That gadget sounds interesting Eric.So you will be using the ho made caps at 12 volt dc or do you have plans to use a transformer to up the voltage at some point in the experiments? I have a couple ideas on this going through my head as I read your post here .One is a DC rheostat to allow you to adjust your voltage up or down. With a little experimentation Maybe you can find a sweet spot that spirits like the best.Or if you can find something that will sweep the power up and down automatically maybe you can catch more activity ? If you put a voltage meter display on it ,you could see what volts give you the most activity .Okay,I had to get that junk out of my head so I can sleep tonight
Good luck