How to Make a Lava Lamp

How to Make a Lava Lamp

To start with, we are going to make the lava of the lamp. To make the lava we should mix the mineral oil with the color food dye you have chosen in a container until you get the appropriate color. We should mix the oil with the color step by step so as not to exceed the color you want because it is impossible to return to the previous step. Food dyes or colors you used should be based on oil; they are the best for this kind of work.

Once the mixture is ready, wash the glass bottle well and then pour the mixture in it. Only fill ¼ of the bottle.

Then, you should add the alcohol. The 70º alcohol will make the mineral oil to float, while the 90º alcohol will make it sink. You should add it in room temperature until oil forms a huge bubble of lava that floats from the bottom to the middle of the bottle. This is the ideal point because due to density differences, micro currents will be formed moving the oil inside the lamp with the light bulb heat.

Once the bottle is filled with the alcohol, the colored lava and the burble in the precise point (almost in the middle of the bottle in cold temperature) add a teaspoon of turpentine tea, which is also used to dissolve oil colors paints.

You can make the lava lamp base using a jar with a plastic or metal lid. First, remove the lid in order to introduce a socket with 40W light bulb so, in this way, light will be able to go through the upper part and light up the inner side of the bottle. The lid should be drilled 1 or 2 cms diameter less than the bottle base diameter so as to let enough light and heat go through the bottle without losing stability over the base.