Household Acids and Bases Lab

In this lab we will be test the pH levels of various household items such as soda, ammonia, drain cleaner, milk, vinegar, detergent, lemon juice, and baking soda. The problem was that we needed to find what the different pH’s of the different household items. I believed that if we tested household items, then some items will be more acidic or basic, because of the color change of the red cabbage juice. Here are some photos of the lab.

We did 8 test on various items and the first was the vinegar which was a clear pink color and it had a pH level of 2.92. The second test that we conducted was the ammonia which turned a dark green color and had a pH level of 11.09. The lemon juice was pink with a pH of 2.43 and the soda was a brown with a pH of 3.5. The drain cleaner was yellowish green that had a pH level of 12.33 and the laundry detergent was dark green with a pH of 9.46. The final two test were baking soda and skim milk and the baking soda was teal with a 7.82 pH and the skim milk was light blue with a pH of 6.87.

At the end of the testing I found my hypothesis to be correct, because all of the household items reacted to the cabbage juice and became more acidic or basic. This happens when we added either acids or bases into the test tube and when the red cabbage juice was added, they changed color and the chart showed very well how acidic or basic the substance was. If the substance is acidic, then it would turn pink, and if it was a darker color, then it is a base.