Water is a very powerful force. Depending on where the water is running depends on the force and power it has. Here is a science project to show the force and power of water.

Get the following materials before you start the project.

 



• A half gallon orange juice or milk carton


• An ice pick or a nail about the size of an ice pick


• Tape preferably masking tape


• Water


• A sink (no you won't need to go get one but you will need to have a sink available to do the project)


• Scissors


• A Permanent market or pen


• Paper


• A ruler or tape measure

Instructions for project:

 



1. Using the ruler measure 7 inches from the bottom of the paper orange juice carton and make a mark. Do this on all sides. Now using the scissors cut around the carton along the marks you made so you know have a box 7 inches high.


2. Now on one side only use your ruler and measure ½ inch, 1 inch, 2 inches, 3 inches and also 6 inches. At each of these measurements make a dot using the market tip. Now using the ice pick or nail punch a hole in the carton at each of the dots. Please have your parents do this for you as safety is a must and you do not want to take the chance of getting hurt.


3. Set your carton on the side of the sink with the holes facing the inside of the sink.


4. Take a long piece of tape and place it over all the holes. Make sure to press down well so the tape is very secure.


5. Fill the carton with water.


6. Now remove the tape and watch all your holes on the carton and make visual observations. What did the streams look like? Were any sending the water out farther or more arced? Did the lower or higher holes seem to produce the streams of water that pushed out the farthest?


7. Make notes on your graph paper.


8. Now using new tape tear 4 pieces an place a piece over each individual hole.


9. Refill the carton and place it again on the side of the sink. Take off the bottom tape and note how far the stream pushes out. Measure it. Put your finger on the hole and replace the tape. Now take the tap off the second hole and do the same thing. Refill the carton with more water and do the 3rd hole and finally the last one making sure to refill the carton before testing.

What did you find?

Did you notice that the hole at the top did not seem to have as much power as the one at the bottom? Think about this fact. Water itself has weight and volume. So think about a pyramid of cheerleaders. The cheerleader on the bottom has to support the weight of all those who climb on top of the next person to form the pyramid. With the water the amount on top puts a lot of pressure and weight on that below and when given an outlet to drain will force the water out faster and will more pressure than water that has nothing pushing on it.

Make a note that you will want to always fill the water to the same place on the carton every time so you achieve the same results. Make a mark inside the carton with a permanent marker.

This science project showing the power of water can be a good demonstration at the fair. Just make sure to use a bucket or something to catch the water streams.