How can I make a spark with a capacitator?

Question

I have some wire to use and a battery if it'll help. I just need to make a spark. I've heard I can charge it by placing it next to a CRT tv, but I'm not sure on the specifics.

I could use help on how to charge it. I don't really know much about electricity.

Is it possible to do this with just a battery, capacitaror, and some wire?

Also, I am using a very tiny capacitor. Smaller than a thumb.

Answer 1

You've said that you don't know much about electricity. Please keep away from it.

Answer 2

Oh, that is an interesting question. You mentioned a CRT or TV and yes you can make a capacitor using the glass screen and fastening a piece of aluminum foil to the front of it. A charge will build up on the foil and it will not be a dangerous charge because the foil represents one plate of a capacitor with relatively low capacitance. After a few minutes you can reach out and touch it and you will likely see a small spark. The opposite side of the screen has a metal mask which lets electrons go through to phosphores printed on the inside of the glass. Working with genuine high voltage capacitors can be rather dangerous so I'm not sure how far to go with my explanation. You mentioned a battery and a battery can charge a capacitor but it will only charge a capacitor to the source voltage across the terminals of the battery. One use for capacitors is to improve instantaneous current availability such as with the old flash cameras that used flash bulbs. The current applied to the bulb had to be adequate to cause ignition of the aluminum or magnesium filaments in the old bulbs and the small batteries did not have much current. By paralleling up a capacitor the flash unit had enough juice to make the bulb ignite inside. If you are wanting something more spectacular and are extremely careful and safe in your behavior then you may find it useful to get your hands on one of the disposable cameras, one that has had the film taken out and processed. The photo processing stores just throw them away. Anyway, inside of those little things is a myriad of neat stuff like lenses and also a high voltage power supply and xenon flash tube. You can parallel up a large electrolytic capacitor with the flash power supplies own capacitor (make sure it is the same or higher voltage rating) and can discharge it across a pair of wire, or into a coil, or whatever. It makes quite a bang. Be careful of small spatters of molten metal, don't get your eyes too close. Like I said, be responsible for your actions, these are quite lethal.

Answer 3

well you need to give some more information, like the working voltage of the capacitor or wheather it is a polarized capacitor or not. since there are serious consequences to hooking a 5 volt capacitor up to a 100 volt dc circuit. or even hooking up a polarized 6 volt capacitor, backwards on even a 1 volt circuit. but essencialy you just connect the capacitor to an appropiately rated dc source voltage less than the working voltage for that capacitor. and then removing the capacitor and shorting the leads. but if the capacity of the mfd is not large enough, the spark from the discharging capacitor leads may be too small to see the discharge. there is also the danger of a high working voltage capacitor, charged at a high potential causing severe burns, flash blindness, or even death. and i would most definatly stay away from the aquadag of any cathode ray tube. unless you realy know what you are doing. cause you are talking about voltages in the tens of thousands of volts dc. can be as high a thirty thousand volts for a 30 inch tube. standard rule a thousand volts per diagonal inch of tube. and a shorting arc from that much voltage can produce unseeable x-rays.

Answer 4

This is simple but can be dangerous if capacitor is very large. first charge the capacitor with battery or other power source. then short the terminals with wire or screwdriver, whatever is on hand. for larger sparks leave some gap between one terminal and the jumper you are shorting it with. Be warned large capacitors can kill so be careful.

Answer 5

Answering your question would be like handing you a loaded gun without teaching you how to use it. Find someone who knows what they are doing. Try a local amateur radio club, see the reference and look under Clubs.