Warm soda causes better explosions, so avoid using cold/refrigerated soda. [2] X Research source For best results, purchase room-temperature soda and then let it sit outside in the sun or in a pot full of hot (not boiling) water for a few hours before using it.
As the rocket is more of a fast-acting affair, you might want to go for Mint Mentos. If you have the time and money to do so, why not try one bottle with Mint Mentos and one with Fruit Mentos, and then compare the results?
If there’s a field or empty lot nearby, go there to make your rocket. You don’t want to risk doing damage to anyone’s car or home, as it could cost you or your parents a lot of money to repair.
Be careful not to press too hard, as you don’t want any Mentos falling out of the cartridge!
If it seems like the Mentos will touch the Diet Coke, you can either dump a small amount of Diet Coke out before screwing the cap on; redo your Mentos cartridge to contain fewer Mentos; or you can try your luck and screw the cap on as quickly as possible.
A popular and effective one is to throw the bottle high up into the air and let it fall on to the ground (preferably hard ground, like cement). This is the best method if you’re worried about getting hit by the rocket, as you can throw it far away from you and even run in the opposite direction. Another method is to throw the bottle at a side angle so that when it hits the ground, the ground knocks off its cap. Yet another method is to throw the bottle at more of a 90-degree angle, cap-first, on to the ground.
Side-angle launches generally seem to cause the bottle to bounce low and skid along the ground. Vertical launches (in which you throw the bottle straight up into the air and let it fall to the ground) tend to give the rocket more height as it shoots upward. If the bottle is still full of Diet Coke and Mentos but it’s stopped moving on the ground, you can try to launch it again to see if it has any more flight left in it.
As with the original rocket recipe, stick the Mentos cartridge to the lid of the milk jug, fasten the lid, shake the container to release the Mentos into the Diet Coke, then throw the jug high up into the air and let it hit the pavement hard.
