I am trying to grow crystals for a science fair project. How long do they take to form?
Crystals typically start forming within 1-2 days. They will be microscopic at first but after 3-4 days you should begin to see small crystals on the string. Crystal formation is finicky and can be affected by a number of variables: temperature, solution concentration, movement of the solution, string thickness, etc. If you don’t see any crystals at all in 10 days, you should probably try again. It is critical that you use a supersaturated solution. If you are doing the experiment with sugar, make the solution by adding more sugar than will dissolve in the boiling water. Stir for at least 10 minutes to make sure the maximum amount of sugar has dissolved. Put the solution into your beaker but do not include the undissolved sugar. Try both a thread and a thicker piece of string suspended in the beaker. Make sure you put the beaker where it will not be bumped or disturbed for several days.
