How to re-purpose an inflatable bed pump??

[drewmo]

My aero bed has a big air leak in the mattress, so I'm essentially left with an air pump. Any suggestions on what to do with it?? Particular attention will be paid to suggestions that are:

1. Doable for a scrappy DIYer who lives 1/2 miles from an Ace Hardware.
2. Intended to keep said scrappy DIYer's 5-year-old son engaged, occupied and otherwise out of my hair for hours at a time.

 

[woodgeek]

If its battery powered and lightweight, hook it into a large upsidedown shallow cardboard box, and make a hovercraft for his teddy bears.

 

[Wildo]

if it is bp it will soon become the best fire starting assistant when you go camping if you stop using gas for the task

 

[jebatty]

Find a nearby shallow lake that could freeze out, aerate it, and have your son count the rising bubbles.

 

[drewmo]

Unfortunately, not battery powered. However, the hover craft idea is sweet.

Any ideas on how to use the pump as a blower to move ping pong balls through a series of tubes??? We went to the children's museum in Portland recently and they had a set up that shot plastic balls across the room through a series of tubes, something akin to the bank drive through window. He loved and I loved it. Or perhaps a bubble machine outside in the summer?

 

[heat seeker]

A bubble machine, that makes long lasting bubbles, is way off the top of the cool chart! Bubble formulas vary, and some make really long lasting bubbles that you can play with.

 

[jeff_t]

Star San, an acid based sanitizer that is popular amongst homebrewers, can make an incredible amount of bubbles. We were at a children's museum near Chicago a few years ago, and they were using the stuff, or something similar. I could tell by the smell. When mixed at the proper ratio, it doesn't require rinsing. I've had my hands in the solution for long periods of time, and it is safe. Not sure if it is FDA approved to make bubbles.

Star San+air injection would be amazing. I would have some sort of escape plan, in case the room completely filled with bubbles.

Good luck. I saved the pump from our bed for some future project. I tossed it after tripping over it in the garage for a few years.