by Kessie Carroll

Created on: April 15, 2009

What kid hasn't wanted to ride in a hot air balloon? Real hot air balloon rides are hard to find, so why not just build your own?

There are two kinds of hot air balloons that you can build yourself: fire balloons and solar balloons.

Fire Balloons:

A fire balloon is a paper or tissue balloon heated by fire, usually a cotton ball soaked in alcohol. They were invented in China around 180 AD, and were called Sky Lanterns. They appear in other times and cultures, such as Italy. They were popular in the US during the Great Depression, and many countries today still fly them, like Latin America, Thailand, China, and Burma.

The biggest problem with fire balloons is that they tend to catch on fire, and fall on rooftops, dry grass, or onlookers. They aren't common in America anymore for this reason. However, instructions still abound if you want to make one.

Tea Bag Fire Balloon:

This is a tiny, short-lived balloon. All you need is one tea bag. Pull the string off, remove the staple, unfold the bag, and pour out the tea leaves. Unfold the tea bag.

The tea bag is a long strip of paper with a tiny open bag at either end. Open both bags and stand the bag on end. Twist the top bag shut to make a wick, then light it.

The flames will burn down through the paper, and as it reaches the bottom bag, it will float up into the air. The flight only lasts a few seconds, but it can do damage if you are not careful. Do this only with adult supervision.

Video demonstration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbkEfYohXTA

Paper or plastic fire balloon:

There are several methods for building these. Some require a very thin, lightweight trash bag. Others require the sort of extremely thin, light tissue paper used for wrapping gifts or lining gift bags.

If you use the trash bag approach, you will need 2 foot-long strips of balsa wood, a piece of cardboard, some tinfoil, masking tape, a cotton ball, and rubbing alcohol.

Pull the cardboard apart so you only have one thin sheet.

Tape the balsa wood strips together to make a plus sign.

Tape the cardboard to the middle of the "plus sign". This is the platform to hold your fire.

Open up your bag, and use strips of tape to attach the four ends of the balsa wood to the bottom of the bag. The tape acts like the ropes that connect the basket of a real hot air balloon to the balloon's envelope.

Don't use too much tape! If your balloon is too heavy, it won't fly.

Wad a small piece of foil up to make a tiny "boat" to hold the burning cotton ball. Tape it to the middle of the

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>