Physics · Fluid Mechanics
Build a hydraulic lift with syringes
Connect two syringes of different sizes and show how a small push lifts a large load.
- DifficultyEasy
- Estimated time1 day
- BudgetUnder ₹250
- ClassClass 7–10
- TeamSolo or up to 3
- You needHousehold materials
Prerequisites: None beyond your class work
Original · by TechnifyedSchool ExhibitionWorking ModelBeginner friendlyLow costWell documented
Overview
Connect two syringes of different sizes and show how a small push lifts a large load.
Why build this?
It shows why a car lift, a brake and an excavator all work, using parts that cost less than a notebook.
What you will learn
- How pressure is transmitted in a liquid
- How area ratio multiplies force
- Why distance moved is traded for force
Skills you will use
Materials and tools
- One 5 ml and one 20 ml syringe
- Plastic tubing
- Water with food colour
- Cardboard or ice-cream sticks for the platform
- Small weights
Tools and software
Step-by-step roadmap
Start
You will finish with: a working lift and a table showing force multiplied by the ratio of the areas.
- 1
Prerequisites
Nothing special to know first. Then collect the 5 items in the materials list.
- 2
Learn
- How pressure is transmitted in a liquid
- How area ratio multiplies force
- Why distance moved is traded for force
- 3
Plan
Sketch the design, list every part with its price and decide how you will know it works.
- 4
Build
- Fill the large syringe and the tube with coloured water with no air bubbles.
- Join it to the small syringe with the plunger pushed in.
- Mount the large syringe upright under a card platform.
- Push the small plunger and measure how far each plunger moves.
- Load the platform and compare the force needed on each side.
- 5
Test
Run it ten times in a row. Note every failure, fix the cause and test again.
- 6
Document
Photograph each build stage, keep the circuit or drawing, and note what failed and how you fixed it. Report structure
- 7
Present
Demonstrate it working first, then explain how it works and what you would improve. Presentation structure · Viva questions
- 8
Publish
Share a short video, the parts list and the drawing or code so someone else can build it.
Expected outcome
A working lift and a table showing force multiplied by the ratio of the areas.
Other versions of this project
Beginner version
Join two equal syringes and show that pushing one moves the other.
Advanced version
Build a two-joint hydraulic arm that picks up a small object.
Make this project better
- BasicJoin two equal syringes and show that pushing one moves the other.
- This projectBuild a hydraulic lift with syringes
- AdvancedBuild a two-joint hydraulic arm that picks up a small object.
Science fair mode
Text marked "You write this" is a prompt for your own work; everything else is specific to this project.
- Problem
- You write thisWrite your question as: How does [what you change] affect [what you measure]?
- Hypothesis
- You write thisWrite it as: If [I change this], then [this will happen], because [reason].
- Variables
- You write thisName the one thing you change (independent), the thing you measure (dependent) and what you keep the same (controlled).
Materials and procedure are in Materials and the Roadmap.
Observation table
You write thisDraw a table with one column for what you change, one for each repeat reading and one for the average.
- Graph
- You write thisPlot what you changed along the bottom and what you measured up the side; use a bar chart for categories and a line graph for numbers.
- Results
- You write thisState what the graph shows in one or two sentences, with numbers.
- Conclusion
- You write thisSay whether the result supports your hypothesis and why you think so.
Display board
- Title and your name
- Question
- Hypothesis
- Materials
- Procedure (with photos)
- Data table and graph
- Conclusion
- What you would do next
Questions judges ask
- State Pascal's law.
- Why use water and not air?
- If force is multiplied, what is lost?
- What would you change if you did this again?
- What was your biggest source of error, and how did you reduce it?
- Where is this idea used in real life?
Working as a team
Solo or up to 3. Suggested roles:
Report and presentation
Report structure
- Title and aim
- The problem it solves
- How it works (principle)
- Parts list with cost
- Design: drawing, circuit or block diagram
- Build steps
- Testing and results
- Problems faced and fixes
- Limitations
- Future improvements
- References
Presentation structure
- The problem
- The idea
- How it works (one diagram)
- Parts and cost
- The build (photos)
- Live demo or video
- Test results
- What did not work
- Next version
Viva questions
Try answering before you open each one.
State Pascal's law.
Pressure applied to an enclosed liquid is transmitted equally in all directions.
Why use water and not air?
Water is nearly incompressible, so the push is passed on at once.
If force is multiplied, what is lost?
Distance: the small plunger must move much farther than the large one.
Resources
Source and attribution
Original
Written by Technifyed. Free to use for your own school or college project; write the report in your own words. Added 1 Oct 2026.
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