How to Change the Color of a Flame
A fire in your fireplace will surely keep you warm in winter, and it's always fun to toast marshmallows around a campfire. But perhaps you're looking for an even better way to make the fire a little more memorable or fun. With a few different chemicals, you can create a fire light show right in your own living room or fire pit. And with some old candles, you can create "fire color patties" to carry with you whenever you're around a fireplace or campfire to add a little color to the flames.
Things You'll Need
- Sauce pot or double-boiler
- Oven-safe glass bowl, if needed
- Candles
- Copper Chloride
- Copper Sulfate
- Potassium Chloride
- Lithium Chloride
- 4 small paper cups
- Spoon
Instructions
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1
Fill the bottom of your double boiler with just enough water that it covers the bottom but doesn't touch the top boiler pot. If you don't own a double boiler, fill a sauce pot with water, then fit an oven safe glass bowl into the pot. Ensure the water doesn't touch the glass bowl.
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2
Place the double boiler onto your stove and bring the water to a boil.
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3
Place a few candles into the top of the boiler and allow them to completely melt.
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4
Pour copper chloride, copper sulfate, potassium chloride and lithium chloride into separate small paper cups. You'll want about 1/4 inch of each different chemical into the separate cups.
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5
Pour the melted candle wax into each cup. Pour just enough wax so it completely covers the chemicals.
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6
Stir each wax/chemical mixture very quickly with an old spoon. Allow each the wax in each cup to cool completely and harden.
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7
Peel the paper off of each cup, and save the "patties" for your next fire.
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8
Throw each patty into the fire. Once the wax melts, the flame will turn a bright and vivid color depending on the chemical in the wax patty.
Copper chloride = blue flames
Copper sulfate = green flames
Potassium chloride = Purple flames
Lithium chloride = Pink flames
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Tips & Warnings
Although these chemicals are safe to handle, never allow children to play with the chemicals or get too close to the fire.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
