Introduction to Balloons
The word ‘Balloons’ conjures up pictures in your mind of simple balloons you blow up for kid’s parties, or balloons that fly off on their own, or the special balloons for big events like the ones produced for the wedding of Charles and Diana? There are so many different types of balloons on the market that you can get almost anything for any event you need. Balloons are a bright, bouncy item that can be used for many different purposes, including children’s or adult parties, product launches for advertising or promotional events.
When you think about it, a balloon is a very strange item. It is something that expands when filled with air or some other type of gas, such as Helium or hydrogen and is very fragile so that it can easily pop. The very first balloons would have been made with non-stretch material but modern balloons have great elasticity because they are made of Latex and can be filled up to create much larger sizes than earlier ones.
History of Balloons
The first known balloons were very simple in that they were made out of the bowels of cats. The Aztec Indians in Central and Southern America carefully cleaned out the cat gut, turned it inside out and stitched it with special vegetable thread that stuck to itself when dried in the sun creating an almost airtight seal. The balloons were shaped into model animals and then filled with air to be burnt on the top of the Aztec pyramid as an offering to the sun god. This is the first recorded history of balloon modelling. Early balloons were made of animal guts and were turned into play things for the local children.
The first public exhibition of a balloon was at the Portuguese Court in Lisbon in 1809 by a Portuguese priest, Bartolomeu de Gusmao, and was probably likely to be made from an animal bladder that stretched when filled with air. The modern rubber balloon was invented in 1824 by Michael Faraday the renowned English chemist and physicist who invented, amongst other many other things, the Faraday cage and he also made huge contributions to the fields electromagnetism and electrochemistry. The balloons Faraday used were filled with hydrogen for his experiments with Hydrogen, but the more everyday Latex balloon did not appear until 1847. Although the Latex balloon was manufactured in London in the mid eighteen hundreds and early rubber balloons were sold in America in parks and circuses for a penny each; the mass production of them did not happen until a hundred years later in 1931.
The balloon industry became more advanced as they developed in line with technology. Now balloons are made from rubber Latex, polychloroprene or nylon and may be filled with air, Helium, hydrogen or water. Inflating the balloon with air can be done with the mouth, a manual hand pump, electric inflator, foot pump or with compressed gas. Balloons are used for many differing purposes, and decorated in numerous ways to suit the event.
Some balloons are purely for decorative reasons, others are ideal for specific purposes because of their low density and relatively low cost. The balloon’s properties have led to them being used in a wide range of other applications in the areas of meteorology, military defence, medical treatment, and transportation.
Different Balloon Types
Balloons for Parties
The most familiar types of balloons are the ones we are used to seeing at parties, particularly a child’s party. These are often bought in small packets and blown up by Mum’s and Dad’s or with a pump to create a festive scene for children’s parties and other kinds of celebratory events. These days you often see a balloon cluster at the entrance to a house or hall to indicate where the party is being held, it has almost become a universal indicator of a party in progress! The balloons come in many different sizes and colours and can have printing on them which expands as the balloon is blown up. Party balloons are generally made of natural Latex tapped from rubber trees. The rubber’s elasticity makes the size variable. Balloons filled with air will hold their size and shape much longer than those filled with Helium.
Usually balloons get filled with air or Helium gas. Other gases are too dangerous to use.
Foil Balloons
The foil balloon or Mylar balloons first appeared during the late 1970s. They are slightly more expensive than Latex balloons and are made of thin non-stretch metalized plastic film or Mylar. The first time I remember them being used a major event was when they were used at the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana and they caused quite a stir. Mylar balloons have attractive shiny reflective surfaces and can be finished with colour images, branding and designs to customise them. The most crucial property of metalized nylon for balloons is its ability to retain the Helium gas from escaping for several weeks because it is less permeable. Foil balloons also have the benefit of being light weight, longer-lasting with better buoyancy. They are best for extraordinary celebrations, in-store displays, parties and for gifts. At our granny’s ninetieth birthday celebration a few months ago my daughter brought along a foil balloon with 90 printed on it to add to the festive occasion.Mylar balloons or foil balloons can also be cut into star shapes and can be printed with designs to advertise a company.
Balloons Shaped as Animals
Balloons shaped like animals are ade from metalized nylon which can easily be cut into pieces so that when glued together they make the three dimensional shapes of animals. Screen printing the appropriate design on the model, makes the chosen animal come realistically alive. Once inflated, these exceptional pieces make a very bright decorative effect for that special event. Animal shaped balloons may be used as gifts or as a talking point at your special event. Animal shaped balloons can make a great birthday gift for a child as an extra indulgence.
Rockets from Balloons
Blowing up a balloon and letting it go before tying it is as game most youngsters enjoy at some time or another (and adults too)! The rude noise it makes usually has most people falling about laughing as it speeds about the building in a random manner. This activity is teaching the children basically how a rocket works and they are called balloon rockets. As a kid I can remember being fascinated as I learned why it did that.
When the top of the balloon is let-go, the elasticity of the balloon contracts so that the higher pressure of air inside is forced out causing the balloon to be propelled forward. This is basically how a rocket works. The balloon can also be inflated with different gases other than air, producing the same results. Balloon rockets are a widely used a learning aid to show the principles in science of the functioning of a rocket. The balloon rocket is also frequently used to demonstrate Newton’s third law in physics.
Balloons Filled With Water
The water balloons are obviously filled with water and are intended for children to chuck at each other as a game or practical joke with the aim of getting each other soaked. They are often smaller than regular balloons and made from thiner rubber so that they can be easily broken. Water balloons are often used in competitions or games.
Helium Balloons
The reason Helium balloons float upwards is because they are filled with Helium gas which is lighter than air. So for an event where balloons are set off into the sky, they will all be Helium filled balloons. If the Helium balloons are rubber balloons they typically only retain their buoyancy for a few days. This is because the Latex has pores that are bigger than the enclosed Helium atoms so the Helium gradually seeps out. To increase the buoyancy period of a Helium balloon the inside of the balloons can be coated with a special polymer solution which reduces the leakage of the Helium for a week or more. Several providers exist in the UK for wholesale balloons so look online to find the right company to suit your requirements.
Balloon Sculpting
Balloon Sculptures are made from hundreds of balloons to create a solid structure such as a balloon arch, wall or statute. Other shapes are a bit more challenging, but on occasion more ambitious sculptures have been created so they are possible. These works of art are usually made and designed by professional balloon modellers as it is a skilled job. Balloon sculptures are really quite constrained because of the round shape of the balloons but with clever colour choice simple arches or walls can make an impressive feature at your party. The balloons need to be precision filled with exactly the same amount of gas and to do this professional balloon party decorators use electronic equipment to deliver the exact amount of Helium into the balloon. For non-floating balloons air inflators are used. Industrial grade balloons differ from most retail packet balloons as they are bigger in size, stronger and made from 100% biodegradable Latex. Sometimes Helium balloons are used as table decorations for weddings which may have three or 5 balloons with an arrangement of flowers. The decoration will generally include curled ribbon tied to a weight to stop the balloons from floating away.
Balloon Modelling and Balloons in Art
Balloon modelling is a popular entertainment for children and adults alike and is not to be confused with balloon sculptures discussed previously. The Latex used for balloon modelling is made of extra-stretchy rubber so that it can be twisted and shaped and tied without popping when making the balloon model. A Balloon modelling artist twists and ties the inflated modelling balloons into shapes resembling animals, people or hats. When I have watched these artists at work I am always anxious that the balloons will burst when they are twisting and tying their creations. These tiny modelling balloons are extremely hard to inflate and often need a pump to get them started, until you have developed the lungs for it.
Balloon Drops
Most people have seen a party or dance where at the end of the evening a load of balloons fall from the ceiling to create excitement and fun amongst the party guests. This is called a balloon drop and is often performed at parties such as New Year’s Eve celebrations or at political rallies and conventions. It is a relatively low budget way of generating a festive atmosphere at the party climax, so everyone goes home feeling they have had a really good time.
It is easy enough to create your own balloon drop for your special event as long as you have a room with enough height. Firstly you will need to set up a large plastic bag or net overhead, which is suspended at the required height. Get your assistants to help with blowing up balloons as it can take a long time to do the number needed. Then insert the inflated balloons into the net and make sure the opening is central so that the balloons will fall onto the target area below when they are released. You will also need to devise a mechanism for releasing the balloons, and make sure you have thoroughly tested it so everything goes to plan at the big moment.
To make a big splash at a promotional occasion advertising balloons supply exactly the right medium to launch the new product.
Mass Balloon Releases
Because of concerns about the impact on the environment of a large amount of balloons being released, the NABAS – The Balloon Association have produced a code of practise which can be found on their website at www.nabas.co.uk
If you are planning a balloon release of more than 5,000 balloons, it is a condition that you apply in writing for permission to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) at least 28 days in advance. The CAA also like to be notified about balloon releases involving less than 5,000. An application form can be acquired by calling either the NABAS office on 01989 762 204 or the Airspace Utilisation Section of the CAA on 020 7453 6599
Environmental Concerns and Balloon Safety
Latex is an organic product from rubber trees that are cultivated in certain areas of the tropics, so balloons are actually organic being made of natural rubber Latex (NRL). These trees are not cleared to extract the NRL. The NRL is harvested by tapping older trees and is an vital sustainable crop providing jobs for many agricultural labourers in some of the poorest regions of the world. Latex is a sustainable harvest that is not harmful to the environment and the economy of the country in which the rubber trees grow.
The planting and maintenance of rubber tree plantations helps towards the prevention of tropical rainforest deforestation. Without the cultivation and the consumption of Latex products the plantations might easily become just another target of the clearance of land for arable use. One of the great advantages of NRL cultivation is the appreciable contribution to the removal of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere that is produced by industrialised nations and is a major source of global warming.
Printed Latex balloons are an absolutely fantastic, low-cost and environmentally friendly way of advertising your promotion or event.
Conclusion
The toy balloon has been a source of happiness and excitement for many years at celebratory events such as parties, product launches and conferences throughout the world. They have been an educational tool as well as providing hours of fun and interest for children and adults alike. Non toy balloons are used for experiments in science, as an aid for heart repair in medicine and even as a form of travel as in the hydrogen air ship idea. Balloons are invaluable in helping us to learn about our world and some of the properties of physics.
When you think about it balloons are a major part of modern day life, did you realise?