The coffin lid swings down, darkness enfolds and I'm rocked back and forth by carrying hands, waiting in dread for the sound of dirt falling on wood.

I'm spared premature burial – the coffin is real but it sits atop stationary pneumatic "rumble pads" in Paul Hopkins's garage. Come Halloween night, the "coffin ride," complete with piped-in soundtrack, is certain to be a highlight of his elaborate home haunt at 115 Phillip Ave. in Scarborough.

For those about to spook, adornments can range from dollar-store paper skeletons up to this, more thrill ride than decoration, available for upwards of $3,500 through boneyardbargains.ca, his website – and even beyond.

The Enfrightened Shopper asked home haunters and merchants of the macabre how to stand out from the candle-in-the-pumpkin set.

Hopkins likes bones – he's a Canadian distributor for America's premier replica-bone maker – and will sell you a fully posable life-sized skeleton for $125. But these days haunters want bones to do more than just hang out.

"People want things that move, animatronics and pneumatics, that interact," says Hopkins. He's happy to oblige with items such as a $300 animatronic talking skull ($200 for a make-it-yourself kit). You provide the sound source and Bonesy will scare the bejeezus out of trick-or-treaters with words of your choice.

(Some customers are extra spooky: a man called Hopkins one summer day looking for a real skeleton. He didn't get it.)

Those who prefer bones that look as though they just came out of the crypt, decayed flesh and all, can check out Barrie-based vikingdarkworks.ca.

Of course, a novice practitioner of spooky scary fun might want to start small and cheap. Experts say a good way to get your feet wet, and deathly cold, is a graveyard – the classic front-yard haunt.

Ideas, photos and prop-building advice abound on websites such as ontariohauntersclub.com.

Club president Victoria Wolf runs her own well-stocked online Halloween store, creepedout.ca. Painted foam tombstones there range from $20 to $80.

At Amazing Party and Costume (923 Oxford St., 416-259-5959), hundreds of human-sized ghouls hang from the rafters, ranging in price from $15 to $65. Some pricier models have glowing eyes and sound.

But it isn't a graveyard smash unless some corpses appear to be surfacing. Rubber static ones start at around $25; mechanical "risers" that pop the creatures up will cost many times that.

Amazing Party manager Kurt Perron says little touches can trigger the shivers – a spooky-sound CD ($6 to $10) playing through a boom box; fog (machines are $50 to $90); liberally splashed blood ($45 for a gallon) and a strobe light ($20 to $25). "If it looks crappy, get a light behind it and it looks great," he says.

Inflatable lawn decorations are hot – so hot that a $250 life-sized funeral carriage, complete with rearing horse, top-hatted skeleton driver and pop-up corpse, quickly sold out.

Once you have a theme, you might want to decide where your haunt will fall on the scale from cute to terrifying.

Chris Ainsworth learned that last year during his annual elaborate haunt at 1 Krisbury Ave. in Thornhill. Some children were "freaked out" by a front-yard display, so, this year, the "Cannibals' Meat Shop" will be at the side with a sign, so parents can decide if they want to go near. His haunt will also feature a 2.5-metre Frankenstein that gets violently shocked to life, bought from distortionsunlimited.com.

Ainsworth's tips for newbies include: use rebar to hold up ghosts and other props instead of weak wood; get some cheap atmosphere by replacing Christmas lights with orange and blue ones; and shine a spotlight straight up at your house.

Oh, and just because you show kids some scary tricks doesn't mean they won't demand treats.

"Don't forget the candy – last year we had 1,400 kids and the amount I gave out was sick."