How to Make Salt Crystals

Whether you have to make a science project for school or are getting bored sitting at home, doing nothing at all, making salt crystals is the perfect solution to your problem. Not only does it help you gain an insight into the process of crystal formation, but also keeps you happily occupied for a considerable amount of time. You can use any type of salt - table salt, iodized salt, un-iodized salt, sea salt, Epsom salt and even salt substitutes, for the purpose. In the following lines, we will provide you some tips, with the help of which you will be able to grow your own salt crystals. Read on and learn how to make salt crystals.

Making Salt Crystals

Method 1

Things Needed

Water
Glass Jar
½ cup Table Salt
Food Coloring
Pencils
Paper and Binder Clips
Cotton String
Spoon

Instructions

Take 1 cup water and boil it.
Pour the water into a glass jar.
Add salt to the water, stirring about a teaspoon at a time.
Keep on putting more salt and stirring the water, till the salt no longer dissolves and starts collecting at the bottom of the jar.
Get the color that you have bought for your crystals and add a couple of drops to the water.
Take a pencil and tie one end of the string around it.
Tie a paper clip to the other end of the string.
Place the pencil over the jar, in such a way that the string hangs down and the paper clip almost touches the bottom of the jar.
Place the jar in a place where it will not be disturbed by anyone.
After 24 hours, check on the jar. You will find crystals forming, in cubical shapes, on the paper clip.

Method 2

Things Needed

Water
Glass Jar
½ cup Table Salt
Food Coloring
Pencils
Cotton String
Spoon

Instructions

The first step would be to fill a glass jar halfway with boiling water.
Now, add food coloring to it, to get the desired effect.
Add about 2 to 3 tbsp of salt to the mixture and stir it with a spoon, until all the grains of salt are dissolved.
Now, add some more salt to it and shake the jar.
Once this is done, tie a string around a pencil or small stick and let it hang just above the water.
Balance the pencil on the mouth of the glass jar in such a way that the string is hanging just above the water.
Leave this setting for about a couple of days. You would see that salt crystals have been formed on the string.

Tips

It is very important to use a thin sturdy string for the purpose of making slat crystals; else, the string would break midway.
It is advisable to use bold shades of food coloring, such as bright red, envy green or sapphire blue, to get a dramatic effect.
Heating the water before adding salt would help the salt dissolve faster, than if you add the salt in normal water.

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