Here are links to the science equipment we’ve bought and use regularly. Hopefully this may save you the hours it took me to research it all! The items work well for us and have proven to be good purchases. The links below are Amazon affiliate links; this means we’ll receive a few pence should you go on to buy anything using these links, but this is at no extra cost to yourselves.
Alcohol Burner
The core piece of kit we have is an alcohol burner which came with a tripod and gauze. This little burner kicks out a surprising amount of heat but is a lot easier to use than a proper Bunsen burner. Yes, experiments may take a little longer to do with this burner, but I’d prefer that than dealing with gas bottles and pipes and worrying about ridiculously hot flames.
Bio Ethanol
This is the fuel we got for the alcohol burner – and the strangest birthday present Agatha has ever received (see above).
Beaker Tongs
Whilst I’m the first to make do with using oven gloves and t-towels for handling hot things, I thought we should probably set a good example when it comes to science. We’ve therefore invested in some proper beaker tongs to get the beakers on and off the tripod. Both our left-handed girls are finding them okay to use too.
Conical Flask
We’ve only used these once, as most experiments we’ve done so far just need beakers. They’ve certainly not been a key purchase so I’d hold off buying them until you know you actually need them (I got a bit click happy I think!).
Glass Beakers
I spent a ridiculous amount of time researching glass beakers. There are just too many options and prices. I eventually chose these ones and they’ve been absolutely spot on for what we’ve needed. The sizes have been great and they feel really quite robust; I don’t worry every time the kids handle them.
Thermometer
We soon realised that using a meat probe as a thermometer wasn’t going to cut it any more. We’ve therefore upgraded to a proper glass thermometer which is a lot easier and safer to use! The display on this is really clear so the girls have had no problems at all reading it. It came in a special plastic holder which in turn was in a hard cardboard tube so that’s great for storage and reducing chances of breakage.
Support Stand, With Clamps
This has been a recent addition to our science box and I’m chuffed to bits with it. Some of the reviews weren’t great so I was a bit hesitant but it suits our needs perfectly. It’s easy to set up and adjust and it feels very stable when in use. It packs down into a small thin box so it doesn’t take up lots of space. The girls highly recommend it as it makes them feel like proper scientists apparently!
