Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry Experiments

Chapter 3: Equipping a Home Chemistry Laboratory 39

Description Qty notes

Burner, gas 1 Purchase a butane microburner, or use a hardware store propane torch.

Brush, burette 1 For cleaning burettes.

Brush, test tube 1+For cleaning test tubes.

Brush, utility cleaning 1+For cleaning beakers, flasks, and other glassware.

Cables, patch with alligator clips, set of 2350 cm length and 26-gauge or heavier wire are ideal.

Caliper 1 Optional, but useful.

Calorimeter 1+Purchase, or build your own with nested foam cups.

Chips, boiling *Small bottle; used to prevent boiling over when heating liquids.

Chromatography jar and cover 3+Large pickle jars or similar wide-mouthed containers are fine.

Clamp, burette 1 For supporting a burette on a ring stand.

Clamp, utility 1 For supporting funnels or flasks on a ring stand.

Cup, plastic, rigid 1 Should fit support ring loosely.

Digital multimeter (DMM) 1 Even a $10 or $15 model suffices.

Distillation apparatus 1

Purchase, or make with an Erlenmeyer flask, holed stopper, glass

tubing, and rubber tubing.

Electrode set 1 Three each Cu and Mg electrodes; one each Al, C, Fe, Pb, Ni, Sn, Zn.

Gauze, wire with ceramic center 1 For protecting beakers and flasks from direct flame of gas burner.

Knife, utility 1 For general use around the lab.

Laser pointer, red 1 Use for Tyndall Effect tests of colloids and suspensions.

LED, red 1 For electrochemistry experiments.

Loop, inoculating 1 Platinum or Nichrome.

Magnet 1 For general use around the lab.

Magnifier or loupe 1 For general use around the lab.

Mortar and pestle 1 For grinding solid chemicals; can substitute pipe cap and large bolt.

Pad, protective *

As needed to protect work surfaces; we use thick, nonslip pads sold

in craft supply stores.

Pail, water 1 Use for drenching overenthusiastic reactions.

Paper, chromatography *Vial of 100 strips; several 15 cm sheets.

Paper, filter, 100 sheets 1

Choose medium flow, qualitative in a size appropriate for your

Büchner funnel and gravity funnel.

Paper, litmus, red and blue, 100-strip vial1 Use for quick determinations of acidity or alkalinity.

TABLE 3-6 (continued): Recommended basic laboratory equipment and supplies