Fishing for ice is a fun, easy, and quick kitchen science experiment for kids of all ages. Learn how salt melts ice and why people spread salt on their icy stairs and walkways during the winter.
Why Salt Melts Ice
Usually water freezes at 32° F (0° C), but when it is mixed with salt it lowers the freezing point significantly. This simply means the ice melts. We have used this same trick to make yummy treats like fruity ice slush and easy homemade ice cream!
For this experiment we used this phenomenon to do a little trick I like to call “Fishing for Ice”. We headed to the kitchen to gather the following supplies:
- Cup full of water
- A few ice cubes
- Table salt
- A piece of string
We completed our salt melts ice experiment by following these directions:
- Place the ice cubes in the cup of water. They will float on top.
- Try to “fish” for an ice cube with the string. It won’t “catch” anything.
- Place the string in the water and across the top of the ice cubes.
- Now sprinkle a little bit of salt across the ice cubes. Wait for a minute or so.
- Pull the string out and see what you caught!
Why Does the Ice Stick to the String?
When salt is sprinkled over ice it melts. However, when it is used in such a small amount, like in our experiment, the water around the ice freezes again quickly. This means that the string gets trapped as the water around it refreezes, making it stick to the ice. We were able to freeze all of our ice cubes to one piece of string. How about you?
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This looks so easy and fun! I love finding simple things to teach my kids. (I usually learn as much as they do!)
I know, that’s one of the reasons I love doing science experiments with my kids, too! It keeps my brain working 🙂
So cool! 😉 I’ll have to try this with Caden!
AWESOME!
I love this activity! So much fun for little learners!
Thanks for stopping over!
Wonderful! Thanks so much for sharing with the Monday #pinitparty
Thanks for stopping by!
What a great activity!! My daughter will love this! Thank you for sharing at Sharing Saturday!!
Thank you for visiting!
love this activity when it is summer time! so fun and simple to play with. Thank you for sharing with us #Pintorials
Yes, definitely a great summer activity when it is hot outside! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
It snowed today and I ran across your website (this science experiment) today. Perfect timing! We just completed the experiment and now my 2 y/o knows that salt melts ice. Looking forward to more experiments.
AWESOME!! Your story inspires me 🙂
We spent some time in the Mountain West this winter in the snow. While we were shoveling the walk one morning my 5-year-old ran inside to grab the table salt to make our job easier. I shoveled while he sprinkled. It made me smile 🙂
I love your blog! I made a video of my son doing this experiment yesterday. (Actually my first video ever!) I posted it and linked to you. Thank you for sharing!
Oh, fantastic! Looks like you are off to a great start. Thanks for visiting and linking back! I love your blog 🙂
Just to clarify, salt lowers the freezing point of water, but it actually doesn’t do the melting. The ice melts because of the water around it that is warmer than it is. The water will have a harder time freezing again thanks to the salt.
that was good information from karina lopez
Hi this experiment didn’t work for me. My son couldn’t catch the ice. Can you help identify what could the problem be? Does the type of string matter? Also does the amount of salt make any difference?
Hi there, I’m sorry it’s not working smoothly. It doesn’t always work for me, either. The type of string/yarn definitely makes a difference as does the amount of salt. I would just experiment and try a few different things to see what works!