oil and water in a bottle experiment

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Happy Hooligans

Crafts and Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers to Tweens

Ocean in a Bottle with 3 Simple Ingredients

Last updated on June 11, 2020

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Make an ocean in a bottle with 3 easy ingredients.  One of the fastest and easiest-ever science activities for preschoolers .

I love to make  homemade toys for the hooligans.  Discovery bottles are always a favourite here.  They look so beautiful, and no matter what we fill them with.

This particular ocean in a bottle has to be the most amazing looking bottle we’ve made yet though!  It was SO easy to make, and you likely already have everything you need on hand.

This oil and water science experiment isn’t new by any stretch of the imagination.  It’s a classic preschool science activity that’s been around for years.  I actually can’t believe we haven’t done it before!  Yesterday, I happened upon this learning discovery bottle over at Play Trains, and I decided we’d make an ocean bottle of our own today.

To make our Ocean in a Bottle, we used:

• cooking oil (we used canola, but vegetable would work well)
• blue food colouring
• large clear, plastic bottle (2 litre pop bottle, shampoo bottle, mouthwash bottle etc.)

TIP:  a mouthwash bottle is perfect, as it has a child-proof lid which prevents the kids from opening it when playing with it.

If you want to explain the scientific details to your child, pop over and check out this article explaining why oil and water don’t mix .

How to make an ocean in a bottle:

I didn’t have a 2L pop bottle on hand, so we used an empty mouthwash bottle.   I like that the lid is child-safe, and too challenging for little hands to twist open.  If you’re using a bottle that’s not child-safe, you might want to run a little hot-glue around the inside of the bottle lid.

• Fill approximately 1/3 of your bottle with water.
• Add several drops of food colouring.
• Have your child shake the bottle to disperse the food colouring.

Now, simply top up the bottle with oil.  I filled ours right to the top and then popped the lid on.

Let the fun begin!

Tip the bottle upside down and watch your ocean come to life.

The pictures really don’t do this activity justice. You have to see it in action.

The way the waves roll cascade inside the bottle is just beautiful, and watching the big blobs of colour swoosh and fall through the yellow oil is really fascinating.

The more you agitate the bottle, the more the bubbly the ocean becomes.

Set your bottle down occasionally to let the bubbles settle, and then start all over again.

Doesn’t it look amazing?

More easy experiments for kids:

• Water Displacement Experiment
• Salt, Glue and Watercolour Art
• Wax Resist Art
• Melting Ice with Salt and Water
• Colour Mixing Experiment 

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Jackie is a mom, wife, home daycare provider, and the creative spirit behind Happy Hooligans. She specializes in kids’ crafts and activities, easy recipes, and parenting. She began blogging in 2011, and today, Happy Hooligans inspires more than 2 million parents, caregivers and Early Years Professionals all over the globe.

Reader Interactions

Dorothy Tulk

May 31, 2014 at 10:54 am

Do you use 1/3 oil .then fill up with water

happyhooligans

May 31, 2014 at 11:17 am

1/3 water, and then fill up with oil, Dorothy.

June 22, 2016 at 11:06 am

If you fill 2 litre bottle with oil, very expensive project?.???

June 23, 2016 at 12:10 am

You could use a smaller bottle, and probably get away with a half cup of cooking oil. If you think about it this way: you would use a cup of oil to bake a cake, and the cake would be gone in a couple of days. This will last forever. 🙂

May 31, 2014 at 5:34 pm

This is just WAY cool! I LOVE it and as an adult, I’d want to try it. I can’t wait for my son to get a little older and do cool stuff like this with him. Thanks so much for sharing!

April 22, 2023 at 6:40 pm

Would baby oil work?

Jackie Currie

June 8, 2023 at 4:36 pm

I haven’t tried making them with baby oil, Helen, but I imagine it would work!

Selina Strong

June 1, 2014 at 9:43 am

Please revise the instructions for ocean in a bottle. Oil is one of the three ingredients, but there is no mention of adding the oil to the bottle. Surely it is either added first ( although the food coloring doesn’t mix in ) or second? Thanks.

June 10, 2014 at 10:44 am

After the food coloring and water are shaken, the instructions say “Now, simply top up the bottle with oil.”

June 10, 2014 at 1:09 pm

Yes, simply top up the bottle with oil. That’s right, Dan.

June 9, 2014 at 6:04 pm

Such fun!! Using mineral oil instead of cooking oil means the oil is clear and I really love that effect with the food coloring in the water and the other half (the mineral oil) perfectly clear.

June 9, 2014 at 7:28 pm

Yes, or baby oil would have the same look too. I must pick some up at the dollar store!

Michelle Bordeaux

June 9, 2014 at 10:13 pm

This is really cool. I was thinking about doing it as the craft for an Easter Egg Hunt next year (2015). I was also thinking about buying small plastic sea creatures and/or small shells to add a few in. Have you tried anything like that before?

June 9, 2014 at 10:50 pm

I haven’t in the oil and water bottle, Michelle, but I’ve added odds and ends to bottles that I’ve filled with water or hair gel or coloured rice! I think it’s a great idea!

June 9, 2014 at 11:20 pm

Thank you for the response, I will have to test out a few ideas .

June 20, 2014 at 8:57 am

In case you are tempted to add glitter for a touch of glam… Don’t do it! Maybe someone who knows science better than I do can explain it, but it looks like the glitter catches everything up and emulsifies it , so it takes a very long time for the oil in the water to separate again! I just threw everything away and started over!!

September 22, 2014 at 9:38 pm

Thanks so much for the warning! That would have been something we’d try.

July 3, 2014 at 4:07 pm

Shake it too much and it never separates again. Very disappointed in this project.

July 3, 2014 at 8:11 pm

Very interesting, Nancy. Never?

August 7, 2014 at 9:12 pm

I think thats what happen to mine! right off! boo boo! Wish I had read this before I shook it like a crazy person! 🙁 now I have to go to the store and buy more oil

April 16, 2015 at 3:16 pm

That’s actually, totally, not possible. Chances are there was something else in your bottle to begin with. If it was an old lotion or soap bottle there could have been some residue left in the bottle from what was in it before that emulsified it. Water and oil cannot permanently emulsify from vigorous shaking alone. It needs the addition of an emulsifier.

April 16, 2015 at 3:35 pm

Oh, that is a very helpful response, Megan. Thank you! I was wondering how the oil and water could become completely emulsified, as mine always separate after resting. Brilliant. Thank you!

July 3, 2014 at 7:26 pm

We just made these for a preschool program. We called them sink-or-float bottles. We added small seashells and the larger glitter shapes. It was a great demonstration of what the word displacement means. The kids and parents loved them. 🙂

July 6, 2014 at 2:21 am

My 2y.o. will enjoy it 🙂 Thank you!

July 21, 2014 at 8:44 am

Absolutely beautiful. I think of the yellow oil as sunshine filtering through the water.

August 8, 2014 at 3:17 pm

Can you make this in a smaller bottle? I’d love to do this as a take home craft for my son’s birthday party, but I don’t know that I want to go in search of 14 2 liter bottles. Thanks!

August 9, 2014 at 10:14 pm

You could give one a try and see how it turns out, April.

July 1, 2015 at 3:21 pm

My younger brother (age 12) and I just did this experiment with an empty Poland Spring bottle. Still worked great!

July 2, 2015 at 11:26 am

Yay! So glad you loved it!

July 9, 2015 at 5:27 pm

they have those small water bottles, that would be great for a kids party thing. Perfect size too. I’m going to try this with sand and sea shells and make a beach in the bottle with my daughter. Hopefully it works…

August 16, 2014 at 6:32 pm

Ok, I am 57 years old and I love this. My son is 32 and have no grandbabies yet so this is for ME. I am decorating my home in the beachy coastal style and this would be a great way to bring the ocean into my home since there is no ocean near where I live in “Missouri”. I will put it in a large pretty bottle and sit it near my sea shells and let people shake it up and admire it when they come to visit. Thanks!

October 25, 2014 at 12:35 pm

I’m an 8th grade science teacher … and believe me … many of your experiments will enchant and delight 8th graders too. Thank you for these that show kids that science is interesting and FUN!

November 20, 2014 at 6:59 am

Tnks i won the science fair tnx for sharing

December 17, 2014 at 10:32 am

I used this for a white elephant recycling themed gift exchange for my cub scout. My son loved doing this, we used a baby oil bottle, bonus we used the last third of the oil for the project and topped it off with some veg oil. He chose blue also. And since it’s for scouts, we used plastic putty glue to permanently (I hope)glue shut the lid. Should be fun! Thanks!

December 17, 2014 at 7:07 pm

Trying to think of a way to use this as decor for an Ocean themed wedding. My niece is getting married next year and I think something like this would be awesome to display, maybe on tables. Just not quite sure on bottle types and if putting in sea shells would work. Any suggestions??? Pls help!

December 18, 2014 at 9:33 am

I’ve similar bottles with shells added, Heidi. As for how to display them, there’s a brand of bottled water called Voss. I’m not sure where you are, but if you have it there (in your grocery stores), you could use those bottles. It’s pricier than regular bottled water though, so you may need some pals splurge on it once in a while, and give you the bottle when they’re done. You could also check Michael’s or Hobby Lobby for interesting looking containers with lids that seal tight.

February 21, 2015 at 11:48 pm

The easiest place for me to find VOSS water locally is at Walgreen’s drugstores. They are often on sale, too, for $3 for two bottles.

Chickielady

August 25, 2015 at 9:31 pm

We used a VOSS water bottle for a similar project at our school and it was dropped on the floor and the lid cracked open. I’ve used soda bottles and not had this problem. I have saved some bottles from dry roasted peanuts to use.

February 1, 2015 at 8:22 pm

i tried it, its so cool! but instead i used a small coke bottle and eyeballed it!

March 14, 2015 at 1:39 pm

I was so excited to do this but I tried it twice and it didn’t work. I ended up with a layer of blue water and a layer of oil on the top no matter how much I shook it. Was it because I used vegetable oil?

March 14, 2015 at 1:40 pm

I mean olive oil?

March 14, 2015 at 10:51 pm

That might be the reason, Mae. I can’t think of any other reason it wouldn’t have worked for you.

April 8, 2015 at 5:37 pm

Hi! I came across this craft on Pinterest, and decided to try it with my tween sister (I’m a teen).

We made this craft and absolutely love it! We used smaller bottles, so we could display them on our window sills. I love to look at it, and I’m definitely going to make it again, and use green, pink orange, purple, any color really.

I wrote a review about it on my website if you want to check it out!

April 8, 2015 at 7:12 pm

Hey Ally! So glad you loved the ocean in a bottle. I think it’s great that you and your sister made them. An assortment of colours would be awesome! I need to do that too. Cool blog you’ve got there, girl!

May 16, 2015 at 9:37 am

I live 100 meters from the shore, I think I could just walk there with te bottle and trap some fishstinking water and called it “sea in the bottle” how about that 😀 😀

May 31, 2015 at 12:40 am

yeah….didnt work…4 year old was so disappointed…

May 31, 2015 at 12:49 pm

How odd. It’s simple science. I can’t imagine what would go wrong unless perhaps there was residue in your bottle. That could prevent the oil and water from behaving properly.

June 12, 2015 at 6:46 pm

This is great, thank you! My toddler and I used mini water bottles and they were the perfect size for little hands doing the pouring, squeezing, and shaking.

Allison Jones

June 19, 2015 at 6:56 pm

Beautiful! Great activity for the kiddos

July 22, 2015 at 3:59 pm

I made this when I was in Kindergarten. The teachers used baby food jars and just super glued the lids shut. We got to pick out tiny sea animals to put in ours. Definitely one of my favorite projects since I still remember it 20 years later!

August 1, 2015 at 5:26 am

awesome idea! add 1/2 alka seltzer tablet or other tablets that fizz and use half the quantities of oil and water. Stand back and watch it fizz! for more help on how to make this go here…. http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/experiments/easylavalamp.html

August 26, 2015 at 3:19 pm

I absolutely love this idea! We save our cleat 2 liter bottles for science and crafts, so we’ll have the bottles when we want to do something like this. Not too crazy about using 2/3 of 2 liters of oil though, so we’re going to definitely use a smaller bottle. Glad to know about glitter not being a good idea for this. If someone want’s a great science activity using 2 liter bottles, one is the tornado in a bottle and the good news is, glitter is a really good idea to put in them! On the other side of a coin, I’m already planning our Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet for next year. Planning on a theme to do with the sea, maybe Cubs Under the Sea or something like that. This will be perfect to have on the tables for both decoration and take home! Thanks for the wonderful idea!

December 12, 2015 at 8:19 pm

This is beautiful. I love the blue – very soothing. My nephews will love this, but i was also thinking what a great stress reliever it would be on the desk too.

December 12, 2015 at 10:13 pm

I love it just as much as the kids do, Cheri. It’s very relaxing!

January 20, 2016 at 1:14 am

I was wondering if it would work if we put it in ziplock bags and double sealed it with tape and put it in another zip lock bag?

January 21, 2016 at 7:52 pm

It might, Jayne. It’s up to you weather or not you want to risk the bag popping. That’s a lot of oil in there, which would ruin carpets/furniture etc if it did leak.

May 2, 2016 at 1:16 am

Is it working only with food coloring? Is it okay to use water color or acrylic paint?

May 3, 2016 at 12:05 am

Watercolour paint would work because it’s water soluble. I don’t think acrylics would work as well, but I’m just guessing there.

June 5, 2016 at 11:47 am

Just did this with my kids and didn’t turn out at all like I expected. The oil began to solidify after about 5 minutes of play, so it’s cloudy

June 6, 2016 at 9:44 am

How strange. What kind of oil did you use, Asia? Was it fairly fresh? I know old oil can go cloudy when you shake it up. As for solidifying, that is really odd. I’ve never known an oil to solidify.

November 13, 2016 at 11:28 pm

I made this myself and the oil became cloudy after first use, it was pretty fresh. And instead of going through the water, it went down the walls of the jar, so no ocean effect. I also washed it before putting stuff in it. I’m wondering what happened?

November 15, 2016 at 12:15 am

Hmm. I haven’t a clue, Kayaqua. I haven’t heard of that happening before. I’m sorry I can’t offer you a solution!

January 28, 2017 at 8:40 pm

could the food colouring work with paint?

Pam backman

April 17, 2017 at 1:36 pm

I do this every year with my preschool class. I use a small gatorade bottle or dr pepper instead of water bottle as the are thicker plastic. I have also used baby oil because it is clear. We habe out toy fish and sand in to make it more authentic looking. Sand was not as pretty . I let the kids choose the color so each one is unique and theirs.

April 17, 2017 at 1:42 pm

Should be have used toy plastic fish

April 23, 2017 at 10:33 am

This is really cool! I really want to make this. I need something to shake sometimes, if ya know what I mean. I made something too! I just used a baby food jar,filled it with water,add a drop of dish soap. Last add some pieces of string. Swirl it around. Really fun! In my opinion.

May 29, 2017 at 8:31 am

Would it still work well if I mixed this with a “jellyfish in a bottle”? I’m interested in making one if so. I might try it out soon!

May 29, 2017 at 2:06 pm

It might, but I’m not sure if the oil would interfere with the behaviour of the jellyfish. I’d give it a shot if I were you. Worst case, you can remove the jelly fish and still have an awesome sensory bottle for the kids to play with and observe.

July 18, 2017 at 11:45 am

My Church will be do this with VBS kids next summer. Thank you for sharing!

July 19, 2017 at 4:26 pm

Yay! You’re so welcome, Cyndi!

September 4, 2017 at 12:46 am

It works with water down acrylic paint

September 18, 2017 at 4:55 pm

To those getting cloudy oil, i suspect you are leaving air inside the bottle. If you shake it really hard with air inside, it will mix tons of air bubbles into the oil and make it cloudy. Try to let as little air inside the bottle as possible.

December 10, 2017 at 12:23 am

Will water colour not work instead of food colour?

February 16, 2018 at 1:03 am

I actually just made one of these for me to relax me…after my parents stopped freaking out because it’s something different and weird. I love the effect of the water and oil, and the food colouring ties it all together with the yellow-green-blue. A brilliant idea, and a beautiful one, at that!

February 21, 2018 at 12:46 am

Wonderful! I’m so glad you love it. How nice to know that it’s not just preschoolers enjoying our activities!

March 29, 2018 at 1:13 pm

This project turns out so well! I tried it with my toddler and he was completely amazed by the ocean in a bottle. I shared your link on my blog as part of a post about activities to do with toddlers indoors. Thank you for sharing such a great idea!

Leah Winters

April 20, 2018 at 10:57 pm

Hi Jackie! I love your project and linked it to my blog – would love to connect with you about cross-promotion if you’re interested.

February 19, 2019 at 9:02 pm

hey, just wondering im doing a project for my class is there anything else I need to worry about before I start. also what color is best?

February 19, 2019 at 9:12 pm

Hi Sam. Nothing really to worry about. Just make sure the lid is on tight of course. We’ve only used blue because we wanted it to look like an ocean, but I imagine any colour would work. Red or purple would be pretty cool. It might look like a lava lamp!

June 5, 2019 at 11:16 pm

So, just to get this straight in my head, it’s 2/3 water, blue food color, mix, add 1/3 oil??? Do you leave any air space? Thank you!

June 6, 2019 at 2:45 am

“Fill approximately 1/3 of your bottle with water. Add several drops of food colouring. Now, simply top up the bottle with oil. I filled ours right to the top and then popped the lid on.”

April 15, 2020 at 7:39 pm

Is it normal for it to look cloudy after a day? I used canola. I wonder if that’s normal for that type oil?

April 16, 2020 at 8:57 am

Hmm… Is it possible your bottle wasn’t completely clean? I’m thinking if there was any bacteria in it, it could cause the contents to go cloudy and eventually develop mold.

Shreiya Aggarwal-Gupta

June 25, 2020 at 3:36 am

Thanks so much, Jackie! This is so, so simple and enjoyable even though it’s been so many years since you published, obviously. I also enjoyed reading the tweaks in the comments. As you said, the pictures don’t do the activity justice – it’s simply amazing to see it in action 🙂

November 13, 2020 at 1:10 am

Help! I followed your instructions to a “T”, and it was beautiful . . . for a week. I even bought fresh oil, to ensure that everything would work perfectly. But after a week, something began to happen, where it looked like some of the oil was somehow disintegrating into the water — the water ended up looking dull, murky, and translucent instead of transparent, giving the effect of dirty, polluted water. I’m really disappointed, as this project looked just so stunning at first that I almost wanted to keep it for myself instead of giving it to my grandson.

Please advise! Thanks!

November 14, 2020 at 8:20 am

Hi Diana, I wonder if there was some residue in the bottle that caused bacteria to form, or somehow, while making it, bacteria entered the bottle. We made our bottle about 6 years ago, and only recently did ours start going cloudy.

November 16, 2020 at 11:46 pm

Thanks for your reply, Jackie. I actually washed out the bottle (a new Voss glass water bottle) very thoroughly with hot soapy water and then carefully rinsed it out with hot water several times. And as mentioned in my previous email, I purchased a new bottle of oil for the project. The finished project was initially so beautiful when I first made it that I hate to give up. I think I’ll try it again with distilled water to see if it makes a difference. If it does, I’ll let you know.

November 18, 2020 at 12:12 pm

SO strange, Diane. I hope it works for you with the distilled water. Please let me know how it goes!

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Oil and Water Experiment

This classic oil and water experiment is sometimes referred to as “fireworks in a jar” because it looks like fireworks falling down from the oil. Kids will love learning about density and how oil and water do not mix in this fun and easy science experiment!

RELATED: Fireworks in a Jar

This simple science experiment explores density using oil and water. Expand this further by mixing or trying other oils – does it act the same way? You can even use a pipette to add drops of colored water to oil in a jar or cup and observe what happens.

What is Density?

Density is the amount of mass per unit of volume. Let’s say you have two objects and they are the same size. If one object is heavier, then it is denser and if the other object is lighter, then it is less dense.

What you will see in this experiment is that oil is less dense than water, so it will float on top of the water.

The Science Behind It

Oil and water do not mix. Oil is less dense than water and floats on top of the water. Food coloring is water-based so it mixes with the water. When you add the food coloring to the oil it will not mix. Once you add the oil to the water, the food colored droplets start to drop down since they are heavier than the oil. Once they drop into the water they start to dissolve and look like tiny explosions (or fireworks).

Supplies Needed

• Vegetable Oil – we used canola oil
• Food Coloring
• A Clear Jar or Vase

Watch the Video Tutorial Here

1. Fill your jar or vase 3/4 full with water.

2. Add oil into a bowl. You do not need a lot like we used – you can even just use about 4 tablespoons of oil for a thin layer. A little more oil will show the difference in density slightly better for kids.

3. Add 4 -5 drops of food coloring for each color you want to add. We used green, blue and purple food coloring. You can use any colors you’d like but we would recommend no more than 3 as the colors will mix quickly and will make it harder to see them dropping down.

4. Whisk the food coloring into the oil. You can point out at this stage that you can already tell the oil and water will not mix.  It’s best to whisk and add the oil straight into the jar or vase before the food coloring settles on the bottom of the bowl or or it may not form droplets when you add it to the water.

5. Add the oil into the water.

Now wait and see all of the little drops start to come down from the oil (making “fireworks”).

We love how easy this simple science experiment is – and kids will love to observe or make their own fireworks in a jar too!

More Science Experiments for Kids

• Try this fun and easy Grow a Rainbow Experiment . You only need washable markers and paper towel!
• For another fun experiment, make some oobleck! 
• Try a rainbow rain cloud in the jar experiment!

More Science Activities

Fluffy Slime Recipe

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Related ideas:.

How to Make Slime With Contact Solution

How to Make Oobleck

Grow a Rainbow Experiment

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Oil & Water Mixing Sensory Bottles

by Meredith Brustlin, CMNH Educator

There are so many fun experiments that you can try using oil and water. If you’re at the grocery store and thinking about picking up one or two items for your young scientist’s “at home chemistry station” I definitely recommend a big jug of vegetable oil. It’s inexpensive, easy to find, and can be used for tons of science! 

This experiment does some simple MESS FREE oil and water mixing. I especially like this experiment because the experiment itself is quick and can be done over and over again. Some people also use these oil & water mixing bottles as sensory bottles - moving the oil back and forth and watching the gentle waves it makes can be very relaxing. Who doesn’t need a bit of extra relaxation these days? 

Here’s how to make your own:

Materials needed:

• Small jar or container with a lid that can be securely screwed on (plastic or glass--although with very young scientists you may want to go the plastic route and duct tape that lid on there, too!)
• Vegetable oil
• Food coloring

Directions:

• Fill your container halfway with water
• Watch and see what happens!
• Watch closely again! 
• Optional: add some duct tape to really seal it in place
• Watch as the oil and water in your bottles become completely separate and the drop of food coloring makes its way down to the water portion of the bottle - it will take a few seconds. 
• Gently move the bottle around and watch the oil and water - they stay separate when moved gently
• What else happens?!
• Watch closely again as the oil and water slowly separate

The Science: 

There are several different science “happenings” going on during this experiment. 

Oil & Water:

• Your scientist’s will notice that the oil and water do not mix! The oil sits on top of the water and it always will. This is because water and oil are immiscible. Basically what this means is that water molecules only want to hang out with other water molecules and the same with oil molecules. The oil sits on top because it is less dense or less heavy than the water so it happily floats on top of it. 

Primary/Secondary Colors:

• Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh
• Mix It Up by Herve Tullet
• Monsters Love Colors by Mike Austin

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May 24, 2018

Mix It Up with Oil and Water

A science shake-up activity from Science Buddies

By Science Buddies & Megan Arnett

A little mixup: Use kitchen chemistry to make oil and water blend. 

George Retseck

Key concepts Chemistry Surfactants Density Polarity

Introduction You may have heard people say, “Those two mix like oil and water,” when they’re describing two people who don’t get along. Maybe you’ve also noticed shiny oil floating on the surface of water puddles after it rains. In both cases you understand that water and oil don’t go well together—but have you ever wondered why? So many other things can dissolve in water—why not oil? In this activity we’ll explore what makes oil so special, and we’ll try making the impossible happen: mixing oil and water!

Background Unlike many other substances such as fruit juice, food dyes or even sugar and salt, oils do not mix with water. The reason is related to the properties of oil and water. Water molecules are made up of one oxygen atom and two hydrogen atoms. In addition to having this very simple structure, water molecules are polar, which means there is an uneven distribution of charge across the water molecule. Water has a partial negative charge from its oxygen atom and partial positive charges on its hydrogen atoms. This polarity allows water molecules to form strong hydrogen bonds with each other, between the negatively charged oxygen atom on one water molecule and the positively charged hydrogen atoms of another. Other molecules such as salts and sugars are able to dissolve in water because of its polarity as well. The charges at either end of the water molecule help break up the chemical structures of other molecules.

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Oils, by contrast, are nonpolar, and as a result they’re not attracted to the polarity of water molecules. In fact, oils are hydrophobic, or “water fearing.” Instead of being attracted to water molecules, oil molecules are repelled by them. As a result, when you add oil to a cup of water the two don’t mix with each other. Because oil is less dense than water, it will always float on top of water, creating a surface layer of oil. You might have seen this on streets after a heavy rain—some water puddles will have a coating of oil floating on them.

In this activity we will test the power of surfactants to help us mix oil and water. The surfactant we will use is dish detergent, which helps break up the surface tension between oil and water because it is amphiphilic: partly polar and partly nonpolar. As a result, detergents can bind to both water and oil molecules. We’ll see the results of this property in this activity!

2 clear plastic water bottles with lids

2 cups of water

One-half cup of oil (olive, cooking or vegetable oils will all work)

Liquid dishwashing soap

Clock or timer

Permanent marker

Measuring cup

Measuring spoon

Food coloring (optional)

Preparation

Remove any labels from your water bottles.

Use your marker to label the bottles: Label the first “Oil+Water” and the second “Oil+Water+Soap.” Write the labels as close to the tops of the bottles as possible.

Pour one cup of water into each bottle.  

Carefully measure and pour one-quarter cup of oil into the bottle labeled Oil+Water. Allow the bottle to sit on a countertop or flat surface while you observe the water and oil. Does the oil sink to the bottom of the bottle, sit on top of the water or mix with it?

Repeat this step, adding one-quarter cup oil to the bottle labeled Oil+Water+Soap. Does the oil sink to the bottom, sit on top of the water or mix with it?

Carefully add three tablespoons of dish soap to the bottle labeled Oil+Water+Soap. Try not to shake the bottle as you add the dish soap.

Make sure the bottle caps are screwed on tightly to each bottle.

Holding a bottle in each hand, vigorously shake the bottles for 20 seconds.

Set the bottles down on a flat surface with plenty of light.

Note the time on your clock or set a timer for 10 minutes.

Observe the contents of each bottle. Hold them up to a light one at time so you can clearly see what is happening inside the bottle. Did anything change when you shook the bottles? Do the mixtures look the same in the both? If not, what is different between them? How would you explain the differences that you observe?

After 10 minutes have passed look at the contents of the bottles and note the changes. What does the oil and water look like in each bottle? Has the oil mixed with the water, sink to the bottom or rise to the top?

Extra:  Add food coloring to the water to get a lava lamp effect

Extra:  Test other types of soap, such as toothpaste, hand soap and shampoo by mixing them with oil and water. 

Observations and results In this activity you combined oil and water then observed how adding dish detergent changed the properties of this mixture. First you should have noticed that when you added the oil to the water they did not mix together. Instead the oil created a layer on the surface of the water. This is because oil is less dense than water and therefore it floats to the surface. When you shook the Oil+Water bottle you might have noticed the oil broke up into tiny beads. These beads, however, did not mix with the water. After you let the Oil+Water bottle sit for 10 minutes you should have observed the oil and water starting separating again almost immediately, and after another 10 minutes there was once again two distinct layers in your bottle.

In contrast you should have found shaking the Oil+Water+Soap bottle resulted in a lot of foam, but instead of immediately starting to separate, the mixture was a cloudy, yellow color. Eventually the oil and water should have separated into two layers again, but these layers should have appeared less distinct and cloudier than the layers in your Oil+Water bottle.

The difference between the two bottles results from adding dish detergent to the Oil+Water+Soap bottle. The detergent molecules can form bonds with both water and oil molecules. Therefore, although the oil and water aren’t technically mixing with each other, the dish detergent molecules are acting as a bridge between oil and water molecules. As a result, the oil and water molecules aren’t clearly separated in the bottle. Instead, you see a cloudy mixture, resulting from the oil, soap and water chains you’ve created by adding dish detergent.

More to explore Goo-Be-Gone: Cleaning Up Oil Spills , from Science Buddies Make Your Own Lava Lamp , from Scientific American The Chemistry of Clean: Make Your Own Soap to Study Soap Synthesis , from Science Buddies Science Activities for All Ages! , from Science Buddies

This activity brought to you in partnership with Science Buddies

Science Fun

Do Oil And Water Mix Density Science Experiment

In this fun and easy density science experiment for kids, we’re going to see if oil and water mix. 

• Empty plastic bottle
• Food coloring
• Cooking oil
• Dish washing liquid

Instructions:

• Add ½ cup of water to the empty plastic bottle.
• Add a drop or two of food coloring to the water.
• Add ½ cup of cooking oil to the plastic bottle.
• Screw the lid onto the bottle and shake vigorously.
• Set the bottle down and observe what happens.

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How it Works:

This is a great activity to observe density in action. As the bottle sits undisturbed after shaking, density will quickly take over and the oil will make its way past the more dense water toward the top of the bottle. 

Make This A Science Project:

Try different types of oil. Try adding salt to the experiment. Try warm water. Try adding a drop of dish soap. 

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DIY Sensory Bottles with Baby Oil or Vegetable Oil (Easy Water & Oil Experiment)

Two easy recipes for your home-made sensory bottles with oil and baby oil.

When I prepare arts & crafts projects with my 8-year-old daughter, I always try to ensure they are really easy to make. And these sensory bottles with baby oil are no exception.

You may think I want to ensure my daughter can easily make the project on her own.

I just want to make sure that “I” can make the project on my own. I am so bad at arts & crafts! So, all my projects tend to be “Easy Projects for Clumsy Moms”!

These fun projects work on two levels:

• as a science project where kids can learn about the interaction of water and oil
• as a DIY sensory bottle project , a very useful calm-down tool for toddlers or kids with anxiety. You can read more about how helpful these jars are in my other DIY sensory bottles post.

So, let’s go with today’s DIY Sensory Bottles with Baby Oil!

(Disclosure: We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. You can also read our Disclosure & Disclaimer policy here )

Table of Contents

Water & Oil Experiment: Science Project Learning

• Sensory Bottle with OIL (Vegetable Oils)
• Sensory Bottle with BABY OIL
• Calming Jars for “Too Busy” Moms ? (check these ones  if you are too busy for arts & crafts)

Other Sensory Activities for Kids

These are some of the pointers you can discuss with your kids or students while working on these projects:

1. Water and oil don’t mix.

No matter how much you shake your bottle, oil and water will go back to creating two different layers. 

They don’t mix because water molecules and oil molecules are different and don’t attract each other.

2. Oil always floats on top.

Oil is less dense than water, so even if you pour it first, it will still flow into the surface layer.

3. Primary and Secondary Colors

What are the primary colors?

Primary colors are the ones that can’t be created by combining other colors. The primary colors are: blue, yellow and red.

What are the secondary colors?

Secondary colors are those we create by combining primary colors: 

Blue + Yellow = Green

Red + Yellow = Orange

Blue + Red = Purple

Calming Jars with Oil and Water

This first sensory bottle with oil recipe is extremely easy to make and quite mess-free.

Why do I consider it mess-free?

Instead of trying to dye clear baby oil with food coloring I’ve used a mix of canola and olive oil.

Oil-based food colorings are quite concentrated, and once you start opening little containers with the kids around it can easily get messy. So for this recipe, you only need the traditional water-based food coloring that you probably already have at home.

This recipe will come handy also if you can’t source oil-based food coloring or you have run out of it.

Ingredient for a Sensory Bottle with Vegetable Oil:

• Plastic bottles or jars
• Liquid food coloring (red & blue)
• Vegetable oil (I’ve mixed olive oil & canola oil)
• Glue (optional but recommended if you have small kids and you need to seal the jar after you have finished the project)

How to Prepare a Calming Jar with Oil

• Fill half of the jar (or bottle) with water
• Add a few drops of the food coloring of your choice (I just add one or two and it looks intense enough)
• Mix them together
• will they mix?
• if not, which one will be on top?
• will color change? And if so, what color will you get?
• will color stay blended or will it return to its original color?
• Give them a good shake and see what happens.
• Let them separate again, and see how these two liquids don’t mix at all.

How to Make Sensory Bottles with Baby Oil and Water

The advantage of using baby oil to prepare our calming jar is that we have a wider range of colors we can play with. In the previous experiment, we were limited by the yellow oil.

So, this time, we just need to add on more step: dyeing the baby oil.

Ingredient for a Sensory Bottle with Baby Oil:

• Water-based food coloring (red )
• Oil-based food coloring (blue)

How to prepare a “DIY Sensory Bottle with Baby Oil”

• Fill half of the jar with water
• Add a couple of drops of the red food coloring
• Pour baby oil inside the jar containing colored water
• Add your oil-based food coloring into baby oil. Tip: you only need a small quantity. 
• Stir the baby oil till the food coloring has blended with the oil
• See the colors changing, and separating again into their initial colors!

Troubleshooting: Why is the baby oil not mixing with the food coloring?

Mixing the food coloring with the baby oil is the part that most people struggle with. If that’s your case, chances are that you are not using oil-based food coloring.

If you are planning to dye oil, what really matters is to ensure that you buy oil-based dyes. Don’t mistake them with gel paste food coloring as the texture may be similar.

I’ve tested oil-based powders, but I had problems completely diluting them in the oil. The particles that do not dilute with the oil will blend with the water part and change the color that we have chosen for the water component.

Sensory Bottles with Baby Oil

Super Easy Sensory Bottle with Baby Oil. An amazing calming tool and a fun arts & crafts family activity.

• Plastic Bottle (recycle used bottles)
• Liquid Food Coloring
• Candy Food Coloring
• Glue (optional)

Instructions

Trouble shooting: Mixing the food coloring with the baby oil is the part that most people struggle with. Make sure you are oil-based food coloring (candy color!).

Calming Jars for “Too Busy” Moms

So, if you feel this is an absolute hassle but you still wish to try this soothing method with your little ones (or yourself), I have some good news,

You don’t need to bother!

You can buy super cool sensory bottles (and cheaper! when you add the cost of the ingredients here)

CHECK SENSORY BOTTLES IN AMAZON

Would You Like to Read Many More Sensory Activities for Kids of All Ages? Check out the following article! (It also includes a FREE sensory menu):

• 40+ Sensory Play Ideas for Kids (+ Free Sensory Menu)

DIY Sensory Bottles with Baby Oil or Vegetable Oil

This is really fun! But can you pls tell me how to make the floating balls or spheres?

Anime_Girl :D

Oh, to do that part I added in some orbeez. It’s SUPER fun to make the bottles, and then if you get an orbee growing set you’re sure to have a blast!

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Oil and Water Wave Bottle Science

Kids are fascinated by movement and color. Combine these two loves in this simple science experiment, perfect for preschoolers! In this experiment, kids will learn about how water and oil molecules have different properties and what happens when you try to mix them in a wave bottle. 

How to Make an Oil and Water Wave Bottle

The wave bottle works because instead of the oil and water mixing when the bottle is shaken, the oil and water shift around each other, creating a cool wave effect. Preschoolers (and older kids, too!) will love watching the wave crash, mix and separate.

You’ll need just a few things for this project:

• Food coloring
• Mason jar or other tall container

First, fill the jar half filled with water. Add your dye of choice. We used orange because it reminded us of the fall days coming up, but you can use any color you like.

Fill the rest of the bottle with oil.

Screw the jar lid on tightly.

Gently swish the bottle from side to side to make the wave. The more you shake up the bottle, the more the oil and water will try to mix, which makes less of a wave and more of a boiling effect. However, once the colors separate again, the wave effect will return.

Talk to your kids about why oil and water won’t mix while you’re sloshing up the wave bottle.

Oil and Water Wave Bottle Science Explained

Oil and water don’t mix due to the differing densities of oil and water particles. Water is more dense than oil, which means water molecules will always sink below oil. Additionally, water molecules are more attracted to other water molecules than oil molecules, which further prevents the two materials from mixing. Is there anything you can think of that you could add to an oil and water mixture to cause them to mix? Think about how salad dressings have certain additives that prevent the oil and water from separating.

What other oil and water activities can you think to try? Share your ideas with us!

More fun science for kids:

• arts & crafts
• _famous artists
• _process art
• _paint recipes
• _keepsake crafts
• _book activities
• _sensory bins
• _sensory play recipes
• _science experiments
• _free printables
• _colouring pages
• _valentines day
• _st patrick's day
• _mother's day
• _father's day
• _thanksgiving

Ocean in a Bottle

• Ocean Sensory Bottle
• Soap Foam Ocean 
• Thumbprint Ocean  
• Ocean Playdough Mat

You might our list of ocean crafts .

Ocean in a Bottle Science Experiment -  Supplies: 

• 2-liter bottle (empty and clean)
• Vegetable oil
• Water 
• Blue food coloring
• Funnel 
• Strong tape 

Ocean in a Bottle - Directions:

Step 1 - prepare your sensory bottle supplies.

Let's begin! Gather all the materials listed above and begin by placing the funnel into your bottle. 

STEP 2 - Add the water

Then, pour the water and fill the bottle about halfway.

STEP 3 - Color-time!

Take the blue food coloring and add about 5 drops. Gently shake the bottle so the coloring drops and water mix well.

STEP 4 - Add the oil:

For this step, we'll be using the complete opposite of water; oil. Take the vegetable oil and fill up the rest of the bottle, all the way to the top. 

Make sure to close the lid tightly, and if you want to be extra sure, place tape around it.

STEP 5 - Shake it up!

Shake up the bottle and observe how the water and oil do not mix, no matter how much you shake it!

This is the part where kids will probably ask questions and it's a great opportunity to talk a little bit more about the science of oil and water resisting each other with them. 

STEP 6 - Explore more options:

Sometimes, while shaking the bottle, it may appear as if the oil and mix are mixing. If that's the case, sit the bottle  down to watch how both liquids separate once again after a while. It's like magic and fascinating to watch!

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more in 10-12 years

Blobs in a bottle.

You will need

• A clean 1 liter clear soda bottle
• 3/4 cup of water
• Vegetable Oil
• Fizzing tablets (such as Alka Seltzer)
• Food coloring
• Pour the water into the bottle.
• Use a measuring cup or funnel to slowly pour the vegetable oil into the bottle until it’s almost full. You may have to wait a few minutes for the oil and water separate.
• Add 10 drops of food coloring to the bottle (we like red, but any color will look great.) The drops will pass through the oil and then mix with the water below.
• Break a seltzer tablet in half and drop the half tablet into the bottle. Watch it sink to the bottom and let the blobby greatness begin!
• To keep the effect going, just add another tablet piece. For a true lava lamp effect, shine a flashlight through the bottom of the bottle.

How does it work?

To begin, the oil stays above the water because the oil is lighter than the water or, more specifically, less dense than water. The oil and water do not mix because of something called “intermolecular polarity.” That term is fun to bring up in dinner conversation. Molecular polarity basically means that water molecules are attracted to other water molecules. They get along fine, and can loosely bond together (drops.) This is similar to magnets that are attracted to each other. Oil molecules are attracted to other oil molecules, they get along fine as well. But the structures of the two molecules do not allow them to bond together. Of course, there’s a lot more fancy scientific language to describe density and molecular polarity, but maybe now you’ll at least look at that vinegrette salad dessing in a whole new way.

When you added the tablet piece, it sank to the bottom and started dissolving and creating a gas. As the gas bubbles rose, they took some of the colored water with them. When the blob of water reached the top, the gas escaped and down went the water. Cool, huh? By the way, you can store your “Blobs In A Bottle” with the cap on, and then anytime you want to bring it back to life, just add another tablet piece.

MAKE IT AN EXPERIMENT

The project above is a DEMONSTRATION. To make it a true experiment, you can try to answer these questions:

• Does the temperature of the water affect the reaction?
• Does the size of the bottle affect how many blobs are produced?
• Does the effect still work if the cap is put on the bottle?
• Does the size of the tablet pieces affect the number of blobs created?

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Bubbling Blob – Lava Lamp

Learn how to make your own wave bottle.

Print this Experiment

Learn how to make a wave bottle using oil, water, and a secret ingredient that makes the whole thing fizz, bubble, and erupt.

Experiment Videos

Here's What You'll Need

Clean, plastic soda bottle with a cap (16-ounce size works well), vegetable oil (the cheaper the better), food coloring, alka-seltzer tablet, large flashlight, let's try it.

Fill the bottle three-quarters full with vegetable oil.

Fill the rest of the bottle with water (almost to the top but not overflowing).

Add about ten drops of food coloring. Be sure to make the water fairly dark in color. Notice that the food coloring only colors the water and not the oil.

Divide the Alka-Seltzer tablet into four pieces.

Drop one of the tiny pieces of Alka-Seltzer into the oil and water mixture. Watch what happens. When the bubbling stops, add another chunk of Alka-Seltzer.

When you have used up all of the Alka-Seltzer and the bubbling has completely stopped, screw on the soda bottle cap. Tip the bottle back and forth and watch the wave appear. The tiny droplets of liquid join together to make one big wavelike blob.

How Does It Work

First of all, you confirmed what you already know—oil and water do not mix. Even if you try to shake up the bottle, the oil breaks up into small little drops, but it doesn’t mix with the water. Why is it that oil and water are such opposites?

Oil and water don’t mix because of how their molecules are constructed. Water is what is known as a polar molecule . A water molecule is shaped like a V, with an oxygen atom at the bottom point of the V and a hydrogen atom on each of the two top ends. However, there is unequal sharing of electrons between the hydrogen and oxygen atoms. This means that the bottom of the molecule has a negative electrical charge, while the top carries a positive charge.

Vegetable oil, on the other hand, is a nonpolar molecule made of long chains of hydrocarbons—strings of carbon atoms bonded to hydrogen atoms. Unlike the water molecule, there is equal sharing of electrons between the carbon and hydrogen atoms. This means that the electrical charges of the atoms are not separated, so the molecules don’t have opposite positive and negative ends.

If you were to think of molecules like groups of people, the polar molecules hang out with other polar molecules, and the nonpolar molecules with other nonpolar molecules. This brings us back to the reason why oil and water don’t mix. Water is a polar molecule, and it just doesn’t hang out with nonpolar molecules like oil. Scientists say that oil and water are immiscible .

The adage “like dissolves like” will help you remember what will mix with what. Salt and water mix because both molecules are polar—like dissolves like. It’s also easy to mix vegetable oil and olive oil, or motor oil and peanut oil . . . but that’s gross. You also noticed that food coloring only mixes with water . . . and now you know why. Food coloring is a polar molecule because it dissolves in water. In other words, food coloring and water are miscible . Vegetable oil is not affected by the food coloring because they are polar opposites.

Here’s the surprising part . . . the Alka-Seltzer tablet reacts with the water to make tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide. These bubbles attach themselves to the blobs of colored water and cause them to float to the surface. When the bubbles pop, the color blobs sink back to the bottom of the bottle, and the whole thing starts over until the Alka-Seltzer is used up. When the chemical reaction between the Alka-Seltzer and water is over and the bubbling stops, you’re left with a cool looking wave bottle that will sit proudly on your desk.

Take It Further

Make a lava lamp.

As you watched the bubbling color blobs rise and fall in the water, you probably thought to yourself, “This is just like a lava lamp . . . without the lamp!” On a side note, if you have no concept of what a lava lamp is, pull out your smart phone and Google it.

To make a cool looking lava lamp, you’ll need a large flashlight. Carefully rest the bottle of oil and water directly on the lens of the flashlight and repeat the experiment above with the bright light shining up and through the liquid. Groovy, baby!

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Oil Bubbles in Water Science Experiment

Oil bubbles? With this easy science experiment, kids can explore density and a little bit of chemistry as they make oil bubbles with just a few common kitchen items.

This experiment includes a demonstration video, printable materials list and instructions, experiment variations to try, and a simple explanation of how the experiment works.

JUMP TO SECTION:   Instructions  |  Video Tutorial  |  How it Works | Purchase Lab Kit

Supplies Needed

• Large Empty Clear Jar
• 2 Cups of Water
• 1 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 4 Tablespoons of Salt

Oil Bubbles in Water Lab Kit – Only $5

Use our easy Oil Bubbles in Water 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!

Oil Bubbles Science Experiment Instructions

Step 1 – Begin by fulling a large jar about halfway full of water.

Step 2 – Next, add a cup of vegetable oil to the jar. Wait 30 seconds for the oil to completely separates from the water. Take a moment to make some observations. What do you notice about the oil and the water? What do you think will happen if you add salt to the jar? Write down your hypothesis (prediction) and then follow the steps below.

Step 3 – Add a heaping tablespoon of salt to the jar. 

Step 4 – Observe what happens next. Do you see the bubbles form at the bottom and float back to the top? Do you know why this happens? Find out the answer in the how does this experiment work section below.

Video Tutorial

How Does the Science Experiment Work

Oil and water don’t mix (no matter how hard you try) because of their densities and the chemistry of oil and water molecules. Let’s talk about the density of oil and water! Oil is LESS dense than water. This is because the molecules of oil are larger than the molecules of water, so oil particles take up more space per unit area. Oil particles aren’t packed as tightly together like water, so it is less dense and will rise to the top of the water. Now let’s talk about the chemistry of oil and water molecules! Oil (and other fats) are made of nonpolar molecules. Water is made of polar molecules that can interact with other polar molecules. Because oil and water are made of unlike molecules, they cannot interact with each other and stay separate.

When we add salt to the jar, it immediately sinks to the bottom taking a little of the oil with it. Once it gets to the bottom of the jar, the salt begins to dissolve. As the salt dissolves, the oil that was pulled to the bottom begins to rise back to the top of the water and create oil bubbles.

Other Ideas to Try

Try this experiment again using two jars. In one jar use warm water and the other jar use cold water. How do these two different temperature waters affect the rate at which salt dissolves (which jar do the oil bubbles rise the fastest)?

Try the experiment again, but instead of using salt, use an Alka Seltzer tablet. The fizz of the Alka Seltzer tablet will produce oil bubbles the same as the salt, but because this is a chemical reaction happening, it will be faster and more bubbles!

I hope you enjoyed the experiment. Here are some printable instructions:

Instructions

• Begin by fulling a large jar about halfway full of water
• Next, add a cup of vegetable oil to the jar. Wait 30 seconds for the oil to completely separates from the water.
• Add a heaping tablespoon of salt to the jar.
• Watch the Bubbles form at the bottom and float back to the top.

Reader Interactions

January 31, 2019 at 5:29 pm

I have used a couple of these experiments with my P2/3 class and they love it. Anticipation and excitement can be felt in the classroom. The experiment s are very easy to carry out.

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The Craft Train

Crafty ideas for kids and parents

Oil and water discovery bottles

November 24, 2014 By Kate Leave a Comment This post may contain affiliate links. I may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post at no cost to you.

Recently we created some sparkly wax gems as a science activity inspired by the popular lava lamp experiment. We have not actually made a ‘lava lamp’ but there is a great version of it here at Racheous Lovable Learning . This is a different activity inspired by that same experiment, and is very quick, easy and interesting for kids. My girls both adored making these.

To make oil and water discovery bottles you will need:

• a bottle – ours are glass but for younger children plastic would be a better choice for obvious reasons • a funnel • oil – any type will do, we used rice bran oil because we have a large 4L bottle of it in the cupboard • food colouring and an eye dropper if it doesn’t already have one on the bottle top

How to make them:

The girls (aged 5 aqnd 6) made their own bottles. We used a jug for pouring to make it easier to manage for them. First fill a bottle half full with water using a funnel to prevent mess. Then fill the other half of the bottle up with oil.

Next add a few drops of food colouring and watch them drift down slowly through the oil. The oil is thicker than water and as we know, they don’t mix. The oil floats on top of the water, and the food colouring won’t mix with the oil. Once the food colouring drops hit the base of the oil, they slip into the water in pretty trails, before diluting and changing the colour of the water. The girls loved watching this happen.

Miss R was hoping to create her bottle in layers, but it didn’t really work that way. The water she added on top of the oil ended up on the bottom with the rest of the water pretty quickly.

Screw the lids on tightly and shake! The oil and water mix with lots of bubbles, then slowly separate again. It’s quite mesmerising to watch and the girls were very fascinated by shaking them, watching them separate, and then shaking them again. I have taken a few pictures at different stages of the shaking and separating…

Go on, make some! The kids will love it.

For more fun science ideas for kids, visit my Science fun for kids board on Pinterest.

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I’m basically a big kid who never grew up and still loves to muck around with paint, glitter, glue and toilet rolls. With the crafts shared here on this website I’m hoping to give other parents and carers inspiration to get crafty with their kids at home – make our projects, or use them as a source of inspiration to spark ideas of your own. When it comes to crafting no rules apply!

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