mines will be loaded before hand, you don't want to take any chances of burning fallout accidentally igniting one of them.  To do this, cover the exposed fuse by wrapping a long, thin piece of aluminum foil around it (this fuse cap should be easy to remove when it comes time to light the shell).  Make sure the fuse is coming outside of the tube, then cover the mouth of the tube with a 4"x4" piece of foil.  Waterproofing is done simply by placing a plastic grocery bag around the mouth of the mortar and securing it with a rubber band.  When it comes time to fire, all you have to do is rip off the bag, take off the fuse cap, and let 'er rip.

Fountains, Repeaters, Pre-loaded Aerial Tubes 

The rule of thumb is, if it's the type of firework that sits there and shoots stuff into the air, it should be braced, no matter how wimpy you may think it is.  Even fountains should be braced in some way to prevent the often thrust of the spray from tipping the device over and burning the grass or other unlit fireworks.  Repeaters often have thick clay plugs in the bottom of the tubes for stability, but should be braced with bricks nonetheless.  Concrete cinder blocks work great for this, since the devices can be placed inside and cannot possibly tip over.

Rockets

Both bottle rockets and skyrockets should be launched from a plastic or metal pipe aimed at no more than 20 degrees from vertical. As shown in the picture, the pipe only needs to be wide enough to accommodate the rocket's stick, because that's the only thing that will be going into the pipe.  Metal pipes work well because they can easily be pounded into the ground.  If the ground is really tough, you can hammer in a piece of metal bar, and then attach a length of pipe to that.  Either way, make sure the pipe is stable and won't tip over later on during the day or during the show.  Never launch rockets by sticking them in the ground - most of the time they will tip over an shoot off horizontally or remain stuck in the ground and blow up. To rainproof rockets, put a plastic bag over the top and secure it with a rubber band.  When it's time for ignition, don't rip the bag off - it may damage the rocket.  Cut the rubber band, then remove the bag.  Don't light the rocket with the bag still on it.

Roman Candles

Because of their width, roman candles are usually nearly impossible to stick into the ground without destroying the tube.  However, there are many alternatives to this.  You could actually dig a hole (or trench) in the ground, stick in the candles, then fill back in around them - which is a pain.  Another simple idea is to get hold of one of those long plastic planter boxes and plant yourself some roman candles.  Fill it halfway with dirt or rocks, stick in the candles, then fill the rest in and compact it down.  This makes it quite heavy, though, so it's best to do this right where you plan to fire the candles from.  Arrange the candles in a fan shape pattern and connect them with quick match, or tape them up into bundles of 7 or so before you bury them.  This makes them much more interesting when they go off.

To waterproof, just slip a bag over the top and secure it with a rubber band, just like you'd do with a rocket or shell tube.  It may also be a good idea to wrap the rest of the candle tube in aluminum foil or plastic wrap, especially if it's angled or the rain is blowing down at an angle.

Wheels, Saxons

These devices need a hard, sturdy surface to be nailed into.  Fence posts work fine, providing that you thoroughly douse it with water beforehand to reduce the likelihood of a fire.  In most cases, you'll probably have to drive a long wooden stake into the ground to mount them on.  If this is the case, be sure the stake won't fall over - wheels and saxons product a lot of thrust.  When you nail them into their posts, be sure that they rotate freely around the nail without getting caught on anything.  Wheels that don't spin are very, very boring.  To protect from weather, tie a bag around it - and make sure no water can get in.

Novelties 

All novelties require is a flat surface, such as a 2'x2' piece of plywood, so that they can roll around on their little wheels without stopping.  Because of their size and fragility, novelties probably shouldn't be set up beforehand, and therefore don't require weatherproofing.  It'd be best to keep them in a box nearby and take them out/ignite as needed.    

Now that you've got everything set up, it's time to start the show...

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