SAN ANTONIO – After doing science experiments in the KSAT News studio for over a year, Kaiti’s Science Lab is now on the road! Meteorologist Kaiti Blake and David Sears joined a homeschool group in Marion to make homemade thermometers in a bottle.
To make your own bottle thermometer, you’ll need:
- 1 clear, glass bottle
- water
- rubbing alcohol
- 1 straw
- food coloring
- molding clay
- marker
Here’s how to make your own bottle thermometer:
- pour a mixture of water and rubbing alcohol in the bottle and fill it about halfway up
- add in a few drops of the food coloring of your choice stir gently until mixed
- fasten the straw to the bottle using molding clay; be careful to not let the straw touch the bottom of the bottle
- make sure the clay covers the opening of the bottle
Once your thermometer is ready to go, leave it in a location of your choosing for a little while. After some time, take note of the liquid level in the straw and mark it on the side of the bottle. Then, leave the bottle in the same place for another period of time. Come back again and mark where the water level in the straw is now. You’ll be able to see how to temperature rose or fell!