So im working on creating my first explosion in houdini and i have the initial explosion part down but now im trying to create the dust and debris. I think im going to use particles and then attach smoke to emit from them. Should i make a new container or can/should i use the same one from the initial explosion. Also should i keep it in the same AutoDOP?

Divide and conquer. If you are running very large sims, keep things separated in to different DOP nets and different HIP files if you want.

Cache the fields from the first sim from the DOP I/O SOP to disk.

Use the various fields from the first pyro sim (like vel) to advect your particles then run subsequent sims.

One exception would be if the particles or other sims were influencing the first sim, which in your case is not true.

Thanks for all your help. How exactly do I …

“Use the various fields from the first pyro sim (like vel) to advect your particles then run subsequent sims?”

Is there a tutorial you can send me to?