A water elevator, also called a bubble elevator, is the fastest way to move up or down a tall base without ladders or stairs. It uses bubble columns: soul sand at the bottom of a column of water pushes you up, and a magma block pushes you down. Once you know the trick for filling the column with source water, a water elevator takes only a few minutes to build. This guide shows how to make a water elevator in Minecraft step by step, how to build a down elevator, how to make entrances and exits, and how to fix the most common problems.
Quick answer: how to make a water elevator
- Build a 1 by 1 tube of solid blocks or glass as tall as you need.
- Place a soul sand block at the very bottom of the tube.
- Fill every block of the tube with a water source, not flowing water.
- Bubbles appear and rise through the column. Swim in and you shoot to the top.
For a down elevator, use a magma block at the bottom instead of soul sand. The bubbles pull you downward.
What you need
- Soul sand for an up elevator. It is found in the Nether, especially in soul sand valleys and near fortresses. Wandering traders sometimes sell it too.
- Magma block for a down elevator. Found in the Nether, in ocean ravines and underwater ruins, or crafted from 4 magma cream.
- Building blocks: glass lets you see the bubbles and looks good. Any solid block works.
- Water bucket: one bucket and a water source is enough if you use the kelp trick.
- Kelp: optional, but it makes filling the column with source blocks much easier.
- Door or sign: to hold back water at the entrance and exit.
Step-by-step: build an up elevator
Step 1: Build the shaft
Dig or build a column that is one block wide and one block deep. Leave one side open at the bottom for the entrance and one side open at the top for the exit. If you build it on the outside of a tower, glass makes the elevator easy to see.
Step 2: Place soul sand at the bottom
Put soul sand in the bottom block of the shaft. The block directly above the soul sand is where the water starts.
Step 3: Fill the column with water source blocks
This is the step that decides whether your elevator works. Bubble columns only form in source water. Flowing water does not carry you. There are two ways to fill the column:
- The kelp trick (recommended): pour one bucket of water at the top so it flows down the column. Then place kelp on the bottom block and keep placing kelp until it reaches the top. Each kelp block turns the flowing water around it into a source block. Finally, break the bottom kelp. All the kelp above it breaks too, leaving a column full of source water.
- Bucket by bucket: starting at the bottom, place a water source in each block one at a time. This works but is slow for tall shafts.
Seagrass, sea pickles and other underwater plants also convert flowing water into source water, but kelp is the easiest because it stacks upward on its own.
Step 4: Check the bubbles
When the column is full of source water, bubbles rise from the soul sand to the surface. If bubbles stop part way up, there is flowing water in that block. Fill it with a bucket or place kelp there and break it again.
How to build a down elevator
A down elevator is built the same way, but with a magma block at the bottom. The bubbles pull you down quickly. Magma blocks burn you if you stand on them, but in a water column you are swimming above it, so you take no damage unless you sneak or stand on the block. Many players build an up elevator and a down elevator side by side with their entrances next to each other.
Entrances and exits
Bottom entrance
Water flows out of any open side. To keep it in, place a door, a sign, a fence gate or a trapdoor in the opening. These blocks hold water back but still let you walk into the column. A door is the most common choice because you can open and close it.
Top exit
At the top, the bubble column launches you a little above the water surface. Build the exit so that you can step sideways onto a floor at the level where you pop out. A common design ends the water one block below the floor and leaves a gap so the bubbles throw you up onto the landing. Another is to put a sign or door on the side of the top block and walk out through it.
Stopping halfway
To exit at a middle floor, add a doorway with a sign or door on that floor. While rising, hold the movement key toward the doorway and you swim out of the column at that level.
How bubble columns work
- Soul sand makes an upward column; magma makes a downward column.
- The column continues up through any number of water source blocks until it reaches air or a non-water block.
- Standing in a bubble column refills your air, so you never drown inside an elevator.
- Mobs, items and boats are carried by bubble columns too, which is useful for item elevators and mob farms.
- Breaking the soul sand or magma block, or placing a different block there, ends the column.
Water elevator for items
Items dropped into an up bubble column float up to the top, where a hopper or a water stream can collect them. This is a cheap way to move farm drops up to a storage room without redstone. Put a block of glass above the top of the column so items do not fly out, and place hoppers beside the top block.
Common problems
- No bubbles at all: the block above the soul sand is flowing water or is not water. Make sure the water starts directly on top of the soul sand.
- Bubbles stop halfway: one block in the column is flowing water. Use the kelp trick again on that section.
- Water pours out of the entrance: replace the gap with a door, sign, fence gate or trapdoor.
- I cannot get out at the top: leave space for the bubbles to push you above the surface and a solid floor next to the column.
- It works too slowly: soul sand moves you up quickly, but make sure you are not holding sneak, which slows you down.
Water elevators in Java vs Bedrock
Bubble columns work in both editions, and the soul sand and magma block design is identical. On Bedrock, rising can feel slightly slower and exiting at the top may need a slightly different landing height, so test your exit before decorating. The kelp trick works the same everywhere.
Ideas for using water elevators
- Connect an underground mine to your base on the surface.
- Reach the top of a tall tower or a sky base quickly.
- Build an elevator inside an ocean monument or underwater base, where it doubles as an air supply.
- Use a down elevator next to a mob farm to drop into the collection room fast.
FAQ
What block makes a water elevator go up?
Soul sand. Place it at the bottom of a column of water source blocks to create an upward bubble column.
What block makes a water elevator go down?
A magma block. It creates a downward bubble column.
Why is my water elevator not working?
Usually because some of the column is flowing water. Bubble columns need source water in every block. Use the kelp trick to fix it.
Can you drown in a water elevator?
No. Bubble columns refill your air while you are inside them.
How do you stop water flowing out of the elevator?
Put a door, sign, fence gate or trapdoor in the entrance and exit openings.
Checked by the Game Respawned editorial team against the current Java and Bedrock versions. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.