When Science Doesn't Work....

A few weeks ago we needed to have our hot tub repaired.  We had to empty the tub.  Follow along as we follow the scientific method in figuring out how to empty the hot tub.

This is posted with love to my science class....maybe we should have called in Mr Dunwoody....

EMPTYING THE HOT TUB

Objective: Empty the hot tub so required work can be done to repair it

Hypothesis: Siphoning would be a great science experiment and practice in 'real world ' science...plus it looks magical!


Equipment: hose, hot tub, children willing to suck the air and then the water thru the hose to get it started. It also helps to have a parent who has done this before, but we didn't have one of those and had to go without. Bummer.


Experiment:

• Undo hose from spikot...check
• Undo sprayer from other end of hose.... hmmm...hmmm...can't seem to get the sprayer off.
• Be creative and look around for another type of hose....ah ha! the pool vaccuum hose.
• Undo  2.5" diameter hose
• Put one end of hose in hot tub
• Have parent suck the air out of the other end...breathe in a lung full of chloride air...gag and gasp for fresh air
• Try again
• Suck air thru the large opening of the vacc hose..breathe in through mouth, out thru nose.
• Repeat

• Repeat

• Repeat...forever...
• Well at least until you think the water must, must, must be within inches of the hole, ready to pour out on the ground.
• Quickly look into hole without letting air in 
• Let air in by mistake

• Repeat steps above
• Realize hose is too long.
• Shorten hose by removing a section
• Repeat steps above, assigning one of the children/students to do it
• You, being the ever helpful parent/teacher,  push the hose deep into the water in  the hot tub to make sure it won't pop up...as you do this it pops up and lets in a substabntail amount of air.
• Apologize to son.
• Have son start again...they you take your turn
• Suck out the air until you feel water on your lips...VICTORY  you think

• One more good breath in and...cough...sputter...choke..gag...NOT THAT BIG OF  A BREATH!
• Water pours out...for about 3 seconds.  
• Look at children in dismay.
• Remember the water hasn't been chemically treated lately
• Gag again at the thougth of the taste/feel of the water 
• Realize you almost drowned on dry land.

• Pause.  

• Give children buckets and have them empty the hot tub in 5 minutes flat , splashing water all round and having a generally great time.

Conclusion:

Science is fun...sometimes.  But choking on pool water is not...pool water that hadn't been properly chemically treated recently...especially not.  

Results:  Children have a greattime.  Children are wet by the end.

Mom surrives...barely...praying there were no water parasites/germs/microbes in the water

Repeat:  Uh, no thanks.

• 

~The Mom