Can Tapping on a Soda Really Stop It From Exploding?

Photo by Jonny Gios on Unsplash

Food News!

If you dropped a soda can, what’s the first thing you do?  A lot of people start tapping on it, thinking that will help.

But as it turns out, tapping it might not be doing much.  When a carbonated drink gets shaken, tiny bubbles form inside the liquid.  And if you open the can right away, the sudden drop in pressure can lead to a foamy explosion.

The problem is that tapping it also creates more bubbles.  Which means more pressure buildup.  They even did a study in 2019 with more than 1,000 beer cans, and they found no difference between tapped and untapped cans.

So, what’s the better move after a beer or soda gets shaken up?  Let the can sit upright for a few minutes . . . and crack it open slowly.  This lets the gas escape first and hopefully saves you from dealing with a big cleanup.

SOURCE: Live Science