How to Breathe Underwater in Minecraft: With and Without Potions

Use a potion, turtle shell, or conduit to breathe underwater in Minecraft

Written by Kyle Smith

Last Updated: March 6, 2023 References

Potion of Water Breathing

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Turtle Shell

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Conduit Power

Trying to breathe underwater in Minecraft so you can explore the ocean? There are a few ways to do so! You can craft a Potion of Waterbreathing, which allows you to breathe underwater for three minutes. Create a turtle shell helmet for 10 additional seconds of holding your breath. Or, make a conduit for permanent underwater breathing (while near the conduit). This wikiHow guide will show you how to breathe underwater in Minecraft.

Things You Should Know

Craft a Potion of Water Breathing to breathe underwater for 3 minutes.
Craft a turtle shell helmet to gain 10 additional seconds of breathing time underwater.
Craft a conduit to gain the Conduit Power effect, which allows you to breathe underwater indefinitely while nearby.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Potion of Water Breathing

1
Gather the required materials and equipment. You’ll need a few items to craft a potion of water breathing. The potion itself allows you to breathe underwater for 3 minutes (meaning your breath meter won’t go down). Here’s what you’ll need:^{[1]
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- Brewing Stand
- Glass Bottle
- Water source (a bucket of water, cauldron, or nearby pond will work)
- Nether Wart
- Pufferfish
2
Fill the glass bottle with water. To do so:
- Hold the glass bottle in your hand.
- Right-click on a water source.
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3
Place the Water Bottle in the middle potion slot in the Brewing Stand. Right-click on the Brewing Stand to access the brewing menu.
4
Place the Nether Wart in the top slot of the Brewing Stand. This will create an Awkward Potion, the base potion for the Water Breathing potion.
5
Place the Awkward Potion in the middle potion slot in the Brewing Stand.
6
Place a Pufferfish in the top slot of the Brewing Stand. This will create a Potion of Water Breathing. You’re ready to continue playing Minecraft! Drink this potion to breathe underwater for 3 minutes.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Turtle Shell

1
Feed seagrass to two turtles. This will make them enter love mode. One turtle will create turtle eggs and travel to their spawn point (a beach). To make a Turtle Shell helmet that allows you to breathe underwater for 10 additional seconds, you’ll need to collect five scutes. Scutes are dropped by baby turtles when they turn into adults.^{[3]
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- You can also catch turtles and keep them as pets if you want to!
2
Wait for the eggs to hatch. The turtle will lay the eggs on their spawning beach. There will be between one and four eggs. They’ll take four to five Minecraft days to hatch.
3
Wait for the baby turtles to turn into adults. This takes around one day in Minecraft.
4
Collect the scutes. The baby turtles will drop a scute when they turn into adults.
- You’ll need five scutes to make the turtle shell helmet. Repeat the breeding process until you have the required scutes.
5
Craft the turtle shell helmet. When you have five scutes, you can craft the turtle shell helmet. Place scutes in these five locations in the 3 by 3 crafting menu:^{[4]
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- Bottom left
- Middle left
- Middle
- Middle right
- Bottom right
6
Equip the turtle shell helmet. Place the turtle shell in the helmet slot in the equipment menu. This will allow you to breathe for 10 additional seconds underwater.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Conduit Power

1
Gather the required materials. Conduits grants nearby players the Conduit Power effect, which includes Water Breathing, Night Vision, and Haste. You’ll need three things to craft a conduit and its activation frame:^{[5]
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- Eight Nautilus Shells: Found as a treasure item during fishing, from Drowned mobs, and wandering traders.^{[6]
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- One Heart of the Sea: Found in buried treasure in ocean ruins and shipwrecks.^{[7]
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- 42 blocks for the frame: This can be prismarine, dark prismarine, prismarine bricks, or sea lantern.
- Water: There needs to be a 3 by 3 by 3 volume of water inside the activation frame. You can build the frame underwater or use a water bucket to fill the inside of the frame.
2
Craft the conduit. When you have the eight Nautilus Shells and the Heart of the Sea, place them in the 3 by 3 crafting menu:
- Place the Heart of the Sea in the center slot.
- Place the Nautilus Shells in the remaining slots around the center.
3
Create an activation frame. The frame is a 5 by 5 by 5 cube where each side is a plus (+) made of prismarine, dark prismarine, prismarine bricks, or sea lantern.^{[8]
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- You can optionally build the activation frame underwater to fulfill the 3 by 3 by 3 water volume requirement.
- Check out our guide to activating conduits for more details and pictures.
4
Fill the activation frame with water. There needs to be a 3 by 3 by 3 volume of water inside the activation frame. You can either use a water bucket to fill the inside, or build the activation frame underwater.
5
Place the conduit in the center of the activation frame. The conduit will activate. You’ll see it open and reveal the blue Heart of the Sea inside. You’re done! The conduit will grant nearby players the Conduit Power effect, allowing them to breathe underwater.