How to Make Steve Spangler’s Hydrogen Peroxide and Soapy Yeast Foaming Reaction
Elephant Toothpaste Experiment Recipe at Steve Spangler Science
Looking for the elephant toothpaste formula recipe? You’ve come to the right place! Here is where you’ll get our easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions about how to make the world-famous Steve Spangler’s hydrogen peroxide and soapy yeast foaming reaction formula — also known as the Elephant Toothpaste Experiment!
Elephant Toothpaste Formula: A Steve Spangler Science Exclusive
Learn how to make Steve Spangler’s Elephant Toothpaste recipe using safe and easy materials you can find at home. Only a few ingredients are necessary to make a BIG impression on your kids or your students. For variables, use different percentages of hydrogen peroxide to see how this single ingredient affects the overall foam-tastic explosion! You can also add food coloring for multi-color elephant’s toothpaste foam that is guaranteed to WOW your kids. For a fabulous, Halloween-inspired twist on this experiment, check out our Oozing Pumpkin Elephant’s ToothpasteExperiment for this memorable hands-on experiment that was featured on the Ellen DeGeneres Show! Kids: Go get a great adult helper, grab your ingredients (be sure to put on your safety glasses — we always should practice safe science) and watch the explosions begin!
Experiment Materials
1-liter plastic soda bottle
Hydrogen peroxide (12%) (This is found at a store that sells hair care products. Ask for hydrogen peroxide that is labeled 40-volume. This is the same as a 12% solution.)
Liquid dish soap
Food coloring
Package of dry yeast (found at the grocery store)
Measuring spoons
Funnel
Construction paper, markers, and some creativity
Safety glasses
Plastic tarp to cover the demonstration table
Rubber gloves
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Experiment Steps
Additional Information
Experiment Videos
Experiment
1
Let’s start with the arts and crafts part of the activity by making a decorative wrap to cover the plastic soda bottle. Since the activity is called Exploding Toothpaste, use your creativity to make a wrap that looks like a tube of toothpaste.
Cover the demonstration table with the plastic tarp.
4
Use a funnel to add 4 ounces (120 mL) of 40-volume hydrogen peroxide to the 1-liter soda bottle.
5
Add a squirt of dish soap and some food coloring to the hydrogen peroxide in the bottle. Give the solution a quick swirl to mix the contents.
6
Carefully cover the bottle with the toothpaste wrap that you made previously. It’s best to have someone help you with this step to prevent you from accidentally tipping over the bottle.
7
The next step is to prepare a kid-friendly catalyst for the reaction by mixing an entire package of dry yeast with 4 tablespoons of very warm water in a small plastic cup. Stir the mixture with a spoon. If the mixture is too thick or paste-like, add a small amount of warm water to thin it out.
8
Here comes the fun part. Pour the yeast mixture into the bottle and watch what happens. It may take a few seconds to react, but the result is well worth the wait.
When you are finished, it is safe to dispose of all of the demonstration materials either by throwing them away in the trash can or by washing them down the drain.
How Does It Work
Similar to what happened in the adult version of Exploding Toothpaste, the yeast works as a catalyst to release the oxygen molecules from the hydrogen peroxide solution. The oxygen-filled bubbles, which make up the foam, are actually the remainder of what happens when the hydrogen peroxide breaks down into water (H2O) and oxygen (O2). The bottle will feel warm to the touch because this is an exothermic reaction in which energy, in the form of heat, is given off.
Steve Spangler Science
Love our Elephant Toothpaste Experiment? Don’t miss our other experiments in our HUGE online experiment library. For all-in-one kits, check out our science kits and our at-home science experiments. For over 25 years, Steve Spangler Science has been on a mission to inspire kids and get them excited about STEM subjects. Our experiments and science-themed products are fantastic for after-school activities, activities for summer break or classroom activities that will amaze kids of all ages!
Elephant's toothpaste is a foamy substance caused by the rapid decomposition of hydrogen peroxide (H 2O 2) using potassium iodide (KI) or yeast and warm water as a catalyst. How rapidly the reaction proceeds will depend on the concentration of hydrogen peroxide.
4) Fill the cylinder to about ¼ full with 30% hydrogen peroxide. 5) Add from 5 mL to 10 mL liquid soap or dishwashing liquid. 6) Sprinkle some food coloring on the inside wall of the cylinder. 7) Add 10 mL saturated potassium iodide solution.
In the video I perform the experiment two ways. Once using the 3% peroxide and once using the 6%. It is often recommended to use 6% peroxide, but we actually preferred the reaction that happened with the 3% better.
Stand the 1-L cylinder in the center of the plastic tub. Add 100 mL of 30 – 35% hydrogen peroxide to the empty cylinder. Add one or two good squirts of dish washing liquid to the hydrogen peroxide; and mix. Add about 5-10 drops of food coloring to the mixture and mix (optional).
The oxygen gas forms bubbles. These bubbles would usually escape from the liquid and pop quickly. But, adding a little dish soap provides additional surface tension, allowing the bubbles to get trapped and creating lots of foam. This foam looks like a giant squeeze of toothpaste—almost big enough for an elephant!
Q: Why Did My Elephant Toothpaste Not Work? A: If your experiment didn't work as expected, consider these factors: The yeast may not have been active. Ensure it's fresh and properly dissolved in warm water.
Catalyst- can be yeast solution (dry yeast in warm water), potassium permanganate (dissolved in a small amount of water), manganese dioxide, or potassium iodide.
You can use yeast instead of potassium iodide. Foam is produced more slowly, but you can add a fluorescent dye to this reaction to produce elephant toothpaste that will glow very brightly under a black light.
By adding a few more ingredients we can make a huge, bubbly reaction to visualise this process. In this experiment we add dish soap, to help create bubbles, and a catalyst — which is a special chemical that allows us to fast forward a reaction.
What You'll Need: A clean 16-oz plastic soda bottle. 1/2 cup 20-volume hydrogen peroxide liquid (20-volume is a 6% solution; you can get this from a beauty supply store or hair salon) 1 Tablespoon (one packet) of dry yeast.
Elephant toothpaste is like the baby version of devil toothpaste because they both have the same foamy look. However, devil toothpaste is a mass explosion that requires a catalyst like potassium iodide or yeast, hydrogen peroxide, and soap to get started. This makes the reaction colossal.
The reason you see the reaction so clearly is because we added dish soap. The oxygen gas that is given off by the reaction gets trapped in the soap and creates foamy suds that bubble out of the bottle and look like toothpaste big enough for a giant elephant!
Brief Description: Two solutions are mixed resulting in an eruption of foam resembling a huge stream of toothpaste. This is the classic “Elephant Toothpaste” reaction.
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