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Tom Stone Mojang avatar

Just like in real life, sponges in Minecraft have handy absorbent powers. Once placed, the sponge block will slurp up surrounding water and any more water that's foolish enough to cross its path. Impressively, this thirsty block can drink up to 65 water blocks before becoming a wet sponge. Sadly, a wet sponge can't absorb any more H2O, its glory days now long behind it.

Tom Stone[1]

A sponge is a block that can be used to remove water around itself when placed, turning into a wet sponge in the process.

Obtaining

Either type of sponge can be mined by hand, or with any tool, dropping itself as an item. Mining time is not affected by the tool used.

Block Sponge
Wet Sponge
Hardness 0.6
Breaking time (secs)
Default 0.9

Drops

An elder guardian drops one wet sponge‌[Java Edition only] or dry sponge‌[Bedrock Edition only] when killed by the player. Since elder guardians do not respawn, this does not make sponges renewable.

Natural generation

Ocean monuments have a chance of generating one or more rooms containing wet sponges. Each room contains an average of 30 sponges.

Drying

Michael Stoyke Mojang avatar

So you used a sponge and it's wet now? How about applying some heat to dry it, you might be able to reuse it. #CookMeASponge

Searge[2]

A wet sponge can be dried in a furnace, making the sponge reusable.

Ingredients Smelting recipe Description
Wet sponge + any fuel


If a bucket is in the fuel slot at the time the sponge completes its drying, the water will drain into the bucket, leaving a bucket of water in the fuel slot‌[Java and Bedrock editions only]. Otherwise, the water just evaporates.

Wet sponge placed in the Nether will instantly dry out. In the PlayStation 4 Edition, wet sponges will dry out “after some time”.‌[PlayStation 4 Edition only]

Usage

SpongeUsage

A sponge absorbing water in a lake.

A sponge can be used to turn water into air (it "absorbs" the water). To place a sponge, use a sponge item while pointing at a surface facing the space the sponge should occupy.

A sponge instantly absorbs nearby water when it is placed next to water or when water comes into contact with it (by being placed next to the sponge, or by flowing towards it). A sponge absorbs water around itself (water source blocks or flowing water) out to a taxicab distance of 7 in all directions (including up and down), but won't absorb more than 65 blocks of water (water closest to the sponge will be absorbed first). The absorption only propagates from water to water and won't "jump over" non-water blocks (including air). Sponges cannot absorb water sources that are adjacent to a conduit.

When a sponge absorbs water, it turns into a wet sponge, and will be incapable of absorbing more water in this state.

Sponges in item form will not absorb water or become wet.

Data values

ID

Sponge/ID

Block data

See also: Data values

In Bedrock Edition, sponges use the following data values:

DV Description
0 Sponge
1 Wet Sponge

Achievements

Icon Achievement In-game description Actual requirements (if different) Gamerscore earned Trophy type (PS4)
PS4 Other
Dry SpellDry a sponge in a furnace15GBronze

Video

History

May 24, 2009Sponge was suggested on the TIGSource forums. Notch later approved this suggestion.
Classic
0.0.19aFile:Sponge Revision 1.png Added sponge. The sponge was a temporary fix to stop water from flooding until finite water was implemented.[3] It soaked up water in a 5×5×5 volume around it, and would decay.
0.0.19a_06Sponges no longer decay.
infdev
February 27, 2010Due to Notch reworking many parts of the game to allow for infinite terrain generation the whole liquid system from Indev including sponges becomes non-functional. A new system for liquids was added in a later version of Infdev, sponges weren't touched though as they were no longer required. Therefore they stayed in their non-functional state until release Java Edition 1.8.
beta
1.8Pre-releaseSponges become available in Creative mode.
Java Edition
1.2.112w07aPrior to this version, sponge could be used in redstone builds for updating blocks, in conjunction with BUDs (block update detectors): if a sponge was placed and then removed, all blocks within a 7×7×7 range would be updated.[4] The cause of this was some remaining code for the sponge's water removing property.
1.3.112w22aInventory sprites for blocks were flipped from left to right, changing to .
1.8June 8, 2014Jeb tweeted that the ability to erase water blocks would be returned to the sponge. The linked image revealed that the sponge would have a new texture which becomes darker once it absorbs water.
14w25aSponge Sponges were retextured, became obtainable in Survival Mode, and now soak up contiguous water source blocks out to a taxicab distance of 7 when placed, thereupon turning into the new wet sponge.
14w25bWet sponges, when smelted, will fill an empty bucket in the fuel slot with water.
1.915w43aElder guardians will now drop dry sponges instead of wet ones.
1.1116w33aElder guardians now drop wet sponges on player kills, rather than dry sponges.[5]
1.1317w47aThe two different wet block state values for the sponge ID have been split up into their own IDs.
Prior to The Flattening, this block's numeral ID was 19.
1.1418w43aFile:Sponge Texture Update.png File:Wet Sponge Texture Update.png Changed the texture of sponge.
Pocket Edition Alpha
0.8.0build 2File:Sponge Revision 1.png Added sponges to Creative mode.
0.16.0build 1Sponge Sponges were retextured, became obtainable in Survival Mode, and now soak up contiguous water source blocks out to a taxicab distance of 7 when placed, thereupon turning into the new wet sponge.
Wet sponges, when smelted, will fill an empty bucket in the fuel slot with water.
Bedrock Edition
1.4.0beta 1.2.13.8Added Drowned, which rarely drop sponge.
beta 1.2.20.1Drowned no longer drop sponge.
1.10.0beta 1.10.0.3Now immediately dries out when placed in the Nether.
File:Sponge Texture Update.png File:Wet Sponge Texture Update.png Changed the texture of sponge.
Legacy Console Edition
TU5CU1 1.0 Patch 11.0.1File:Sponge Revision 1.png Added sponges to Creative mode.
TU28CU16 1.19 Sponge Updated texture.
TU31CU19 1.22 Patch 3Sponges are now obtainable in Survival Mode, and now soak up contiguous water source blocks out to a taxicab distance of 7 when placed, thereupon turning into the new wet sponge.
PlayStation 4 Edition
1.90Now dries out when placed in the Nether and warm biomes after some time.
New Nintendo 3DS Edition
0.1.0Added sponge.
1.3.12Added wet sponge.
Sponge Sponges were retextured, became obtainable in Survival Mode, and now soak up contiguous water source blocks out to a taxicab distance of 7 when placed, thereupon turning into the new wet sponge.
Wet sponges, when smelted, will fill an empty bucket in the fuel slot with water.

Issues

Issues relating to "Sponge" or "Wet Sponge" are maintained on the bug tracker. Report issues there.

Gallery

References

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