Video:How to Breathe Fire

Transcript:How to Breathe Fire

Fire breathing involves spraying a fuel over an open flame so that it looks like you are breathing fire! It can be extremely dangerous if you do it with a flammable fuel, but there is a much safer way to get the fire breathing effect using a non-toxic, non-flammable common kitchen ingredient.

Hi, I'm Dr. Anne Helmenstine for About.com. I'm going to show you the safest way to breathe fire.

Fire Breathing Safety

Although this project is much less dangerous than the traditional fire breathing method, it still involves fire, so adult supervision is required and the fire breathing should never be directed toward any person, pet, or flammable object.

Fire Breathing Supplies

All you need for fire breathing is a big container of corn starch, a big spoon, a big flame, and a big glass of water. A person will be holding the flame when the fuel is sprayed onto it, so use something long-handled, such as a barbeque lighter or improvised torch.

How to Breathe Fire

To perform fire breathing, fill your mouth will a spoonful or two of corn starch. Corn starch is edible, but it's a powder so you do not want to breathe it into your lungs. Spit the corn starch over the open flame, much like if you were whistling. You can either repeat the fire breathing with more corn starch, or, if you've had enough, swish some water around in your mouth and spit out the corn starch. It doesn't taste that bad, but the texture is pretty disgusting.

Corn Starch and Fire

If you apply a flame to a pile of corn starch, it won't burn. That is the key to the safety of this project. Corn starch only ignites when it is dispersed into a fine powder. When this happens, the fuel particles are small enough that they can burn. The powder ignites suddenly, but if the flame travels back toward you, or the corn starch falls on the hand of the person holding the flame, it won't continue to burn. You're blowing a lot of corn starch around and making a huge mess, so perform this fire project outdoors.

I hope you've enjoyed this simple fire chemistry project. To get ideas for more projects, please visit me on the web at About.com. Thanks for watching!