Water Rockets

Many water rockets are made using various plastic drink bottles. You are responsible to ensure the bottle is suitable. The bottles referred to on this page are 2 litre drink bottles.

Depending on your skills, an adults assistance and the materials you have to work with will determine the type of rocket you start with.
On this page we are presuming you will either have bought a water rocket launcher or have accessed to one that is safe to use.

The following is based on using the Aquapod Rocket launcher available in Australia from Jaycar outlets.
As an association we neither endorse or recommend the Aquapod but include it here as a launcher available in most states in Australia.

There are several points you should be aware of with any object (e.g., drink bottle) that is moving under pressure:

• Bottles are made from thin plastic and can erupt if damaged - always check for cracks, splits, dents etc that could weaken the outer casing.
• Leaving labels on bottles will cause drag. A bottle should have all labels removed and any sticky substance should not be scratched off but removed using a solution that will disolve the glue. There are many on the market that can do this - e.g., Orange Power or Citro Clean etc.
• The rule of thumb is to fill the bottle approximately one third full of water. If you are wishing to calculate the height the rocket achieves then it would be wise to measure the amount of water you use so any alterations allow you to compare back to previous launches you have made.
• For safe working conditions when working with your bottle rocket visit the Air Command Rocket webpage - click here.