Let’s Talk About Cracker Snaps…
So, what is a snap made from?
Cracker snaps are a paper strip with a “gunpowder” effect built into the middle of it. The gunpowder effect comes from an explosive compound called silver fulminate, which is extremely volatile and dangerous. Silver fulminate is made from silver nitrate, nitric acid and ethanol.
That’s the chemistry simplified for you (and us!) …
This silver fulminate is bound into the middle of a cracker snap against a rough surface, such as sand, which creates a bang when the compound is dragged against the rough surface.
Do you sell cracker snaps?
Bringing snaps into the UK is very difficult but, when we can get hold of them, we do sell them.
You can buy these as snaps only or snaps with hats and jokes for your cracker making projects. Why not take a look at our packs of snaps or accessory packs?
Are cracker snaps safe?
As the silver fulminate is very volatile, you can probably work out the answer to this question…
There is a reason that cracker snaps cannot be made in hot weather and cannot be taken on planes – it isn’t because they are super safe. If they were, why would you need to keep them away from kids? They are made of the same material as ice fountains, and we have all heard how dangerous those are…
What about the environment?
There’s a huge carbon footprint of cracker snaps travelling around the world – for the UK this is by ship from China, in special fire-proof containers, which takes months.
Does silver fulminate (silver nitrate, nitric acid and ethanol) sound natural to you? Clearly not, the ingredients have to be either mined or chemically produced.
Can you have environmentally friendly snaps though? There are eco and environmentally friendly cracker snaps on the market. These are made from paper, which rips. What do you think the chances of you hearing a 1cm wide piece of paper rip inside a cracker when it’s ripped? We’ve tested them all and can tell you that there is absolutely no difference! At best, they sound like ripping toilet role, to be honest… We’ve tried creating our own, which have a good sound, for donkeys years, it’s impossible!
There are many more issues with cracker snaps though…
We know that many nervous pets hate the sound of cracker snaps, which ruin their Christmas and their family’s Christmas too. There are also many nervous people around the world, who also dread cracker pulling season.
Many neurotypical people have no issue with cracker snaps, whilst many neurodivergent people, including those with autism and ADHD, really struggle with them – kids and adults alike…
What are the alternatives to snaps?
As we have said above, there are no alternatives to the cracker snap itself. However, at The Cracker Company, we have created alternatives for those who wish to avoid them on safety, environmental and both pet and human reasons.
Our question to you is this… How many times have you had a box of crackers and the snaps don’t pull? Maybe a couple, maybe the whole box? Did it ruin your Christmas, or did you manage to survive? Often, it probably doesn’t even get noticed, we’d proffer.
Reusable keepsake crackers
We have created our keepsake crackers, primarily for those who would like to use their homemade crackers time and time again.
They are two-part crackers, which are slid apart and pushed back together, rather than pulled in the traditional way.
However, a side effect of this is that they have no snap, which makes them suitable for homes with nervous people and pets. After all, it is worth spoiling your Christmas Day or other special celebrations for a cracker snap?
Snapless crackers
We have been selling snapless crackers, which are standard crackers just without the snaps for nervous people and pets, for many years and they are very popular.
We have designed all our crackers to be super loud when pulled, even without a snap, but the sound is far more subtle than a bang and doesn’t cause the distress that snaps do. Our snapless crackers are still pulled in the usual way but without the snap.
Fabric crackers
We are delighted to offer a range of luxury fabric crackers, which you can use year after year on your Christmas table.
These crackers are opened by undoing the bows and then revealing the contents. However, as they are not pulled, they do not have snaps.
As a result, these are great for homes were there are nervous pets or neurodivergent people who do not like the sound of the snaps.
