Bengala
Halloween garage door projection: setup and lumens
Published October 9, 2026
Short answer. A one-car door needs a projector of 1,000 ANSI lumens or more. A two-car door needs 2,000 or more. Put the projector about 4.5 to 5.7 meters (15 to 19 feet) from a one-car door and 5.9 to 7.3 meters (19 to 24 feet) from a two-car door, aimed at the middle. Plug your phone in with HDMI and drag a shape’s corners onto the door. Pick an effect that is mostly black, like bats or ghosts, and do it after dark.
The garage door is the largest flat surface on most houses, and it is usually pale. That makes it the best place for the big effects: a flock of bats, a wall that cracks open, ghosts that cross the whole width. It is also where a weak projector shows. A window needs 300 lumens. A garage door needs three to seven times that.
Measure the door first
Two numbers decide where the projector goes: the width and the height of the door. Common sizes in the US are about 2.4 by 2.1 meters (8 by 7 feet) for one car, sometimes 2.7 meters (9 feet) wide, and 4.9 by 2.1 meters (16 by 7 feet) for two. Measure yours.
A projector’s picture is wider than it is tall, in the ratio 16 to 9. So the picture has to be at least as big as the door in whichever direction is tighter.
| Door | Size | What sets the picture size | Picture width | Distance at 1.2 to 1.5 | ANSI lumens |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| One car | 2.4 × 2.1 m (8 × 7 ft) | The height | 3.8 m (12.5 ft) | 4.5 to 5.7 m (15 to 19 ft) | 1,000 or more |
| Two cars | 4.9 × 2.1 m (16 × 7 ft) | The width | 4.9 m (16 ft) | 5.9 to 7.3 m (19 to 24 ft) | 2,000 or more |
The distance is the throw ratio times the picture width. Most small projectors sit between 1.2 and 1.5, and the number is on the spec sheet. The picture ends up bigger than the door, so the light is spread over more wall than the door alone. That is why the minimums are not lower.
Past those minimums, more is better. A white or cream door is the easy case. A dark brown or gray door needs a lot more light. A streetlight or a porch lamp pointing at the door eats into everything, so turn the porch lamp off.
What you need
- A projector with an HDMI input and the lumens in the table. The cheap projector guide shows how to read a spec sheet, and the recommended gear page lists a bright model for this job.
- An iPhone or iPad with Bengala, and a USB-C or Lightning to HDMI adapter.
- An HDMI cable, 3 to 5 meters (10 to 16 feet).
- A tripod or a sturdy table, and an outdoor-rated extension cord.
- Cover for the projector: a porch roof or a ventilated bin, never a sealed box.
- A cable cover or strong tape.
Set it up, step by step
- Pick the spot for the projector. Straight in front of the door, at the distance in the table, gives the sharpest picture. The ridges on a paneled door cast faint shadow lines when the light comes in at a low angle, and straight on keeps them small. If the middle of the driveway is where people walk, move the projector to the side and let the corners fix the angle. Do not pick a place where a car backs out.
- Keep the cable out of the way. The extension cord and the HDMI cable should not cross anywhere a car or a stroller goes. Tape them flat, or cover them. A wheel on an HDMI cable ends it.
- Connect and focus. Adapter into the phone, cable into the projector, then pick the HDMI input. Bengala shows the projector on the Home screen. Tap the projector status and Show test pattern, and turn the focus ring until the grid is sharp on the door. Do it in the dark if you can.
- Lock the opener. Many openers have a Lock button on the wall panel. Press it so nobody opens the door in the middle of the show.
- Add a shape and drag its corners. Open a project, tap +, and choose Rectangle. Drag the four corners onto the four corners of the door. If the picture is wider than the door, that is fine, because the shape cuts it. Keep the corners a little inside the edge, so no light creeps onto the siding.
- Handle the windows. Some doors have a row of small glass panes along the top. Light goes through them into the garage. You can leave it, or pull the top corners down below the panes. Points adds more corners if you want to cut around them.
- Pick an effect and check it from the street. Walk to the sidewalk and look at it the way the neighbors will. Dim, or washed out near the edges? Make the shape a little smaller, or move the projector closer.
Which effect on a door that big
A garage door is one big flat screen. Anything that moves across it reads well, and black parts of the effect add no light, so the door stays a door where the effect is dark.
- Friendly Phantoms: nine cartoon ghosts, floating at three depths. A free effect.
- Moon Swarm: bats flapping across a full moon. Pro. Best on a big wall or a garage door.
- Midnight Ride: a witch and her cat cross a harvest moon. Pro.
- Wall of Fire: a brick wall that blows apart to show flames, then slams shut. Pro.
Panel lines and seams show through the picture. That does nothing to flames, bats or ghosts, and it hurts fine text and small faces. Pick big, soft shapes.
Free and Pro
The free plan has one project, with as many shapes as you like, and a few free effects. Friendly Phantoms is one of them and suits a garage door. A small Bengala watermark drifts across the projection. Pro removes it, unlocks every effect, and adds new ones regularly. It comes as a weekly plan, a yearly plan with a 3-day free trial, or a lifetime purchase, and the app shows the price in your own currency before you buy.
Neighbors and safety
- Keep the beam off the road and off other people’s windows. A moving picture is a distraction behind the wheel.
- Some effects flash. If children or guests may be sensitive to flashing light, use slow ones.
- The projector needs air. Keep paper decorations, fake cobweb and fabric away from its vents.
- Put the phone and the projector under cover, and keep plugs off wet ground.
- Pick a switch-off time that suits your street. Late evening is plenty.
Questions
How many lumens do I need for a garage door?
1,000 ANSI lumens or more for a one-car door and 2,000 or more for a two-car door, on a pale door in the dark. A dark door, or a streetlight nearby, means more. Check that the listing says ANSI, because many cheap projectors print a much bigger number that is not.
Can a cheap Halloween projector light do this?
The small stake lights that throw a ghost or a bat are made for a closer, smaller spot. They throw a fixed image, or one that turns slowly, and you cannot fit it to the door. The Halloween projector guide compares the two.
How far from the door should the projector be?
About 4.5 to 5.7 meters (15 to 19 feet) for a one-car door and 5.9 to 7.3 meters (19 to 24 feet) for a two-car door, if the projector’s throw ratio is between 1.2 and 1.5. Your projector’s spec sheet gives its own number, and the distance is that number times the picture width.
Does the projector have to be straight in front?
No. Straight on is sharpest and keeps the panel shadows small. Off to one side works, because dragging the corners bends the picture to fit. The far edge gets a little softer the more you angle it.
Can I use AirPlay?
You can, if the projector supports it or an Apple TV is plugged into it. Fit the shape over HDMI first, because AirPlay lags when you drag a corner. The AirPlay vs HDMI guide explains what you give up.
What about the rest of the house?
Start with the door, then add a window or a pumpkin on the porch. Each is its own shape with its own effect. The house guide covers the whole front.