Salty Science: Floating Eggs in Water
A density demonstration from Science Buddies
By Science Buddies
Key concepts Density Mass Volume Concentration Buoyancy Water Introduction Have you ever wondered why some objects float in water and others sink? It has to do with the density of the objects compared with the density of the water surrounding them. If an object is less dense than the water around it, it will float. Because salt water is denser than freshwater, some things float more easily in the ocean—or extremely salty bodies of the water, such as the Dead Sea. You can make your own dense water by adding salt to tap water. In fact, if you add enough salt, you can make the water so dense that an egg will actually float in it! Explore how this works in this science activity. Background If you put an egg in a cup of tap water, it will sink to the bottom. Why is this? Because the density of the egg is higher than the density of tap water, so it sinks. Density is the mass of a material per unit volume. For example, the density of freshwater under standard conditions is approximately one gram per cubic centimeter. But, if you add enough salt to the water, the egg will actually float back up to the surface! Adding salt to the water increases the density of the solution because the salt increases the mass without changing the volume very much. When enough salt is added to the water, the saltwater solution's density becomes higher than the egg's, so the egg will then float! The ability of something, like the egg, to float in water or some other liquid is known as buoyancy. But just how much salt is needed to make an egg float? In this science activity you'll figure that out by making solutions with varying concentrations of salt in them. Materials
Measuring cup
Large container, such as a large bowl or cooking pot (It must be able to hold at least three cups.)
One half cup of table salt
Five cups that hold at least 16 ounces each
Permanent marker (if you are using plastic cups) or masking tape and a pen (to label nondisposable cups)
Three spoons for mixing salty solutions
Soup spoon for egg transfers
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Preparation
Take the egg out of the refrigerator and allow it to warm to room temperature. Be sure to always wash your hands after handling uncooked eggs because they may carry salmonella.
Pour one and one half cups of water into your large container.
Add one half cup of salt to the large container and stir to dissolve some of the salt (it will not all dissolve yet).
Add one more cup of water to the large container (making two and one half cups total) and stir to dissolve the remaining salt. The salt should be completely dissolved before you go on to the next step. It may take several (five to 10) minutes of stirring, so you may need to be patient. Why do you think it's important to start out with a solution that has such a high concentration of salt?
Arrange the five cups on a surface, going in a line from left to right. Label the cups 1 to 5. If you are using plastic cups, you can use a permanent marker to label them. If you are using nondisposable cups, you can use masking tape and a pen to label them.
Add three quarters cup of the salty solution you prepared to cup 1.
Add three quarters cup of plain tap water to cups 2 through 5. (Cup 5 will be plain tap water.)
Add three quarters cup of the salty solution you prepared to cup 2 and mix it. What is the salt concentration in cup two compared with cup one?
Add three quarters cup of the salt solution from cup 2 to cup 3 and mix it. What is the salt concentration in cup 3 compared with cups 1 and 2?
Add three quarters cup of the salt solution from cup 3 to cup 4 and mix it. What is the salt concentration in cup 4 compared with the other cups?
Use a soup spoon to place an egg in cup 5. Does the egg float?
Use the spoon to take the egg out and place it in cup 4. Does the egg float?
Repeat this process with cups 3, 2 and then 1. In which cup does the egg first float? If the egg floated in more than one cup, did you notice any difference in how it floated? What does this tell you about the density of the egg?
Extra: In this science activity you figured out, within a factor of two, how much salt it takes to float an egg. You could narrow down the range further by testing additional saltwater solutions to try and determine the egg’s density. To do this, start your solution with the salt concentration in which the egg first floated and make a new dilution series, as you did before. Now in which cup does the egg first float? What does this tell you about the density of the egg?
Extra: Repeat this activity using several more eggs, possibly both hard-boiled and uncooked eggs. Do you get the same results with other eggs or is there some variation between different eggs? For testing hard-boiled versus raw eggs, you should test the same egg, first raw and then after hard-boiling it to investigate any differences.
Extra: Find out how much salt there is in seawater. From the results of your activity, do you think an egg would float or sink in seawater?
[break] Observations and results Did the egg float in cup 1 and 2, but not in cups 3, 4 or 5? You likely saw that the egg floated best in cup 1, floated a little less in cup 2 (but part of it was above the surface) and did not float in the other cups. Cup 1 had the undiluted salty solution that you originally prepared, which was one half cup of salt in two and one half cups water total. The concentrations of the salt solutions in cups 2 to 4 were halved as you increased in cup number; for example, the concentration of the salt in cup 2 was half that of cup 1, and the concentration of the salt in cup 3 was half again of cup 2. (Cup 5 had plain tap water.) The egg should have sunk in cups 3, 4 and 5 because the density of the egg was higher than the density of the solutions (or plain tap water) in those cups. Cups 1 and 2 had more salt in them than the other cups (with cup 1 having the most salt), which means these solutions were denser. The egg should have floated (with part of it above the water surface) in these two cups because the solutions were denser than the egg. The actual density of the egg is in between the density of the solution in cup 3 and that in cup 2. More to explore What Is Density? , from Charles E. Ophardt, Elmhurst College Why Is the Ocean Salty? , from Herbert Swenson, U.S. Geological Survey Publication Fun, Science Activities for You and Your Family , from Science Buddies How Salty Does the Sea Have to Be for an Egg to Float? , from Science Buddies
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Salt Water Density Experiment
Can you make a fresh egg float in water? Will an egg float or sink in salt water? What is density? What is buoyancy? Answer these questions with this easy floating egg salt water experiment. Check out all our classic science experiments for more great ideas!
Let’s get ready to investigate whether an egg floats! Head to the kitchen, open the pantry, and be prepared to get a little salty. If you are curious about the rubber egg experiment in the video, click here .
- 2 Tall glasses big enough to hold an egg
Floating Egg Experiment Set Up
STEP 1: Start by filling one glass about 2/3 of the way full with water. Ask the kids what will happen if you carefully drop an egg into the glass of water. Now go ahead and do it!
STEP 2: In the other glass, fill to the same height with water. Now stir in 3 tablespoons of salt. Mix well to dissolve the salt! Ask the kids what they think will happen this time and demonstrate!
TIP: Now’s a great time to talk about mixtures. By combining salt and water, you are making a mixture, an important science concept ( Grab a free printable list of science words )!
A mixture is a material made up of two or more substances mixed together. No chemical reaction takes place, and you can separate the substances in the mixture. You can have a mixture of liquids, solids, or gases.
The second egg should float due to the water’s density change!
Science Information
Kids can easily experiment with different objects from around the room. Small plastic items will work best with the measurements of salt and water provided.
If the item still sinks in the salt water, ask the kids what they think! Should they add more salt? Have each kid contribute an item to the experiment!
This is a great experiment to add to your ocean science lesson plans because the ocean is salty!
So many excellent saltwater density questions:
- Do you float better in salt water?
- What about some of the biggest mammals on earth that float easily in the ocean?
- Does the density of the saltwater play a role?
Why is the ocean salty? The simple answer is that salt comes from the rocks on the land that have been broken down by erosion and are carried by streams to the ocean.
What is Density?
Why do some objects sink while another object floats? An object sinks because it is denser or heavier than water and vice versa. Our sink and float experiment is another exciting way to look at items that might surprise you using only water.
Big items that feel light, like a ping pong ball, are less dense than smaller items that feel heavy, like a gold ring. When added to water, objects denser than water sink, and those less dense than water float. Hollow things often float as air is less dense than water. Learn more about what is density.
You can experiment with many objects that sink and float in water, but what happens when you add salt? Can you change whether the object, like the egg, still sinks?
How does salt affect the density of water?
Adding salt to water densifies it. As the salt dissolves in the water, it adds mass (more weight to the water). This densifies the water and allows more objects to float on the surface that would sink in fresh water. This is an example of a physical change !
Do objects float better in saltwater or freshwater?
What other items can you find to test? Most items will generally float in this salt water experiment even if they sink in freshwater. Just look at the egg!
Turn It Into A Floating Egg Science Fair Project
Kids can take everything they have learned about using the scientific method , stating a hypothesis, choosing variables , making observations , and analyzing and presenting data.
- Science Project Tips From A Teacher
- Science Fair Board Ideas
- Easy Science Fair Projects
To turn the floating egg experiment into a science fair project using the scientific method, start by posing a clear question. For example, “How does the salt concentration in water affect an egg’s buoyancy?” Formulate a hypothesis predicting the outcome: “The higher the salt concentration, the more likely the egg will float.”
Design the experiment by preparing several solutions with varying amounts of salt dissolved in water ( variables ), then placing an egg in each solution and observing whether it floats or sinks.
Collect and record data on the egg’s buoyancy in each solution, noting the specific salt concentrations. Analyze the results to see if they support your hypothesis. Finally, present your findings, discussing how the salt concentration affects the egg’s buoyancy and reflecting on any potential improvements or further questions during the experiment.
More Simple Science Ideas
- Sink the Boat Buoyancy Challenge
- Freezing Point of Water
- Frost on a Can (not just for winter!)
- Sink or Float Experiment
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- Be a Collector activities pack introduces kids to the world of making collections through the eyes of a scientist. What will they collect first?
- Know the Words Science vocabulary pack includes flashcards, crosswords, and word searches that illuminate keywords in the experiments!
- My science journal writing prompts explore what it means to be a scientist!!
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15 Comments
When I click the link to go to your blog from my email, a virus (weird website) keeps popping up. I like your blog. But you may want to check into the virus.
I think Liam’s explanation of water density is perfect – smart kid! These projects are a perfect way to *show* kids the difference, instead of just trying to explain it to them (like you said, nearly impossibly for preschoolers!)
I can see salt water being a big hit around here for experimenting! This looks so fun! Pinning for the future!
Lots of stirring but lots of interesting fun! Thanks for pinning!
Thanks Emma! He’s a smart cookie and likes to see things too understand! Not big on listening a whole bunch just yet 😉
Thanks I will look and see what I can see! Glad you like it!
Very good post. I absolutely love this site. Continue the good work!
I like this experiment but it is not about weight it is about density.
Yes, I have been meaning to update it a bit more. Thank you.
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Science Experiments
Floating Egg Science Experiment
Can you make an egg float in water? In this simple science experiment, we take just a few minutes to test the laws of density and discover just how easy it is to make an egg float!
Below you’ll find detailed instructions and our demonstration video as well as the scientific explanation of “why it works.” We’ve also included a more ideas to explore the concept a bit further.
JUMP TO SECTION: Instructions | Video Tutorial | How it Works
Supplies Needed
- 2 Tall Drinking Glass
Floating Egg Science Lab Kit – Only $5
Use our easy Floating Egg Science Lab Kit to grab your students’ attention without the stress of planning!
It’s everything you need to make science easy for teachers and fun for students — using inexpensive materials you probably already have in your storage closet!
Floating Egg Science Experiment Instructions
Experiment Setup – Start with some observations about the eggs. Note that they are both raw eggs and have a similar size and weight. Then ask some questions. Do you think that the eggs will sink or float when placed in water? Do you think it’s possible to make them float? If so, how? Write down your hypothesis (prediction) and then follow the steps below.
Step 1 – Fill a tall drinking glass about 3/4 full of water and carefully place the egg into the glass. What happens to the egg? That’s right, it sinks to the bottom.
Did you know there is a way to make it float? Continue on in the experiment to find out how.
Step 2 – Fill another tall drinking glass about 3/4 full of water.
Step 3 – Add 3 Tablespoons of salt to the water and stir until it is completely combined. What do you think will happen if you place the egg into the glass with the salt water? Write down your hypothesis (prediction) and then test it to see if you were right.
Step 5 – Next carefully place the second egg into the glass with the salt water. What happens to the egg? That’s right, it floats. Take a moment to make some observations. Why do you think one egg sinks and the other egg floats?
Find out the answer in the how does this experiment work section below.
Video Tutorial
How Does the Floating Egg Science Experiment Work
Why does the egg sink in regular tap water, but float in saltwater? The answer lies in the density of water!
Density is a measure of the mass per unit volume of a substance. Simply said, how much “stuff” in a given volume. Water has a density of 1 g/mL (g/cm3). Objects will float in water if their density is less than 1 g/mL. Objects will sink in water if their density is greater than 1 g/mL.
The egg will sink in regular tap water because the density of the egg is greater than the density of water. The egg’s density is only slightly higher than water at 1.03 g/mL, but that is enough to make the egg sink.
When you add salt to the water, you are increasing the density of the water by adding more mass (or stuff) in the given volume. You don’t really change the volume of the water by adding salt. By adding enough salt, you increase the density of the water so that it is higher than the density of the egg and the egg will float!
Other Ideas to Try
Try this experiment again, but instead of using an egg use a potato slice or a carrot slice. You will have to play around with the amount of salt you add to the water because all objects have their own unique density. Add salt a tablespoon at a time and mix well until you cannot see any salt in the solution, then add your object to see if it floats or sinks. Remove your object and keep adding salt until you can get your object to float. To make it a true science experiment, create a data table to keep track of how much salt you add to the solution.
I hope you enjoyed the experiment. Here are some printable instructions.
- Drinking Glass
Instructions
- Fill a tall drinking glass about 3/4 full of water
- Place the egg into the glass of watch and watch it sink
- Fill another tall drinking glass about 3/4 full of water
- Add 3 Tablespoons of Salt and stir until combined
- Place the egg into the glass and watch it float
Reader Interactions
April 3, 2019 at 2:58 pm
i love this experiment
January 23, 2020 at 11:14 pm
I really loved doing this experiment with my class
August 26, 2020 at 2:59 pm
The egg floats because the density of the salt water changes to be greater than the egg and the density of the egg becomes less dense so then the egg floats. But when you put an egg in tapwater the density of the egg is greater than the density of the tapwater which makes the egg sink.
January 20, 2022 at 11:33 am
bro I loved this experiment it was amazing!!! I tried it out with my friends and it worked! Thank you!
February 10, 2022 at 7:19 pm
this is very helpful thank you
March 7, 2022 at 9:56 am
i loved this experiment : )
April 16, 2023 at 11:35 am
I love doing this experiment at home
May 1, 2023 at 9:00 am
It’s amazing thank you for sharing.
November 3, 2023 at 10:18 am
This is my science fair experiment! YAY!
November 25, 2023 at 7:41 am
wow what a great experiment m!!!
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Salt Water Egg Experiment
Will it float or sink.
The Salt Water Egg Experiment explains why materials (such as an egg) float more in salt water than in fresh water.
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Have you ever tried swimming in the sea? Did you notice that you could float more easily in the open waters than when you're swimming in fresh water or even in a swimming pool? This experiment will help you understand why!
For the Salt Water Egg experiment you will need the following materials:
- Two containers
- Two raw eggs
- Fill the two containers with tap water.
- Add about 6 tablespoons of salt in one container and stir it well with a tablespoon until the salt has completely dissolved in the water.
- Place one egg in each of the containers and observe which one of the eggs float in the container and which one sinks.
The explanation behind this phenomenon is simple - DENSITY! In the Salt Water Egg experiment, you have observed that the egg placed in saltwater floated and the one in tap water didn't. Because saltwater is denser than fresh water, the egg does not end up sinking like it usually does!
Why is this so? Let's first discuss the definition of density and why objects sink. Density refers to the amount of matter contained in a given space or volume. When there's more amount of matter in a given space or volume, the object is then considered denser and at the same time heavier. However, this doesn't mean that density and weight is the same and can be used interchangeably.
Weight refers to the vertical force exerted by a mass of object when subjected to gravity. Unlike density, weight is dependent on the amount of gravity in a particular place. To make it clearer, let's take the egg as an example. The egg's density remains the same no matter where you bring it, whatever the amount of gravity is in that place. However, if you bring the same egg to space, where there is no gravity, it loses its weight! But its density remains the same. That's the difference between density and weight - gravity.
Why Objects Float or Sink
Now let's go back to the question of why objects float or sink. Placing an object that's denser than fresh water automatically sinks. In our Salt Water Egg experiment, because the egg is denser than tap water, it pushes away water particles so it can make space for itself hence the sinking motion. But in the case of the salt water, since it is heavier than ordinary tap water, it is more capable of holding the egg up - hence the egg floating. In easier words, objects sink when their own density is greater than the liquid's density.
Now you must be wondering what's in the salt that makes water denser when mixed with it? When salt is added and dissolved in water, it breaks down into ions that are then attracted to the water molecules. This attraction causes them to bind tightly, increasing the amount of matter per volume (density). Instead of just having the molecules hydrogen and oxygen in the water, sodium and chlorine joins the equation (since salt is made up of sodium and chlorine particles). Saltwater now has more particles in it compared to the ordinary tap water we started with. This is why saltwater is denser than tap water.
So next time you go to the beach or swim in the ocean, you already know the reason why it's so much easier to float in the open waters. In fact, an average person can float like a log with much less effort in saltwater than in fresh water. The key is, the denser the liquid the easier you'll float in it! Amazing huh?
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Explorable.com (Jan 20, 2011). Salt Water Egg Experiment. Retrieved Sep 09, 2024 from Explorable.com: https://explorable.com/salt-water-egg-experiment
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Science Fun
Floating Egg
- Salt (1 – 2 cups)
- A tall drinking glass
Instructions:
1. Pour water into the glass until it is about half full. 2. Place an egg in the glass of water and see if it sinks or floats (it should sink). 2. Stir in lots of salt. Start with 1 tablespoon and stir it until the salt dissolves. Keep adding more salt until the egg floats. 3. Next, carefully pour more fresh water until the glass is nearly full (be careful to not disturb or mix the salty water with the plain water). If you’re very careful, you can get the egg to float between the fresh and saltwater!
VIDEO COMING SOON BUT YOU CAN STILL ENJOY THESE AWESOME EXPERIMENTS!
How It Works:
The egg is denser than the fresh water (more molecules per square inch), this causes it to sink. When you start dissolving salt in the water, this is increasing the density (adding more molecules per square inch). Eventually the water becomes denser than the egg causing the egg to float. When you carefully add fresh water again, this fresh water is less dense than the salt water so it floats right on top!
Extra Experiments:
Are there other liquids you can add to make the egg sink or float? What else can you dissolve in the water to make the egg float?
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Floating Egg Science Experiment ( Using Salt, Sugar & Saline Water)
- December 10, 2020
- 10 Minute Science , 5-6 Year Olds , 7-9 Year Olds , Physics , Rainy Day Science
Hello everyone! Today we have come up with simple ‘ Floating Egg Science Experiment with a twist’ that can be done within 5-10 minutes.
My kids call it as a pre-breakfast activity. This is an easy and funny experiment to teach density for kids .
We know that some things float in the water and some others not. Do u know why the things sink in the water!? Let us learn something about floating science using eggs.
Floating Egg Experiment
This activity is a cool way to learn the concept – density! We are going to perform the experiment with four different liquids to understand the science behind floating objects in water.
We commonly see that eggs sink when we put in the water. What is the reason behind this!? Does egg sinks the same way when dropped in other liquids? We will perform a simple activity to learn the science behind it.
Try our 20+ Egg Science Experiments
Materials Required for the Activity
- Saline water (You can find saline water in any of the local pharmacies)
- Four glass jars (Either you take glass jars or beakers, make sure they are tall and wide enough to drop an egg)
- Four Raw Eggs (Ensure the eggs are not broken or given any crack to avoid the unnecessary mess with the leaky eggs during experiment)
- Fill one tall drinking glass or glass beaker about ¾ full of water.
- In the same way, fill the other glass with salt water. To prepare salt water, put 1-2 cups of salt in 500ml of water. Stir it with the spoon. That’s it. You are done with making salt water.
- Now it is second drinking glass turn! Fill it with sugar water. Prepare the sugar water same like how we made salt water in previous step.
- Saline water! Yes, we are using saline water as well to observe the floating science with eggs. Fill the fourth glass beaker with saline water.
- Finally, we have arrived to the kid’s favourite step i.e. dropping egg into the tall drinking glasses.
My younger daughter is eagerly waiting for my instructions to drop the egg in the liquids. When I said so, she carefully dropped the raw eggs into the four glasses filled with four different liquids each.
Ask your kids to observe the results that in which liquid the dropped eggs are floating or sinking.
On the initial test, we only had egg floating in the salt water. The sugar water was not dense enough to make the egg float. So we tried to add more sugar to the already prepared sugar solution.
Finally we made the egg float in the sugar water as the water is now more dense due to the added sugar.
How Does the Floating Egg Science Experiment Work?
Let us discuss the results of our experiment. The raw egg dropped in the tap water sinks immediately as soon as it is dropped. On the other hand the egg in the salt water floats.
We observe the same results with the sugar water as well. The raw egg floats nicely in sugar water as well.
How about our egg in the saline water? The egg didn’t float surprisingly in the saline water.
Now let us discuss on what made the eggs in salt & sugar water float and why the egg in normal tap water and saline water sink!?
Science behind floating egg
The egg in the glass of regular tap water sinks to the bottom because the density of egg is more compared to density of water.
Why the egg in salt water floats? When the salt is added to the water, it increases the density of the water and hence the density of the egg slowly becomes lesser than the salt water.
You are dissolving the more the salt into the water means you are increasing the density of water. The denser the liquid is the easier for the object in the water to float.
The same formula applies to the sugar water. The density of sugar water is more than the density of egg.
On the other hand, saline water is made of salt and water. However, the density of the saline water that we used seems to be lower than than egg. Thus it floated in the sugar water and sinked in the saline water.
Density is a concept dealing with how closely a substance is packed to be together.
We will compare this concept with our daily life things. For example: consider we have two bowls one is filled with salad and the other is with rice.
Both are of taken in same quantity but we feel the salad bowl is lighter than the rice bowl because the ingredients are packed tightly in the rice bowl than the salad of lettuce and vegetables which are very light in nature.
In the same way, the molecules in the salt, sugar, and saline water are packed more closely and makes the salt, sugar, and saline water denser than the water where the molecules are packed lighter thus making it less denser.
Even the egg has some density but less than the salt water and hence the egg floats in salt, sugar, and saline water.
So, when you go to swimming pool or beach or ocean, observe that you will float easily and lightly compared to salt water. The denser the liquid, the easier you will float! Amazing right!?
Experiment Extensions
Try different liquids and different substances to dissolve in the water in order to make an egg float.
Try these Density Science Experiments :
9 Layer Density Tower
Hot & Cold Water Experiment
DIY Sugar Density Rainbow
Oil, Food Color & Water – Fireworks
How to make Lava Lamp
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Floating EggsTo teach students about density by showing that denser salt water will make an egg float. Project Details Grade Level
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The ability of something, like the egg, to float in water or some other liquid is known as buoyancy. But just how much salt is needed to make an egg float? In this science activity, you’ll figure that out by making salt solutions with varying concentrations of salt in them.
You can make your own dense water by adding salt to tap water. In fact, if you add enough salt, you can make the water so dense that an egg will actually float in it! Explore how this works...
Set up a quick salt water floating egg experiment to explore the density of salt water, buoyancy, and saturated solutions.
In this simple science experiment, we take just a few minutes to test the laws of density and discover just how easy it is to make an egg float! Below you’ll find detailed instructions and our demonstration video as well as the scientific explanation of “why it works.”
The Salt Water Egg Experiment explains why materials (such as an egg) float more in salt water than in fresh water.
Instructions: 1. Pour water into the glass until it is about half full. 2. Place an egg in the glass of water and see if it sinks or floats (it should sink). 2. Stir in lots of salt. Start with 1 tablespoon and stir it until the salt dissolves. Keep adding more salt until the egg floats.
Learn about density and floating objects with this easy and fun activity. Compare how an egg behaves in different liquids and find out which one makes it float.
554. 39K views 8 years ago. Use the density difference in saltwater and freshwater to suspend an egg in the middle of a solution. ️ Get supplies to try the floating egg in water...
Make an Egg Float in Salt Water An egg sinks to the bottom if you drop it into a glass of ordinary drinking water but what happens if you add salt? The results are very interesting and can teach you some fun facts about density.
2 clear containers. Measuring spoons. Stirring spoon. Water. 2 raw eggs. Research Questions: Does an egg float better in freshwater or saltwater? Experimental Procedure: To begin your floating eggs experiment, fill your two containers with water. Make sure the amounts are equal.