Thursday, February 23, 2006
i am allergic to the filthy sewage ridden salt water that comes in tankers to this *posh* locality i live in. after my family took to judging how khaara the paani was by looking at my face (i think its really bad today, look at her skin) i decided to buy a water cooler and keep boiled drinking water in the bathroom to wash my face with. so i stopped by gizri and bargained with a jovial khan saab for the smallest cooler he had. it was bright orange. i got home and carried it up to the bathroom and then faced the following issues:
- the cooler had a button not a tap so washing my face would be a pain as i would have to have one hand on the button at all times
- the cooler did not fit in the space next to the sink
so i kicked the cooler under the bed and decided i needed a customized solution to my problem. here is what i came up with:
i took a large water bottle, made a hole in its base with a combination of heated pliers and various appendages from my pocket knife (yes, i carry a knife at all times, i am armed and dangerous, dont ever attack me). then i took a stiff plastic straw from a water bottle that i used to take to school which was still lying around in the kitchen and cut it down to size. the straw went through the hole and voila!
using some rule of physics (capillary action?) that i dont really understand, i have created a customized face washing cooler for myself. the water does not leak out of the straw when the cap of the bottle is closed, when it is twisted open, the water comes out. just like a tap (phallic symbolism nonwithstanding). am i smart or what?
I don't think the principle behind it is capillary action -- that has to do with the meniscus of a liquid being drawn upward against the force of gravity due to the adhesive intermolecular forces between the liquid and a solid are stronger than the cohesive intermolecular forces within the liquid.
I'm not sure why your contraption is working, but I'm guessing it's because when you twist the cap open, the air pressure at the top of the bottle increases and forces liquid out of the straw. It seems to me, though, that if the liquid level in the bottle falls sufficiently, this effect will no longer take place as the air pressure inside the bottle will be the same or nearly the same as that outside. Perform further experiments and let us know how it goes!
-- Smug Ned
: 1:35 AM Bravo, a social sciences major who can also be a plumber!
I don't think the principle behind it is capillary action -- that has to do with the meniscus of a liquid being drawn upward against the force of gravity due to the adhesive intermolecular forces between the liquid and a solid being stronger than the cohesive intermolecular forces within the liquid.
I'm not sure why your contraption is working, but I'm guessing it's because when you twist the cap open, the air pressure at the top of the bottle increases and forces liquid out of the straw. It seems to me, though, that if the liquid level in the bottle falls sufficiently, this effect will no longer take place as the air pressure inside the bottle will be the same or nearly the same as that outside. Perform further experiments and let us know how it goes!
-- Smug Ned
: 1:37 AM "I don't think the principle behind it is capillary action -- that has to do with blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah."
but i think you have a point, the "cooler" leaks when it is almost empty. so now i will make sure it is always full.
thainks
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