That Half-Empty Water Bottle Could Start a Fire in Your Car

Here's a summer safety hazard you'd never think of. Leaving a half-full bottle of water in your car could start a fire. If you don't believe it, there's plenty of video evidence to back it up. Here's how it can happen.

When the sun hits a plastic bottle at the right angle, the water in there can act like a lens, and concentrate the light on one specific point.

It's exactly like that kid who burned ants with a magnifying glass. Under the right conditions, that pinpoint of light can cause smoldering, or worse. A group of firefighters in Oklahoma posted a video last year that shows how it can happen:

The odds of a water bottle setting your entire car on fire are pretty low. In most cases, the worst thing that'll happen is it might melt a small hole in your upholstery.

But if the bottle happens to be next to something flammable, it could start a fire. So if you currently have a bottle of water sitting in your car next to some dry tinder and say, an open can of gasoline, you might want to go deal with that.