Ammonium Sulfide Stink Bomb Instructions

Friday was the last day of school for my kids. To commemorate the event, I posted a couple of safe recipes for stink bombs on my site and gave them permission to make the stink bombs as long as they did it at home and not at school. The recipes I posted are a little different from what you would get if you buy a stink bomb at a store that sells pranks and tricks. Those stink bombs usually release ammonium sulfide, as opposed to a hydrogen sulfide (rotten egg) or assorted sulfurous compounds (burning hair and rubber). You can make ammonium sulfide yourself, but it’s not a particularly advisable project. If you do proceed with this project you need to heed the safety precautions on the bottle when using ammonia (i.e., don’t intentionally breathe it; work in a well-ventilated area). Also, be aware that commercial stink bombs only release a very small quantity of diluted ammonium sulfide (1-2 ml). While ammonium sulfide stink bombs, like rotten eggs, are relatively safe, ammonium sulfide can be toxic and flammable (here’s an MSDS).

Ammonium Sulfide Stink Bomb

• 20 matches
• 1/4 cup of household ammonia
• knife
• jar

1. Use the knife to scrape the material from the match heads into a jar.
2. Add 1/4 cup of ammonia.
3. Close the jar and allow the mixture to sit undisturbed at least a week.
4. Open or smash the jar to release the stink.

Ammonium Sulfide Safety
Did you read the part about toxic and flammable? Ammonium sulfide and hydrogen sulfide (formed when the ammonium sulfide is released into air) are toxic in relatively low doses. Don’t use this sort of stink bomb in an enclosed space. Don’t make or use this stink bomb anywhere near a source of heat or flame. Ideally, only use these instructions for informational purposes. I consider this project to be something worth knowing, but not something I would do. So why post it? Because you’ll find the instructions elsewhere on the internet without the warnings. Hopefully if you read mine and decide to proceed with the project, you’ll at least use safety precautions. Ideally you’ll see why it’s better to just throw a rotten egg or buy prank stink bombs.