How do you build a strong popsicle stick bridge?

Answer 1

# buy the supplies (Popsicle sticks and glue) # sort the Popsicle sticks from bad ones to good ones. # pick a design (Arch. suspension and box girder) # Build street and support design

# wait a day # connect the two # wait a day # build extras # wait 3 days # test bridge

Answer 2

1. START EARLY, PLAN THOROUGHLY, AND WORK STEADILY. Do not put your work off to the night before it is due. Popsicle stick bridges need time to dry property. 2. Try different constructions. Build as many versions of your prototype bridge as possible. There is a list of suggested bridges - click here. 3. Be creative and have tenacity when building your Popsicle stick bridge, but keep track of time. You may have to consider letting go of an idea so that your final design can be thoroughly tested. 4. Continually monitor the mass of your Popsicle stick bridge during construction. Wet glue weighs more than dry glue and makes weaker joints. Be sure to complete your bridge several days before it is due in order for the glue to thoroughly dry. 5. The spacing between the intersections of Popsicle greatly affects the strength of your Popsicle bridge. 6. Test each Popsicle stick BEFORE you use it. Good glue joints make for good strength. 7. Your Popsicle stick bridge's strength is also dependent on its vertical height. However, this is not to say "the higher the better", as there are limits. 8. Consider the strengths and weaknesses of a single toothpick under these three forces: COMPRESSION, TENSION, SHEER. Design your toothpick bridge to use the strengths of each toothpick as much as possible. 9. Watch out for "stress risers". Before failing, your bridge will give and bend under the load of your test weight. If you have made some parts of your toothpick bridge so strong and hard that it will not give, your toothpick bridge will fail in another area sooner than if the whole bridge were able to adjust. 10. To reduce drying time, do initial gluing with SMALL drops of glue (applied with an extra toothpick). You can go back later and reinforce these small drops with more glue after everything dries. Good luck and have fun.

Answer 3

First eat a lot of popsicles. Or have a lot of friends eat them and give them to you. If you eat too many then you will be on a sugar high and the house will look wierd. But really all you need is wood glue, (elmers works well), a ruler (to measure the sticks), and a safe way to cut them or an adult to cut them for you (if you are young). You can't build the whole thing at once because the glue has to dry on the lower support parts before you start adding any weight to them. Start on a piece of cardboard so you don't glue the sticks to the table. (this tends to make mom sad). Lay out the shape that you want on the cardboard and build as you go. You can start by having a picture of a house with you so you can look at how it should be as you build. If it is a big house then you will need some support on the inside. If you can't see into the house and you want an easy way to start, get a cardboard box and glue the sticks to the outside kind of like putting on siding. You can build windows and doors out of popsicle sticks and glue them to the outside of the box or cut out pictures of windows and doors and glue them to the side of the box. There is no wrong way to build a popsicle house because it's your imagination. Have fun.

Answer 4

To build a popsicle stick truss bridge, you first need to decide what type of truss to use. Three common trusses are the Warren, Pratt, and Howe. Each of these is a strong design, and it is up to you to choose which one you like the best.

After you have the design, you can either build it by eyeballing it, or you can get plans from online.

When you are building, concentrate on making the joints secure. Use a strong glue, such as WeldBond or CA glue. Use enough glue, but not too much. Build each side of the bridge and then join them together with either a zig-zag pattern or X's.

It is also very important to make sure your bridge is straight up and down, that it is not leaning to one side. If it leans, it will fail much faster than if it was built well.

Answer 5

By doing it with yourself