Introduction to Balloons
The word ‘Balloons’ conjures up thoughts in your mind of simple balloons you inflate 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 available that you can get almost anything for any event you need.
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 dayballoons have great elasticity because they are made of Latex and can be filled up to create much larger sizes than earlier ones. Balloons come in many different sizes and colours and can brighten up any event and promote a festive atmosphere.
Balloons Throughout History
The initial known balloons were very primitive 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.
The first public showing of a balloon was at the Portuguese Court in Lisbon in seventeen hundred and nine by a Portuguese priest, Bartolomeu de Gusmao, and was most 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 common 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 nineteen thirty one.
The world of balloons became more advanced as they developed in line with technology. Now balloons are made from rubber Latex, polychloroprene or nylon and may be inflated 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 various differing purposes, and decorated in numerous ways to fit the event. Balloons are usually used for entertainment or displays.
Some balloons are purely for decorative reasons, others are ideal for individual 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. There are many different types of balloons which can be categorised under different headings.
What are all the types of Balloons Available?
Good Old Party Balloons
The most familiar types of balloons are the ones we are used to seeing at parties, generally a child’s party. These are usually bought in small packets and blown up by volunteers 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 cluster of balloons 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 varying sizes and colours and can have printing on the face which expands as the balloon is blown up. Party balloons are usually made of natural Latex tapped from rubber trees. The rubber’s elasticity makes the dimensions variable. Balloons filled with air will hold their size and shape much longer than those filled with Helium.
The first recorded,The earliest examples of balloons appear to be made from animal gut which had elastic properties.
Balloons made of Foil
The foil balloon or Mylar balloons first appeared during the late 1970s. They are generally more high priced 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 Spencer and they caused quite a stir. These balloons have beautiful shiny reflective texture and can be printed with colour images, logos and styles to customise them. The most useful attribute of metalized nylon for balloons is its propensity to keep the Helium gas from leaking for several weeks because it is less porus. Foil balloons also have the benefit of being light weight, longer-lasting with increased buoyancy. They are ideal for special celebrations, in-store displays, parties and for gifts. At my Mum’s 90′th birthday celebration last month my daughter brought along a foil balloon with 90 printed on it to add to the occasion .Mylar balloons or foil balloons can also be manufactured into star shapes and can be printed with designs to advertise a company.
Balloons Shaped as Animals
Animal shaped balloons are ade from metalized nylon which can easily be cut into pieces so that when stuck 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 attractive items make a very bright decorative impact for that special event. Balloons in animal shapes may be used as gifts or as a talking point at your special event. Balloons shaped like animals can make a great birthday gift for a child as an extra treat.
Balloon Rockets
Inflating a balloon and letting it go before tying it is as game most kids play at some time or another (and adults too)! The rude noise it makes generally has all but the really stone faced falling about laughing as it shoots around the building in a random manner. This game is teaching the children basically how a rocket works and they are called balloon rockets. As a child I can remember being fascinated as I learned how they worked.
When the mouth of the balloon is released, the balloon contracts so that the greater pressure of air inside is forced out causing the balloon to be propelled forward. This is in essence how a rocket works. The balloon can also be inflated with different gases other than air, providing the same effect. Balloon rockets are a widely used a learning aid to demonstrate the principles in science of the functioning of a rocket. The balloon rocket is also regularly used to demonstrate Newton’s third law in physics. Kids can have hours of fun playing with balloons as a balloon rocket. The unpredictability of where they will go adds much laughter to the game.
Balloons and Water
The water balloons are obviously filled with water and are intended for youngsters to fling at each other as a game or practical joke with the aim of getting each other soaking wet. They are often not as big as normal sized balloons and made from weaker rubber so that they can be easily broken.
Balloons Filled with Helium Gas
The reason Helium balloons float upwards is because they are filled with Helium gas which is less dense than air. So for an event where balloons are set off into the atmosphere, 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 leaks 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. There are many companies who deal in wholesale balloons so look online to find the right company to suit your requirements.
Sculptures from Balloons
Balloon Sculptures are made from 100’s 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 constructed so they are possible. These sculptures are usually made and designed by professional balloon modellers as it is a skilled job. Balloon sculptures are really quite restricted because of the shape of the balloons but with intelligent colour choice simple arches or walls can make an impressive design at your party. The balloons need to be precision filled and to do this professional balloon sculptors use electronic equipment to deliver the exact amount of Helium into the balloon. For non-floating balloons air inflators are used. Industrial quality balloons differ from most retail packet balloons as they are larger in size, stronger and made from 100% biodegradable Latex. Sometimes Helium balloons are used as table decorations for weddings which may have 3 or five balloons with an arrangement of flowers. The decoration will normally include curled ribbon tied to a weight to stop the balloons from floating away.
Balloon Modelling and Balloons in Art
Balloon modelling is a fascinating entertainment for children and adults alike and should be confused with balloon sculptures discussed previously. The Latex employed by balloon modellers is made of extra-stretchy rubber so that it can be manipulated and tied without bursting when making the balloon model. A Balloon modelling artist pulls and twists the inflated tubular balloons into shapes resembling animals, people or hats. When I have watched these artists at work I am always anxious that the balloons will pop when they are twisting and tying their creations. These tiny tubular balloons are extremely hard to inflate and often need a pump to get them started, until you have developed the lungs for it.
Dropping Lots of Balloons from a Net
I am sure you will have been to a party or dance where at the end of the evening hundreds of balloons are dropped from the ceiling to create excitement and fun amongst the audience. This is known as 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 creating a festive atmosphere at the party climax, so everyone goes away feeling they have had a really great evening. By printing messages or logos on the balloons they can also be an advertising tool at the event.
It is easy enough to setup your own balloon drop for your special event as long as you have a room with high enough ceilings. Firstly you will need to set up a large plastic bag or net overhead, which is suspended at the required height, to hold the balloons. Get your friends to help with inflating balloons as it can take a long time to do the number needed. Then insert the inflated balloons into the container and make sure the opening works so that the balloons will drop onto the target area below when they are released. You will also need to create a mechanism for releasing the balloons, and make sure you have thoroughly tested it so everything goes to plan at the big moment. Balloon drops Can also be performed at many other celebrations, such as graduations and weddings.
Balloons used in balloons arches balloon decorators will use balloons made from stronger Latex than normal balloons.
Releasing Balloons on Mass
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 preparing a balloon release involving 5,000 balloons, it is an obligation that you apply in writing for permission to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) at least 28 days before the event. 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
Balloon Safety and The Environment
Latex is a natural product from rubber trees that are cultivated in certain areas of the tropics, so balloons are completely environmentally friendly being made of natural rubber Latex (NRL). These trees are not cleared to produce the NRL. The NRL is released by tapping older plants and is an indespensible sustainable crop providing jobs for many agricultural workers in some of the poorest regions of the world. Latex is a sustainable harvest that is good for the environment and the economy of the country in which the rubber trees are grown.
The planting and maintenance of rubber tree plantations contributes 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 construction. One of the great by-products of NRL cultivation is the appreciable contribution to the reduction of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere that is produced by industrialised nations and is a major source of global warming. The tropical regions in which rubber trees grow are often in some of the poorest parts of the world, so an industry from such a sustainable source is a vital income for the population.
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 delight and excitement for many years at celebratory events such as parties, product launches and conferences throughout the world. They have been an educational resource 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.
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