GIANT Bubble Blower

Intro: GIANT Bubble Blower

had enough of those puny little bubbles you can blow with those store bought sticks...

well now ill show you how to easily make bubbles 2m in diameter easily and BIGGER! for under $3

STEP 1: MATERIALS

for this instructable you will need

2 peices of dowling/ bamboo ( i used 1m peices)

1 spool of string (any string will do as long as it is slightly absorbent and not woolen)

1 roll of tape (i used gaffa tape)

STEP 2: First String

you will need a piece of string just larger than the peice of dowling you are using.

tie one end of this string to a peice of dowling and the other end to the other peice of dowling approximatley 1cm from the top.

STEP 3: Tying String #2

you will need a peice of string just larger than the length of you forearm.

tie one end of the string to the bottom of forst peice of dowling and the other end to the other peice of dowling both approx 2cm from the base.

STEP 4: Tying String #3

for this you will need a peice of string just larger than 2 lengths of one of the poles you are using.

tie one end of the string about 1cm away from the pole onto the first peice of string you tied. tie the other end the same way.

STEP 5: Bubble Mix

now you have made your bubble blower, you now have to make you bubble mix. i have found using a dish washing liquid in a 3:1 ration of water:liquid produces the best bubbles.

however if you are willing to go the extra mile for you bubble you can use 1.5 gallons of boiling water dissolved in, half a teaspoon of J-lube, a small tube (4.5 ounces) of surgical lube and a 1/4 cup of glycerine (99.5% pure), 16 ounces of dishwasher liquid, 1/2 a cup of manual dishwashing liquid.
see its hard but if you are willing to spend the money on them it should give you self-healing bubbles which means you can blow smaller bubbles inside the big one, and they are stronger.

STEP 6: ENJOY!

now with a little bit of practice you will be blowing giant bubbles.

i would advise using the tape to secure down the four peices of string on your dowling so they dont come off. and also the string on the botom of the dowling is merly for practice purposes you can take it off in the future i simply had mine there to stop me from making the top rope taught and popping the bubbles.

to form the membrane to start blowing you bubbles simply pull the sticks appart so that a small triangle is formed in the middle of it and then widne as you bubble blows.

the best way to do it is to either walk with it, or let the wind do it for you. remember to pull the string out so there is no hole in the loop to start with then slowly open the loop to make big bubbles. Also to detach the bubble simple close the loop.


NOTE: the string on the bottom is only for training reasons, it is not nescesary to the design its just there to stop you pulling the sticks to far appart.



Added information from other big bubble enthusiasts;

Chr1st1an:
The string should be something that absorbs a good deal of solution, I tend to use upholstery edging. Also I have found that a weight in the center of the hanging material provides easier use when there is a breeze and that a couple of knots about 2 inches below the attach points to the dowels allow for easier separation once the bubble has formed and you close it.

Comments

[hieuwey]

I have a question...

when you say "16 ounces of dishwasher liquid, 1/2 a cup of manual dishwashing liquid", what is the difference?

can you clarify what is dishwasher liquid and manual dishwashing liquid?

Thanks!!

[poknik]

the kids are waiting...

[wmkcross]

here is one of many youtube videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bjggctu3kw

[parmendil]

Can you put a video so we can figure it out how you do the bubbles?

[Aron313]

I agree! Video please!

[renailee]

An easy bubble solution that I have found works well is 10 parts water: 1 part liquid detergent : 0.25 glycerine ( 1 litre of water, 100ml detergent, 25ml glycerine) The bubbles retain their shape with this solution!

[Bubbleguy]

The 10:1:.25 ( parts water:detergent:glyc) recipe Renaliee suggests is fine for baseball sized bubbles. Maybe a bit bigger on days with high humidity.

It would never work to make satisfactory bubbles with the set-up described in this instructable.

Minimum, you need the higher percentage of detergent as described.

To get the biggest bang our of your bubble efforts, include the polymers suggested.

10:1:.25 was the standard recipe developed sometime decades ago. We have learned a lot about how to supersize our super performing bubbles since then.

If someone is going to make a try-string rig like this, they might as well brew-up a solution capable of making bubbles that will rock their world.

In my opinion.

[llauren]

Hi!

Would it be possible for anyone to make a quick translation of the bubble recipe into culturally neutral English? What is J-lube (and surgical lube)?

I'll pitch in by translating the volumes:
1.5 US gallons = approx 5.7 liter,
4.5 ounces = 1.33 deciliter,
16 ounces is just below half a liter (0.47 l),
1/4 cup is nearly 0.6 deciliter.

Having kids who spill their bubble solution (don't they all), it would be fun to make their own!

[supercell09]

J-lube is the lubricant vets use to pregnancy test cows.
Surgical lube is used by gynaecologist for similar prcedures....

[eulaliaaaa!]

Wow.  The metric system and all that what-not is very confusing.  I mean,  four and a half ounces is 1.33 deciwhatameanerif?  How would you measure that!?!  In America, we have straight numbers instead of all that 6.53147 and the 4.578km and 15.1234567890 and the old 7.55 and all that.

[spenfisher12]

i dont hate the metric system i just like ours better

[nailed]

ILLEGAL DRUGS : The only reason Americans know and/or use the Metric Syst.

[emerson.john]

How do you use the metric system in illegal drugs?

[spenfisher12]

not tru i use mm and cm for things how are these used in drugs

[michaelkaer]

We all know that an OZ is 28.3 grams, but it gets rounded to 28 grams. Even with metric there is rounding up or down.

[Saturn V]

Aggreed. I use metric when going for accuracy, because they have millimeters. Otherwise, I use the American system.

[spenfisher12]

same here

[gourd]

FYI When you take a recipe in one system and try to convert it to another, that's when you get all of these crazy numbers. If you are dealing with a "native" Metric measurement, it would be in powers of 10, for example, 1.3 deciliters = 13 centiliters = 130 milliliters = .13 liters. It's a lot easier to convert within metric, since it is always powers of 10. Where as in U.S. measurements, we have to know that there are 8 oz in a cup, 32 cups in a gallon, but for some dumb reason, 3 teaspoons in 1 tablespoon. And how many tablespoons are there in an ounce? For what it's worth, I think both systems are great, and we should all learn both.

[pcolapaddler]

That would be 16 cups in a gallon ... cup = 8oz pint = 16oz quart = 32ox half-gallon=64oz gallon=128oz I have used metric, US... grew up on US measurement. Fractions, & decimal conversion make sense to me - many years in auto, machinery repair... fraction & decimal conversion used to bounce from my head. Metric not so much. Its not unlike language. Different languages offer different challenges. One will be comfortable with their native language. Others may be learned, but often they will require more effort.

[Saturn V]

My theory for the non-metric measurments: We like a good challenge!