How do i explain effect pedals to someone who doesn't play guitar in a sentence?

[Lungimsam]

Don't they allow guitars in jail, or is it a matter of principle for your friend not to play guitar during incarceration?

 

All kidding aside, try:

 

"They change the sound of the guitar."

[Bender 4 Life]

dem00n......everybody understands food, so tell 'em that guitar & amp are a plain ham sandwich, and the pedals are ingredients in a Dagwood sammich........the taste of the sandwich is different depending on which pedal(s) you add, use singly, or in different combinations.

 

hope that helped