Mentos/Diet Coke experiment - I need help

[SuperMillionaire]

I just tried to perform the Mentos and Diet Coke experiment this morning, and it failed. It was supposed to shoot out a geyser. What you supposedly have to do is take a pack of Mentos and stick it inside the opening of the bottle (after you take off the cap). I did that, and it didn't go off as planned? Why? What am I doing wrong? Can you help me get it right?

[Craig]

I think you should get out more.

[vampirepiggyhunter7]

...Put a firecracker under it?

[Resha]

Why don't you chew the Mentos first, and then see if it's more reactive? Or maybe try it with Diet Coke/Coke Light, which is super-fizzy. OR IF THAT DOESN'T WORK...no. No no no. My next idea is too dangerous ^___^

[Tavrobel]

You didn't shake the bottle up.

[SuperMillionaire]

I should shake the bottle up, and then put the mentos in there?

[Tavrobel]

Well, you need to shake it up at one point or another, otherwise the Carbon Dioxide has nowhere to go except up, because it isn't being moved enough to illicit a reaction. I'm not quite sure what you want to accomplish here, besides making a geyser based on hearsay and a simple understanding of liquids and gases. Seems like a waste of a perfectly good soda and pack of Mentos, but whatever floats your boat.

[SuperMillionaire]

Well, I saw this on TV and the Internet, so I figured that I try it.

[Levian]

Put it in the microwave.

[oddler]

Put it in the microwave.

Roasted minty soft drink... hmmm sounds good.

[Sylvie]

Put it in the microwave.

Roasted minty soft drink... hmmm sounds good.

More like severely exploded and dangerous soft drink.

[Mo-Nercy]

Well, I performed the experiment myself not too long ago.

It's important to have the whole stick of mentos go into the bottle at once. Apparantly a stick of 13 mentos is most reactive with a bottle of 1.25L Diet Coke. It didn't go 8 feet up in the air like the videos I saw but it was about a metre up.

I drank the remaining Diet Coke. It was just a little flat and minty.

[Moon Rabbits]

You can't keep the mentos in the package (I'm assuming this is what you did?).

Empty them all into the bottle, shake it, cap it and watch it.

EDIT: You also can't have a full bottle. I don't remember how much I had in it when I did this.

[DarkLadyNyara]

Seems like a waste of a perfectly good soda and pack of Mentos, but whatever floats your boat.

C'mon, this is diet coke we're talking about. I'm gonna have to try this...

[Xaven]

Diet Coke is nasty. It's only purpose in life is to erupt via Mentos.

How to do it, I'm sorry, but I can't help you. :D