Fizz Inflator Science Experiment

This was such a GREAT experiment! We did this one a few days after we launched our canister rockets. Once my kids got started with the experiment and the balloon started to inflate-I had kids thinking the balloon was going to explode.

Again, there are many variations of this all over the Internet. I chose to stick with Science Bob's directions.

What You Will Need:

One small empty plastic soda or water bottle

1/2 cup of vinegar

Small balloon

Baking soda

Funnel or piece of paper 

What You Will Do:
1. Carefully pour the vinegar into the bottle.

2. This is the tricky part: Loosen up the balloon by stretching it a few times and then use the funnel to fill it a bit more than half way with baking soda. If you don't have a funnel you can make one using the paper and some tape.

3. Now carefully put the neck of the balloon all the way over the neck of the bottle without letting any baking soda into the bottle.

4. Ready? Lift the balloon up so that the baking soda falls from the balloon into the bottle

The Science:
The baking soda and the vinegar create an acid base reaction and the two chemicals work together to create a gas, (carbon dioxide). Gasses need a lot of room to spread out and the carbon dioxide starts to fill the bottle, and then moves into the balloon to inflate it.

Questions To Make it an Experiment:
 1. Does water temperature affect how fast the balloon fills up?
2. Does the size of the bottle affect how much the balloon fills?
3. Can the amount the balloon fills-up be controlled by the amount of vinegar or baking soda?

A video (they used 1/4 cup vinegar and if you don't have a funnel they show you how to make one with paper).