By Kristen Miranda
WBTV Channel 3
SOUTH CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - Harrison, Clyde and Shep are just like any other sixth grade boys.
"We wanted to see what it would be like to set things on fire," Harrison said.
Their science teacher at Charlotte Latin said that would be okay, if they had a purpose for their fun, and only if they did it safely.
"We read online there was a recipe for making Halloween costumes fire resistant, and because there have been incidents where jack-o-lanterns have knocked over and kids costumes have caught fire, we wanted to see if it worked," Clyde told us Wednesday as he and his friends prepared for their experiment.
With the help of the Charlotte Fire Department, and a crowd of fellow 6th graders watching, their theory was put to the test.
Two sets of costumes, three each made of polyester, one each made of cotton were set on fire. The only difference was that the second set had been dipped in a mixture of Borax and hot water, then dried. That mixture, said to make the costumes flame retardant.
All of the polyester costumes burned quickly, treated or not. It was the white cotton shirt, a stand-in for a homemade costume, that was the only holdout.
To view online, click here.