Materials:
2’x2’ piece of ½” plywood
Wire mesh (from tile aisle at Home Depot)
Staple gun with 3/8” staples
CGC Sheetrock 20 plaster
Medium size water bottle
Wire snips or sheet metal cutters
Hammer
Utility knife
Needle nose pliers
Brown, Green and Red spray paint
White Vinegar
Baking Soda
Red food colouring
Dish soap
Mixing bowl and spatula
Procedure:
- Cut a square piece of the wire mesh. The size of this piece will determine the size of your volcano
- Create a cone and staple the base onto the plywood. Don’t be too perfect as the bumps and imperfections will add character to the mountain. Use a hammer to set the staples and stray ends of the wire mesh against the plywood
- Using the needle nose pliers, weave the ends of the wire mesh together along the side of the mountain so that the cone does not come apart
- Using the wire cutters, cut the top of the mountain to create an opening large enough to slide in the base of the water bottle
- Take your empty water bottle and cut the top off using the utility knife. Take the bottom portion and slide it into the top of the mountain. Using the utility knife, cut some small slits around the top. As you slide the container into place, the wire mesh will catch these slits in the plastic and prevent it from falling into the mountain
- Mix small batches of the Sheetrock plaster into a pasty consistency and spread it gently over the surface of the volcano. The plaster will set fairly rapidly and you can continue to layer it on. Once you have the entire mountain covered, do a final smooth layer with a fresh batch of plaster that is mixed a little softer. This final layer can be feathered out onto the plywood to make sure all of the wire mesh is covered.
- Once your plaster is dry you’re ready to paint. Don’t worry if the plaster cracks as this will only add character to the volcano. Take the volcano to a ventilated area and spray paint using the three colours. Paint the mountain dark brown, paint the base green and then highlight some rivers of lava using the red spray paint. Make sure you paint all exposed plaster to ensure it is waterproof
- Your volcano is now ready for eruption.
- Mix a cup of the vinegar with some red food colouring and a tablespoon of dish soap. Lightly stir the mixture and pour into the container at the top of your volcano. Now, to make the volcano erupt, place a couple of tablespoons of Baking Soda into the mixture and watch the magic. Make sure you do this outdoors as you will have the lava running down the volcano and onto the floor around it.