Premier Date: September 17, 2008
busted
The MythBusters tested various commercial water guns to see if they could create a steady, unbroken stream of water, which is essential for the conduction of electricity. None of them achieved this, so the MythBusters built their own custom water gun and attached a commercial stun gun to provide the electricity. They tested the amount of electricity a stream of water could deliver to a target, and discovered that the voltage dropped significantly as distance to the target increased, making the gun impractical to use at long distances and busting the myth. In order to see what it would take to have a water stun gun work at a distance, the MythBusters used a tesla coil to power the gun with up to a million volts. The gun worked at a distance, and the lightning bolt could clearly be seen traveling down the stream of water. However, the rig remained impractical due to its size.
busted
The Build Team theorized that feet don’t get burned when walking over coals because the ash on the coals forms an insulating layer and also because the foot does not stay in contact with the coals for a long period. When they tried coal walking themselves, they were able to easily crossed the coals. The team noted that they felt confident because of their faith in physics.
busted
The carbon fire extinguisher did not explode due to the safety valve, and merely vented its contents over a span of fifteen minutes.
busted
The water fire extinguisher did better than the carbon fire extinguisher, but didn’t manage to extinguish the flames entirely.
plausible
The chemical foam extinguisher actually ruptured, but only put out the flames because the explosion scattered the fuel, rather than actually snuffing out the flame.
plausible
Like the chemical extinguisher, the carbon fire extinguisher exploded, putting out the fire by scattering the fuel rather than actually extinguishing it.
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