Superheating of water (Mythbusters)

This is what happens when you superheat water in a microwave demonstrated by the mythbusters

[@inkmastertim]

Yeah, this happened to me and with tap water! It was in a new glass measuring cup. I kept heating it longer because it didn't look like it was boiling. Then all at once it blew up and actually blew the microwave door open. It startled me, but the microwave was cleaner than it had been in a long time!

[@Alex-qj3wp]

a glass half full kinda guy (probably because the other half is all over the microwave)

[@notsure8327]

I’m here because this literally just happened to me! The water hit me in the face a foot away from the microwave and I guess it just had cooled enough to not burn me severely.

[@akpokemon]

"It startled me, but the microwave was cleaner than it had been in a long time!" LMFAOOOOO not this.

[@TDAEON]

@@notsure8327 Same here. Just happened. 2 cup pyrex type measuring cup with 2 cups of water. Was heating to boil but no boil which I thought was odd. Turned microwave back on and in less than a minute BOOM! Water everywhere. Cup intact. Had to investigate. The water used was from my sink filter. Never had a problem before. Yeah, so heating some water in a saucepan right now. lol

[@appledinger1121]

@@Alex-qj3wp take my praises

[@meuchtie7662]

I found this out when reheating a mug of Irish coffee in the microwave, so it definitely doesn't have to be distilled water. The surface looked perfectly still and I was able to take the mug out of the microwave and place it on the worktop without noticing anything was weird. When I put a spoon in to stir, it exploded and left only a small amount of liquid in the bottom of the mug. Glad I didn't put it straight to my lips...

[@heloxiii8894]

damn i should be more careful :P thanks for sharing

[@ZrhioZ]

Interesting, if I have to bet, I'd say that the small amount of alcohol having a lower density and lower boiling point had something to do in this case.

[@d36williams]

could be the alcohol changing the boiling point, or the cream interacting with it in some weird way

[@mets78]

Yeah, it doesn't have to be distilled, it all has to do with whether or not there's anything to break the surface tension within the water. I heated water in a brand new glass mug with no scratches or impurities, nothing for bubbles to form on. Took it out and placed it on the counter, which jostled it. That's when I noticed a giant bubble coming up from the bottom. Exploded before I could stick my whole face over it, but it still caught me. Had burn streaks diagonally across my face, thankfully they were superficial and minor and faded within a week. Better believe I looked up the cause, and it's apparently a lot more common than this video makes it seem. I never even got to drink my tea.

[@leandrog2785]

It has more to do with the smoothness of the container rather than the purity of the water. *TAP WATER CAN STILL EXPLODE VERY VIOLENTLY!*

[@bgray1009]

heating up coffee does this and yes it tastes crap but if it's gone cold im too lazy to make another

[@EdwardTriesToScience]

Yep, I've heated tap water in brand chemistry glassware and when I stirred it it bubbled and splashed hot water. It's so common in chemistry it has a name: "bumping". Thats also why you might see people putting broken glass in a beaker or flask before heating it, it gives the water a place to bubble off of.

[@TactaGhoul]

Can confirm that tap water will do it. I put half a coffee cup of water in the microwave for 3 minutes, tossed a piece of chocolate in it, and it immediately boiled over. Not a big explosion but close enough. Science!

[@Markswife28]

Absolutely correct!!!! I ended up burned including a second degree burn in my eye from superheated tap water.

[@LoveIsContagious]

This is true as I was using Tap Water to boil for cooking yesterday only!! No use putting on a stove, I just got scalded yesterday when I was boiling a pot (without lid cover at all). I realised something is wrong when the water isn’t boiling after 10 mins which it usually will, then I saw the water is already very hot, so I switched off the gas and took the pot out from the stove, immediately I heard & saw bubbles foaming at a high speed & next second it exploded & splashed onto my hot body & hands. Luckily my face & eyes are not hurt but my hands & fingers got scalded.

[@FedorKorsakov]

Additionally, this is more likely to happen when the water stood still for a while before microwaving. Boiling requires formation of bubbles, and if there is not enough air in the water, bubbles do not form enough to lead to boiling.

[@TravisTerrell]

One good tip is to leave something sticking out of the water (like a wooden stick or non-metal spoon) to break the surface tension. Also, older glass that has accumulated small scratches greatly decreases the likelihood of accidentally superheating the water.

[@precumming]

It's not surface tension that is the issue, it's nucleation sites

[@Art-cq1zy]

@@precumming can you explain more

[@dobythedog]

A metal spoon works just fine. It won't arc due to it's rounded design. A metal fork WOULD arc at it's points.

[@JeffDeLamater]

@@Art-cq1zy Nucleation sites are places that bubbles will form. A wooden spoon, for example, is very rough at a microscopic level. That rough surface gives places to gases in the liquid a place to attach and come out of solution. If you want further explanation (of nucleation, not superheating), look up videos explaining mentos & diet coke. That whole process is powered by rapid nucleation of CO2 gas out of solution of the diet coke onto the microscopically rough surface of the mentos candy shell.

[@jwilson544]

Or just get a kettle

[@gallendugall8913]

"not very likely with tap water" I'm on a well and this happens every time I make tea in the microwave using water from the tap. Every time.

[@ckemp98]

+Gallen Dugall Same thing happens to me too, but with city water. The water will be completely calm, but if I put the teabag in, it starts to boil violently

[@gallendugall8913]

whitefireocn Pretty sure it's because the water heats evenly and not because of some mythical purity. Although it does make me wonder about CA water.

[@wbeaty]

+Gallen Dugall they're propagating a myth. Search "coffee explosions" for lots of correct info. Yes, coffee superheats just fine. Very impure drinks still explode. So does tomato sauce, or eggs. I use wooden stir-sticks to prevent the problem. (Works on water and coffee, doesn't work with spaghetti-Os though.) Or, use a bamboo skewer, or a short chopstick. I hope they're not vulnerable to lawsuits. Mythbusters said it's safe! Only distilled water can explode! Nope, that's a myth.

[@osrevad]

It actually has a lot to do with the container. A perfectly smooth container can make it hard for bubbles to form. If the water can't boil properly, it superheats. Try using a different container, and watch it to see if it boils as it would on the stove.

[@gallendugall8913]

Nathan West That's a better explanation than what we got in the show. Although I use a glass for my tea and ceramic for my cocoa and have the same issue with both. I still suspect there's something wrong with CA water.

[@Impossible_Fishy]

Maybe I should cancel my 99:99 microwaving session...

[@ColterDewitt]

R.I.P. C.G.P. Grey

[@ChrisHinton42]

I had to look up some video after listening to the podcast.

[@vwang2000]

I love going round watching and looking at stuff not included in the show notes and seeing splashed of hello internet everywhere

[@magicalhansmoehansen]

+Chris Hinton same here, altough im quite late

+Hansmoehansen I'm more than late, I'm listening to it right now.

[@ddobry21]

Colter DeWitt I Don't understand the comment Colter.

[@Leehensman]

i can honestly confirm this is not a myth, back in my younger drinking days i was stiil living in mum and dads house, came home one night completely wasted and had cravings for noodles, only thing was i forgot to put the noodles in the glass microwave jug so only heated the water on high for what i thought was 1 minute, only after waiting for 12 or so minutes had realised i had set it for one hour instead so took it out of microwave and went to stir the non existent noodles with a fork and bam. next morning had to explain to my mum why there was a water stain on kitchen ceiling and why my face was covered in little red dots, i didn't dare tell her the water literally exploded as hardly believed it myself and didn't want yet another lecture on drugs lol.

[@jsigmo]

It most certainly does NOT need to be distilled water to do this. Our tap water is quite hard, and it happens just about every time we heat some in a coffee mug or measuring cup. Perhaps the higher elevation here (and thus, lower boiling point) encourages this effect. Or maybe our older, lower power microwave oven (Sharp turntable type) heats it more gradually and evenly. We're always very careful taking a heated cup of water out of the oven. As soon as you jar it, may boil over instantly.

[@2024WhatNow]

I just came across this video via a Google search, and was surprised to discover them saying @ 1:24 that "this is not very likely." I've had this happen numerous times when microwaving tap-water for instant cappuccino; instantly flash boiling 2/3 of a 20oz coffee cup onto the counter. This IS an event I can repeat flawlessly. I've learned to place a dry, cold (room temp suffices) metal spoon into the super-heated water to bring it below "explosion" state.

[@fkerpants]

I blew up a solution of soap and water in my microwave last night. It was about a cup of tap water and a few squeezes of dish soap. No damage, but it was enough force to make the disc in the boom box on top of the microwave stop playing. My cat took a shit as well.

[@mysticstardust1109]

At least you have a free microwave wash

[@JacksonTyler]

Did the cat take a shit before you put the soap and water into the microwave? At which point exactly was there a shit involved?

[@VenEm]

blew the door open, soap everywhere, but inside was easy to clean now :D

[@anthonyd.8067]

Myth... True? That’s just feels weird.

[@frankh.3849]

Myth busters are full of crap. This BS is for the weak minded. Superheating water simply requires pressure. Sure having clean water will yield more stable experiments but these guys are morons.

[@tumadre50]

@@frankh.3849 the boiling point of water (any liquid) is based on pressure and temperature. If you pressurize the water you are increasing the temperature required for boiling and effectively increasing it's boiling point. Likewise if you decrease the water pressure you lower the temperature required for boiling. What you are describing is called superheated water but that's not what they are doing here. They are heating the water to a temperature past it's boiling point without the water boiling this is called superheating or boiling retardation. It's bizarre you call them morons and don't understand the difference and clearly do not understand the video.

[@frankh.3849]

@@tumadre50 go back and read my comment, all you did was echo what I stated other than the fact these 2 guys are morons. If you watch the things they have tried in the past it's rather clear they are moron actors. Propagating propaganda and bad science.

[@ikumuertehelminosizunamide9789]

@@frankh.3849 You almost had it! But still got it wrong. I love your grumpy old man attitude, by the way, very sexy and alpha. Thanks Jason for actually explaining it correct. I like how you just gave an opinion with no base, got the one point you had wrong, doubled down on being right when Jason actually explained it correctly. You didn’t know this was the first show both of them did, and the fact you said ‘propaganda’ in a video about water heating makes you come off as a flat earther. So regardless of whether you were right, you’re attitude and Internet personality give you 0 agreeableness.....and you weren’t right...what are we left with?

[@frankh.3849]

@@ikumuertehelminosizunamide9789 only morons believe what these 2 morons preach. Have you not watched other crap from myth busters? Do you lack the education or critical thinking? Hell a first year physics book will teach you about supper heated water. With enough pressure you can get it over 700*f without boiling. As a gas you can get water even hotter but that's not the point. These 2 morons got it wrong. The original commenter drove my point home. Go back and read both comments.

[@CyberSERT]

Today my wife put tap water with lemon juice in the microwave, and while the machine was running, the water exploded with such force, it blew the microwave door open.

[@jeffreardon9052]

This happened to me too with plain tap water. Blew the door open.

[@Fabian-es3gq]

@S eggs just explode in the microwave

[@roetemeteor]

@@jeffreardon9052 That's because it'll eventually boil out the impurities. The purer the water, the less time it'll take. This is more likely with purfied water in certian cities.

[@jeffreardon9052]

@@roetemeteor That's not true. Any volatile substances in the water would tend to boil off quickly, but most of the "impurities" dissolved in tap water are minerals, which are not volatile. (Some common substances that are highly volatile are rubbing alcohol, acetone, or gasoline -- they evaporate readily and give off strong vapors.) As the water boils off, the minerals remain, which means that the concentration of impurities in the water will actually increase over time as it boils. Once all the water has boiled off, the minerals will be visible as a residue on the container that the water was in. This is why there are "water spots" on dishes after they air dry.

[@koshile3794]

Been warning my chick about this for years and she never listens... today I caught her right before tea hit that water... she could've burned herself taking it out of that microwave

[@user-rp3vx4ss8s]

Should've watched this before I cooked my hand.

[@jeanpaulceulemans9973]

Just happened here Inverter microwave with rotating antenna (glass thermo cup is stationary). Kept pumping 900w into tap water that had already boiled to see what would happen and then there was really a loud explosion and all the water was thrown on the walls of the oven and the cup was empty. It was way more spectacular than I expected 😱

[@shawnncheriyoung3597]

I was first cook at an institution in the late 1990s...we had a few very large steam kettles (approximately 50 gallons - I don't remember exactly)... It was a very cold morning (work started at 3:30am)...the grill cooks had breakfast that morning so I was going to start the spaghetti for lunch...I put the screen in the bottom of the kettle, started filling it with water, closed the lid and turned on the steam...when the water was up to level I turned the water off and was waiting for the water to start boiling; it never did...after ? I don't know how long, there were still no bubbles forming on the bottom of the kettle like right before it starts to boil...no bubble no anything... I told my boss that there was something wrong with the kettle... (sometimes the afternoon and evening crews don't always bleed the condensation out of the kettles and the build up of water will prevent the steam from traveling through the jacket)... we made sure everything was working right, but still the water would not boil... We decided that the kettle was not working and to use another kettle... I had another kettle but I did not have another screen... I took one of the big wooden paddles that we use to stir the food with and shoved it into the water on the front side of the kettle to push the screen out... That's when the water "EXPLODED"... that water jumped all the way to the ceiling, and we scattered..! None of us go hurt ,..a few minor burns here and there but nothing serious... Tap water will explode...I have seen it...

[@joesapiens2871]

1:07 love the tin foil hat.

[@dreed20968]

This happened to me last weekend when I reheated coffee that was made with tap water, but the coffee maker had a water purification filter. It also happened to someone I work with when he made a cup of tea from water that came from a Brita water filtration pitcher. I suspect that the water from my refrigerator's water dispenser would do the same, since it is filtered.

[@LucisFerre1]

Last night, I was baking a cake and had oil in a pyrex measuring cup. After pouring it out, I wiped out the cup with a paper towel. Later, I heated up the cup with 1/3 cup of water in it, to boil it. After a few minutes, it exploded the water all over the microwave and blew the microwave oven door open. I was watching the water at the time it exploded, and it scared the shit out of me.

[@Runescapevidproducer]

I think residual oil that coated the Pyrex cup caused the bubbles that are usually evolved during boiling of water not able to rise up to expand and give off as gas. Once that layer of oil gave way however, all that trapped gas bubbles must've gave way at once causing that mini explosion in your microwave. I'm guessing that's what happened anyways, since I know even the tiniest scratch inside a glass tube for microwave chemistry can give way to boiling making superheating impossible.

[@drsudz]

Tap water just exploded in our microwave. Set for 3 minutes on high, in a coffee mug. Actually blew the door open and emptied the mug. No one dropped anything into it.

[@masm60]

This happened to me with tap water also. I heated water for instant coffee, took it out and when I added the powder it spewed all over the counter. At least half the water in the cup erupted. It's no joke when it happens. I've read that is the inside of the container has no scratches or flaws for bubbles to form on this can happen.

[@marineastro]

I just did an experiment where I microwaved tap water for 3 minutes using a smooth crystal cup. While it was microwaving, it was definitely boiling. This of course makes since. Very shortly after the microwave stopped, the water in the cup quickly stopped boiling. Once I took the non boiling water out of the microwave, I added instant coffee mix and very quickly the water started to boil again. It boiled significantly for about 5 seconds, after which, it stopped and the bubbles receded. Despite not having distilled water, I have shown that the water can stop boiling after being in the microwave, and start boiling again after adding a foreign material, in this case instant coffee. Note: the water didn't react violently like in this video, but it still boiled vigorously.

[@Jacksirrom]

I'm not some anti-scientific luddite, but I can say from my experience making instant coffee w/ a microwave that superheating explosions can occur with regular tap water. Happened to me last night, the water appeared not to have boiled. I took it out of the microwave, and then the whole mug's contents "exploded" while I was holding it. Luckily, I was wasn't burned. I think that's because the water came out of the mug in tiny drops that were able to cool as they traveled through the air to my face and arms. I've since read that this can be caused by too smooth/clean/new glasses. The smooth surface in the mug might not provide the necessary nucleation points for regular boiling. Be careful, folks!

[@leandrog2785]

Disagreeing with Mythbusters doesn't make you an anti-scientific luddite. Mythbusters don't represent science. Like almost all science-themed entertainment targeted at a general audience, they very often oversimplify things and imply things which aren't true, for the sake of entertainment.

[@inkmastertim]

In retrospect, that's the same conclusion I drew at the time. I'm almost certain that I got distracted and came back to reheat the same cup of water. That, combined with the new, smooth glass surface preventing the formation of bubbles, could definitely explain it.

[@UltrasabersVideos]

"the amount of hot material that would come out of a cup of noodles is not sufficient to give anyone third degree burns" Biologist here. Water at 65ºC produces a full thickness burn (also called a 3rd degree burn) in less than a second of exposure. A full thickness burn can indeed be caused by very hot liquid like soups and beverages. It has nothing to do with the quantity of the liquid, just the temperature.

[@letsbehonest4221]

Ultra Sabers well i used to microwave a mug of water to make a cup of tea .the when i took it out and added sugar it would instantly start boiling over and i can assure you that water was dam hot enough to cause skin demage. Cert 2 in barista here .

[@TomWalshN7]

Living in a city known for tap water with very low impurities (often said to only have impurities due to the pipes), I'm not entirely surprised that a friend of mine claimed this happened to her today, in almost identical circumstances (cup of water in the microwave). Guess Adam's conclusion was correct.

[@darylcheshire1618]

This happened to me just now. I microwaved a cup of tap water 2 min 30s and placed it on the bench, put instant coffee in it and it immediately overflowed and into the floor. I was not holding it. In the past I would heat the water 2min then add coffee and milk and reheat it 30s. Recently I was heating it for 2min 30s and after a couple of weeks this happened.

[@IAmSuperAlly]

This happened to me today and I had to research for myself why it happened! I was heating bottled water in a smooth surfaced mug for some instant coffee and the moment the spoon broke the surface of the water, it bubbled up and over the cup, burning my fingers. Luckily the burns are very very minor. It's really interesting, I never knew this would happen! You best bet I'm going to be much more careful now!

[@spacegarnaal]

Lol when i was in school for welding. We had this large tub of rusty water to cool down our assignments. Seriously, when you put a glowing piece of metal in that tub the water actually explodes. Not a huge explosion ofcourse, but it did always amuse me to see that water pop when it got hit with glowing metal

[@ikumuertehelminosizunamide9789]

Ah good old mythbusters......when there was that odd mannered historian lady no one cared for!

[@riceoobxg]

This happened to me today. Scary.

[@databanks]

Yup, had a cup of water superheat on me when I was a kid. New microwave - more powerful then the previous one but set the same time. Went to add sugar and the whole thing boiled out onto the bench. Glad it didn't splash me. After that I used the kettle

[@DROPWOOD]

Microwave lies in the rotation spectra of the molecules. Super heated water is like lots and lots of small water molecules acting like rotors rotating at high velocities. So now you can imagine if you put something in rotating blades it just explodes.

[@abcd19263]

"containyer"

[@jamietaylor4412]

Or maybe just buy a kettle?

[@Onigirli]

For people that don't have ready access to kettles like in certain workplaces, jackass

[@jamietaylor4412]

If you’re doing this in a workplace you’re going to have bigger problems than the lack of a kettle...

[@qwertyTRiG]

@@Onigirli I find it hard to imagine a place with a microwave but without a kettle. But perhaps that's because I'm Irish. No kitchen in the country lacks a kettle.

[@MR-nl8xr]

@@Onigirli who peep in your Cheerios, bich.

[@Fresh_Biscuits]

@@qwertyTRiG ive worked at many places with microwaves but ive never seen one with a kettle. They arent nearly as popular in the US as they are across the pond.

[@YOGESHCHAVANPATIL]

great demonstration of superheating ...

[@sasgraphic]

Just did this myself making coffee. Tap water run through a PUR pitcher. We have a french press, basically a 32oz lab beaker with a plastic frame and handle. Kept waiting for a boil, so I kept adding a minute. Opened the door of the microwave and pulled back on the handle of the french press. The jostling was just enough to make it start. Saw it and pulled back my hand just in time. After the explosion only about 1/2 inch of water remained in the beaker! I Wasn't burned, thank God, but WOW!

[@ddobry21]

Mythbusters are wrong about this one. I've accidently superheated tap water on multiple occasions while heating a mug of water in the microwave. Not sure if there was any bubbling going on while microwaving, maybe a little, but when I added the coffee, it certainly did explode. Does NOT have to be distilled water. Try it yourself, just be careful.

[@DanB95]

Most tap water has too many impurities in it. Yours might be relatively free of them... Which probably isn't a bad thing. :D

[@ddobry21]

+DanJBMedia True enough 😁

[@ICHDERTWEETY]

nunya where are you from? I also have this "problem". Now knowing the reason makes me feel good about the tap water I'm drinking everyday 😁

[@ddobry21]

I'm in Ontario Canada. I agree. Our water must be half decently pure for sure.🤔

[@MrxstGrssmnstMttckstPhlNelThot]

I'm in Ottawa, never experienced this. Guess our water is shitty in the capital.

[@Neceros]

Confuscious say: by many burnt hands have comments been written below.

[@freakin1random]

i've had extremely saturated solutions (water and a salt) in the microwave that explode. There's a video where they hit salt water with radio waves and it turns into plasma (it does not burn salt like they say) because the salt ions get exited so much. mine boiled all at once, and when the splash hit the hot sides of the container, that boiled the splash instantly. This also works with freezing.

[@EdwardTriesToScience]

Tip: put something like a wood skewer or chop sticks in the comtainer before microwaving. It helps the water to not superheat. This is also why in chemistry people put glass or boiling stones in beakers and flasks before heating it.

[@gunzStatic]

When he said "True", I heard : *BLING*, Avast Virus indefinitations have been updated! LOL

[@joannajester8442]

This happened to me and I got second degree burns on my chest, still healing 4 weeks later. Microwaved 1 cup tap water (well water) in pyrex measuring cup for 4 min. and not boiling, microwaved 3 more min and when I opened the door it exploded out of the cup. I think I will add a bamboo skewer from now on and stand behind the door when opening.

[@Ya_Boi_Shaggy]

Yeah this happened but i didn't get burned. I just put my finger in the water to check how hot it was and was left in confusion when it suddenly started to burst

[@1456Sassy]

Well, it only takes a minute to heat a cup of coffee. Use common sense and check it. I'll feel the outside of the cup. If it's hot, the liquid is hot enough.

[@deegan727]

This just happened to my wife today, WITH TAP WATER😂. Between me and her over the 20 years we’ve been together and years before I’ve never seen it actually happen though I knew it was possible. When I microwave water I always have a wooden spoon (or similar) in it to break that surface tension so the water can boil while being heated. She said she didn’t know about this and why I’ve never told her. I said she’s always smarter than me and knows everything why would this be any different.😂

[@brenoakiy]

Yours saved mine. Thank you.

[@trinix777]

I heated up some water in the microwave a while ago. When I dropped a bag of tea in it, it started boiling a bit.

[@kinghrath]

Then it wasn't super heated.

[@trinix777]

I'm not sure what it was but I just got surprised when it happened, just saying.

[@wbeaty]

trinix777 Yes, superheated. But only a bit.

[@altonbrowne16]

it was superheated. Maybe I didnt see the same video. But if it was not boiling when you took it out the microwave and when you put the tea bag in it thats when it boiled...then it was superheated.

[@RerrrCfjh]

There's different temperatures of "super heated" its not okay after boiling that temp water will explode.. Temperatures rise and drop past boiling you may have superheated which means its past boiling but it wasn't raised past boiling enough for it to explode per say or erupt you where lucky. Superheated is vague more accurate would be to say (?) min past boiling in the microwave on high heat when boiling temp on average microwave could be 5 min for a cup of water so u may have been at 6-7 min as 10-15 min or more that's including boiling temp may cause the eruption u seen here.

[@MasterFebo]

0:33 "...has no impurities, so theres no boiling" "no boiling" "no boiling" ...Ill let that sink in for a while.

[@threegrounds3566]

are you simple?

[@leaderofcommunistchina1427]

@Universe 123 most of us searched it up. Everything on the internet is eternal

[@midnite2769]

@Universe 123 I love Lamp.

[@ripHalo0002]

Thanks mythbusters!

[@zombie-process7025]

I was just boiling some tap water, in a new, smooth, pyrex container, and of course, I was blaming my crappy new microwave for it not boiling. I piled on a few extra minutes and when I heard a bang, most of it had dissipated as steam by the time I got there. First time I've ever seen it happen in person.

[@kjh77006]

A few minutes ago my water exploded in the microwave using a glass tea cup filled with filtered water. Fortunately the microwave was still on, however I have tossed tea bags into microwaved hot water before, resulting in boiling. Apparently thirty seconds is not long enough and sixty seconds is too much. From what i read, using a wooden stir stick, while heating, would have prevented this from happening. Now why can't I win the lotto instead?

[@mikeowens3927]

I'm here just fact checking a Facebook post

[@Twigpi]

Me too! Craziness...it's actually true...

[@moistbox]

I fact checked this myself....all over my face :/

[@1456Sassy]

I heat milk in the microwave for hot cocoa, usually for about 4 minutes, it takes at least 2 to start heating cold milk. Typically, milk does bubble when it boils, even in the microwave. I let it set while I'm preparing the cocoa in the mug I'm gonna use. Yes, I make homemade hot cocoa, so I can control the amount of sugar. Cheaper too. 8 oz milk heated in microwave, 1-2 oz cold milk in the mug and mix 1T. cocoa, 1T. sugar, splash of vanilla and a few shakes of cinnamon, blend together with a spoon. Add the hot milk, stir and drink up! Marshmallows are optional.

[@Jesusisyhwh]

It's happened to me more times than I can remember. And that has been since we first got a microwave back in the 1980's.

[@wuznab5109]

Top 10 pranks you need to pull on your roommates.

[@jefferyporter348]

Please don't do this as a prank. People can get serious third degree burns from this.

[@liil4993]

This happened to me once with tap water.

[@IanBeaty]

This just happened 2X to me today! I needed to boil some water and I do not have a stove or oven so I used a glass 2 cup measuring cup in the microwave. The 1st time was 10 oz of distilled water and only 4 oz was left after it exploded. The 2nd time it was 12 oz of tap water and ALL of the water exploded out. So frustrating because I really need to boil some water to sanitize it.

[@kelliepease8771]

I boiled a glass of water in the microwave and then let it sit for a few minutes. I was actually trying to steam up the inside of the microwave, so after it sit for a few, I turned the microwave on again. A short time later about 3/4 of the water burst out of the glass all over the inside of the microwave. I vaguely remembered this myth and decided to look it up. I am just glad it exploded before I took it out!

[@geonerd]

These guys are wrong one one count, tap water CAN become superheated.

[@wbeaty]

Tap water, coffee & tea, soup, etc. They didn't understand how it works. Actually it's a bit dangerous to teach everyone that distilled water is important: as if other liquids can't superheat as much or more.

[@amkramar]

wbeaty other liquids may superheat, but will it only take a fork touching it to make it explode, or will its composition have to be significantly changed?

[@wbeaty]

Andrew Kramar Yes, any superheated liquid is hypersensitive, and can even explode spontaneously, or from sound waves. A fork will always set it off. Twice-heated microwave coffee can go off just from looking at it hard!

[@flighted2513]

This is why chemistry is useful to know. Smooth containers don't offer any nucleation sites.

[@aprilm.1277]

This just happened to me the other day while heating water on my stove. Scared me half to death. especially since just seconds before, my head was right over the pan. I had never heard of this, so had to look it up. I guess the lesson is to use tap water and not filtered from now on.

[@nightraven420]

I've had this happen multiple times on our electric stove with tap water! Thankfully we've never been close enough to get burned when it suddenly blew on its own. I'm glad you didn't get burned!

[@barneylaurance1865]

never realised this was possible on the stove. I think it happens much more easily in a microwave because the heating is spread out on the top and sides of the water as well as the bottom. With a stove I'd imagined the bottom part of the water would very quickly get hot enough to start boiling even if it has to go some way above boiling point. And once the bottom is boiling it will send up steem bubbles that will let the rest of the water boil.

[@bct321]

Just found this out the hard way. I was about to throw a temper tantrum if these busters called it a myth.

[@pcorf]

Its possible to superheat tap water, just add a little bit of dishwashing soap and microwave it. It exploded with a very loud pop and blew the door open and my hand was covered in soapy water. The whole microwave was also drenched in soapy water and I cleaned it, it was spotless after!

[@mynameismow2082]

Just happened to me on Friday and I had already seen this bloody episode 🤣 burnt my face and eyes

[@DistendedPerinium]

This happens occasionally even with "impure" water. I have no idea of how though. I witnessed it occurring to a cup of re-heated coffee. The guy was lucky as hell. He took it out of the microwave, sipped it and as soon as he set it down, POW! However, I think Adam is right, things like this would happen fairly rarely, given the number of times a microwave is used to heat water.

[@MrThunderGlow]

How can he sip +100°C coffee

[@jonnypanteloni]

Hi, I can't read very well but can you please tell me your username? (not kidding, I actually can't read it...) Interesting story, hehe. Oh well. I like stories on the internet. It's a fun thing. I remember hearing some good ones when I was younger, this one one gave me a chuckle.

[@lunhil12]

Had this happen very violently with black coffee. Always stir before heating to avoid the problem. Coffee instantly foamed and spouted about 6 inches above the rim of the cup when I dropped a spoon in.

[@teknophyle1]

this occasionally happens to me using tap water. local tap water has a very high mineral content. haven’t worked out how to reproduce it reliably. seems to correlate with times I forgot about it until it cooled a bit then reheat

[@zincopper]

Totally awesome! I tested it out!!!

[@sanyahikari7072]

This is why so many steam train accidents occur.

[@banjohappy]

Interesting comment, but not quite the same. What happens with steam trains is the water in the boiler all boils off, but the fire keeps heating up the empty boiler, making the cast iron really really hot. Then when they dump fresh (relatively) cold water into the boiler, two things happen in a split second. One, the intense heat breaks the molecular bond of the water molecules. They are made of hydrogen and oxygen (h2o), which now in a gaseous state are very explosive, and they do. Bang! The other thing that happens is when the (relatively) cold water hits the really really hot cast iron, the thermal coefficient of the metal causes immediate shrinkage of the thick metal at that point, which cracks the metal, (like when you put an ice cube into liquid and the ice cube cracks) weakening it at the same instant the hydrogen and oxygen are exploding. So yeah, Bang with tons of shrapnel!!

[@LoyalSol]

Distilled water is water that has been boiled and the vapor is collected. Because most water impurities are solid, this is effective in removing just about everything from the liquid.

[@MrBaldurthegood]

just happened to me, thats why i'm here. Re-boiled some water for tea and it gave a mighty pop in the microwave. About 1/3 of the water was left in the mug.

[@gammaraider]

Yours saved mine, thx

[@eschelar]

@NeoFreezz Lots. Lots of people live in places where tap water is undrinkable. For minor problems, a filter system is fine, but there are lots of places where filter systems are not practical or widely available. A distiller is easy and cheap compared to a filter system and provides much more consistent results too (filters become less effective gradually). I use a distiller for all my drinking water, but I don't have a microwave... I know people that have both though.

[@3dogcapitol070]

Totally true. I used well water and soap in a bowl to steam clean the inside. 3 minutes and the door was blown open, water everywhere

[@mosemose3690]

Happened with me last weekend, reheated meat juices from a roast in the microwave to make gravy, it had been in there about a minute, as soon as I put the whisk in to mix it up ready for the hot water and gravy granules, the whole thing exploded. It went in my face and over my teeshirt and the end result was quite a bad burn on my shoulder because I didn’t take my tee shirt off quick enough because I was too busy trying to slosh cold water on my face. I won’t be doing that again in a hurry.

[@wbeaty]

The issue is not distilled water. Tap water contains microbubbles, while bottled water doesn't. If they compared hours-old tap water to distilled water, where any small bubbles had a chance to rise and burst, they'd find that both will superheat. Particularly dangerous are air-free or vacuum-packed foods. Eggs out of the shell will explode unless lots of air is scrambled into them. Same with spaghetti sauce, canned soup, etc. These superheat and then boil in a violent pulse.

[@faetusacesar1497]

Me watching this after year and a half boiling water in microwave:😐 sorry, guardian angel.

[@AlbinosRock]

I love Adam's silly hat!

[@OutlawMantis]

My kettle died (RIP) so since I needed some cough medicine that required added hot water, I thought I'd search up microwaving since I've never done that just for water before. I'd never heard of superheating! Anyway, I've had the medicine, none of my skin particles were hurt in the process. I'll replace my dead kettle soon.

[@goomba25]

A really smooth container will do the trick too. In chemistry, we ALWAYS put a popsicle stick in the water, just so the water has a place to nucleate (form bubbles and not superheat).

[@craigkovatch7564]

1:25 "not very likely" *cries in scalded finger*

[@HelplessVictim]

"Can you turn tap water into distiled water just by boiling it?" Distilling takes tap water just barely above boiling point so that only the water itself boils, but not many minerals go into the gas phase along with it. If you continue until most of the volume is used up, the rising steam is mostly pure water, but whats left behind is cloudy and full of minerals. Distillers get very pure water by collecting that steam and condensing it back into liquid.

[@onyxia8786]

I've had this happen to me back when I had a distiller

[@wbeaty]

> Well, they got their facts wrong. Exactly right. Perhaps they're confused about nucleation sites. To supercool water without forming ice, you need very pure water. Impurities provide sites for crystal growth, preventing supercooling. That's fine, but for superheating, the nucleation sites for boiling are small bubbles, NOT IMPURITIES. To create microwave explosions, we need a liquid which is entirely free of microbubbles. Pre-boiled, cooled water is one example. Or try canned soup.

[@Euph0ria74]

I have had this happen to me a number of times actually. Enough so I'm wary when taking a cup of water out of the microwave. I often heat water for use with instant cappuccino, and I've been burned enough! It's certainly no myth!

[@Ptoras]

I almost did that a couple of times. It was just shy of 100 degrees. Thank goodness it was!

[@IAQMas]

Just happened with regular tap water. It was not extreme explosion but boiled over immediately after I threw in some tea leaves.

[@RockinJoeDavis]

The water will first boil at a localized impurity. Absolute pure water will boil, but if evenly heated it will boil everywhere at once when it first boils. I discovered this by chance, I am a frequent coffee warming microwave guy.

[@chelseyjoymusic]

My mom did this today!! It was so scary! She was boiling water for jello for about 5 minutes. She opened up the microwave. When she touched the cup the water exploded. It went all over the ceiling and the floor. She has burns on her face now. It was really a shock! We had no idea.

[@lunhil12]

The phenomena is called nucleation. It happens in when you suddenly introduce something for bubbles to form on, similar to what happens with the mentos in coke trick.

[@frizzby-x]

This happens far far more often than they describe here. I've had filtered/tap water explode on me like a dozen of times.

[@pseudonamejacobs9146]

I love this comment why did you have to do it a dozen times 😂

[@frizzby-x]

@@pseudonamejacobs9146 because I wanted to make a cup of tea and I didn't have a kettle.

[@pseudonamejacobs9146]

Shoulda know 🤦‍♂️ my bad

[@BigdogWitBigdog]

I use wikipedia, but I trust these guys more than a site where ANYONE can edit.

[@taurinenrgy]

I've done some calculations and it should take around 2 minutes in most microwaves to heat up a cup of water ( results may vary depending on type of cup and wattage) so be careful, you don't want to put your water for much longer than that because what you are doing is adding more energy to your water with out changing phase in the water so all this added energy is just waiting to be distributed and as soon as this happens it gets realize really fast causing and exploitation.

[@PhauxTheFox]

I had this happen to me the other day, luckily it wasn't as fast or as violent as this. I was at a family camp and some old lady was heating water in the microwave for tea, but the microwave was on the floor so i offered to take it out for her, after i did she handed me the tea bag and i put it in and it started boiling, i quickly set it down and moved my hand away before it started to erupt over the sides

[@MichaelBarnathan]

@nrw003: Microwaves heat water very efficiently. They heat food by spinning polar molecules around in a shifting magnetic field and water is strongly polar.

[@chelseyjoymusic]

Yes she is thanks for asking! The burns didn't last too long. Her face just hurt for a couple of days!

[@Chemobob]

It definitely will be safer than without the cherry in it. :) See, the problem with most liquids that are supposed to be drunk by humans is that they are not isotonic. That means they do not have the ideal amount of minerals or other particles e.g. sugar and all other things that are in drinks exept water. You can imagine that destilled water ( speaking water without any particles in it at all) is an extreme and is unnatural. If you want to know more about it search wikipedia for "osmosis".

[@eggyeggygoo]

@pcorf such a dramatic way of cleaning the microwave XD

[@RalorPenwat]

So I will say this: as long as you don't directly touch the steam explosion, you have a relatively low risk of being burnt. The rapid evaporation quickly removes a lot of energy from the water, so it cools to safe levels pretty fast.