How to Make Lava Lamp Without Alka Seltzer
Lava lamps are so cool because they have water, oil, and then some chemical that causes the liquid to rise in various shapes. They also make great night lights or light art pieces that you can place anywhere in your house. The best part about making them yourself is that they’re cheap, too! In this blog post, we will talk about how to make lava lamp without alka seltzer.
All you need is clear nail polish, rubbing alcohol, food coloring, lotion (or olive oil), and dish soap (optional). It’s as simple as mixing all those things until they combine nicely into a fluid mixture; it will start to look like a lava lamp in just a few minutes! Then, if you want to put it in a bottle so no one can see what the fluid is made of, coat the bottle with clear nail polish and let it dry. Read on to know more!
Summary: First, mix together one cup of sugar and one cup of vinegar. You can use any type of vinegar, but white vinegar is the easiest to find and work with. Once the mixture is mixed together, pour it into a large glass container. Next, fill a large bowl with water and place it over the sugar-vinegar mixture. Make sure the bowl is big enough so that the water doesn’t touch the sides of the container. Allow the mixture to cool for at least two hours. Once the mixture has cooled, turn on your light source and let the lava flow!
7 Ways on How to Make Lava Lamp Without Alka Seltzer:
1. Water and Oil
Fill a clay pot or wide-mouthed jar about ¾ complete with water. Add one cup of oil to the water. Boil some more oil on the stove until it becomes hot but not boiling in a small pot. Pour the hot oil into the jar carefully to float on top of the water/oil mixture. The hot oil will cause the water/oil to form globules that move around because of convection currents.
2. Salt and Oil
Fill your pot or jar about halfway with water. Add salt until the water is saturated (no more will dissolve). Pour in oil until it overflows, then add a little bit more. The mixture should look soupy because of the mix of salt and oil. Put a light under the jar to see if convection currents form.
3. Water and Glycerin
Put a little bit of glycerin (from the drug store) into water. You’ll have to experiment with the ratio of glycerin to water until you get it just right, but once you do, it will create a mixture that forms and moves and won’t stop.
4. Oil and Dishwashing Liquid
Fill your container with oil. Add a few drops of blue dishwashing liquid to the water and stir it in quickly. You can also add food coloring to the water if you want. The oil and blue dye will form into globules and rise and fall as convection currents move them.
5. Vinegar and Baking Soda
Put a few tablespoons of baking soda in your jar or other containers (the container should preferably be glass). Now, pour in some vinegar. You can make your globules as big or small as you want by adjusting how much baking soda and vinegar you use.
6. Boiling water
Put water into a microwavable dish and heat it for about 2 minutes (or until boiling). The hot steam will evaporate the water and create gas. The gas will rush to the top of your container and form a bubble, but the weight of the water at the bottom will hold it back. Surface tension will be held in place, which is a fancy way of saying that not all molecules have enough energy to escape from water’s pull.
7. Alcohol and Water
Fill a container about halfway with alcohol. Now drop a few drops of food coloring into the container and stir it in quickly. The alcohol will cause the water to form an emulsion, which means that because the surface tension between oil and water is decreased by alcohol, they don’t separate as much as they do when no alcohol is added.
Directions: How to Make Lava Lamp Without Alka Seltzer
Step 1:
You will need a container of some kind, or this won’t work. Try to find something that the astringents you have at home will fit into. The container should be wider than it is tall.
Step 2:
Fill your container up about 3/4 of the way with water. You’ll want the water level to reach right below where the cap of the container will be.
Step 3:
Add 1 to 2 teaspoons of dish soap, which is enough to form a good amount of bubbles in your water.
Step 4:
Find some astringents that have an oily base, such as Alka seltzer or hartshorn. You can crush them, so they dissolve faster, but you will still want to wait a while for them to dissolve completely.
Step 5:
Add your astringent so that bubbles form in the water. If the liquid takes more than half a minute to produce bubbles, add an extra teaspoon or two of soapy water.
Step 6:
Add food coloring to your liquid. It may soak up some of the liquid, but it should still produce bubbles.
Step 7:
Wait for your lava lamp to form and sit without touching it or moving it where you placed it at all. If needed, place a weight over the top of the container like a small plate. Leave undisturbed for at least 24 hours.
Step 8:
Once the water has stopped producing bubbles, it should be ready to be lit up. To turn your lava lamp on, try using a lighter or book of matches to get the water moving again.
Some Tips and Suggestions:
1. Use boiling water with the food dye/corn syrup mixture.
2. Lower the heat of your stove or lamp once you have added all ingredients.
3. Keep the thumb over the opening of the soda bottle as you pour in all ingredients.
4. You want to keep a little bit of air left in your bottle for it to form a proper lava lamp shape. If there is no air, place a single sheet of paper towel on top with an elastic band around it so that your lava lamp forms appropriately.
5. The higher the temperature, the faster it will heat up.
6. Your lava lamp may lose its shape when you add in all ingredients, but once it reaches room temperature or lowers, it should be back to normal.
7. The oil, water, and dye/corn syrup mixture float at different levels, with the water in between them. This allows the other liquids to travel through the lava lamp without mixing, which forms appropriately.
8. Keep the lava lamp on a level surface. If it tilts to one side, clean around the area where the cap of your bottle is and replace its position with a small weight or piece of paper that won’t be used. This will help give it more stability and help it form better.
Conclusion:
Lava lamps are a classic and fascinating toy. They can be made at home with just the right ingredients, but of course, we’re happy to provide you with all of these supplies in one easy-to-order kit! So the next time you’re feeling a little creative, try this recipe for how to make lava lamp without Alka seltzer. Again, we have the supplies ready for you!
We hope that this article has helped answer your questions about how to make a lava lamp. If not, please browse around our website for more information on other topics related to lava lamps or contact us with any additional questions you might have. Also, let us know if you want any more information on how these principles work or other recipes we’ve created.
