Introduction to Balloons
The word ‘Balloons’ conjures up ideas 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 key 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 quite an odd item. It is something that stretches 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-flexible material but modern balloons have great elasticity because they are made of Latex and can be pumped up to create much larger sizes than earlier ones. Balloons come in many different sizes and colours and can brighten up any event and create a festive atmosphere.
Balloons Throughout History
The first 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. Early balloons were made of animal guts and were turned into play things for the local community.
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 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 everyday Latex balloon did not appear until eighteen forty seven. 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 occur until 100 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 accommodate the event.
Some balloons are purely for decoration, others are ideal for individual functions 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 Types of Balloons
Balloons for Parties
The most common types of balloons are the ones we are used to seeing at parties, particularly a child’s party. These are frequently 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 varying sizes and colours and can have printing on sometimes which expands as the balloon is inflated. Party balloons are generally made of natural Latex tapped from rubber trees. The rubber’s elasticity makes the dimensions variable. Balloons filled with air usually hold their size and shape much longer than those filled with Helium.This is because Helium particles are so small they can escape between the Latex molecules, apparently!
Mainly balloons get filled with air or Helium gas. Other gases are too dangerous to use.
Balloons made of Foil
The foil balloon or Mylar balloons first appeared during the late 1970s. They are slightly more high priced than Latex balloons and are made of thin non-stretch metalized plastic film or Mylar. The first time I had ever seen them was when they made an appearance at the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer and they caused quite a stir. Foil balloons have a nice shiny reflective surfaces and can be finished with colour images, branding and styles to customise them. The most useful aspect of metalized nylon for balloons is its capability to prevent the Helium gas from leaking for several weeks because it is less porus. Foil balloons also have the advantage of being light weight, longer-lasting with increased buoyancy. They are best for extraordinary celebrations, in-store decorations, parties and for gifts. At our gran’s 90′th birthday celebration in April my son’s financee brought along a foil balloon with 90 printed on it to add to the occasion .
Balloons Shaped as Animals
Animal shaped balloons are ade from metalized nylon which can easily be cut into pieces so that when sewn 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 spectacular balloons make a very bright decorative show for that special event. Balloons in animal shapes may be used as gifts or as a talking point at your special event.
Rockets from Balloons
Blowing up a balloon and letting it go without tying it is as game most youngsters enjoy at some time or another (and adults too)! The rude noise it makes always has most people falling about laughing as it speeds all over the room. This demonstration is an experiment in how a rocket works and they are called balloon rockets. As a child I can remember being enthralled 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, resulting inthe same effect. Balloon rockets are a widely used a teaching device to demonstrate the principles in science of the operation of a rocket. The balloon rocket is also regularly used to demonstrate Newton’s third law in physics.
Water Balloons
The water balloons are obviously filled with water and are intended for youngsters to lob at each other as a game or practical joke with the aim of getting each other wet through. They are normally smaller than normal sized balloons and made from weaker rubber so that they can be easily broken.
Helium Filled Balloons
The reason Helium balloons float in to the sky is because they are filled with Helium gas which is lighter than air. So for an event where balloons are set off into the air, they will all be Helium filled balloons. If the Helium balloons are rubber balloons they generally only retain their buoyancy for a few days. This is because the Latex has tiny holes that are bigger than the enclosed Helium atoms so the Helium gradually escapes. To increase the life span of a Helium balloon the inside of the balloons can be coated with a special polymer solution which lessens the leakage of the Helium for a week or more. The term Helium balloons means that the balloons are filled with Helium instead of air so that they rise up and float away.
Balloon Sculpting
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 built so they are possible. These works of art are usually made and designed by professional party decorators as it is a very skilled job. Balloon sculptures are really quite limited because of the round shape of the balloons but with intelligent colour choice simple arches or walls can make an impressive design at your gathering. The balloons need to be precision filled with exactly the same amount of gas and to do this professional balloon party decorators use precision pumps to deliver the exact amount of Helium into the balloon. For non-floating balloons air inflators are used. Professional grade balloons differ from most retail packet balloons as they are larger in size, stronger and made from one hundred percent biodegradable Latex. Sometimes Helium balloons are used as table decorations for special events which may have 3 or five balloons with an arrangement of flowers. The decoration will usually include curled ribbon with an added weight to stop the balloons from floating away.
Balloon Art and Modelling
Balloon modelling is a fantastic entertainment for children and adults alike and is not to be confused with balloon sculptures discussed above. The Latex employed by balloon modellers 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 of 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 handy work. 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 night a load 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 events 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 away feeling they have had a really great evening.
It is easy enough to create your own balloon drop for that special event as long as you have a room with enough height. To begin with 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 other organisers to lend a hand 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 let go. 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 event advertising balloons make a terrific way to get your name out there.
Balloon Releases
Due to concerns about the impact on the environment of a large number of balloons being released, the NABAS – The Balloon Association have produced a code of practise that is available on their website at www.nabas.co.uk
If you are preparing a balloon race in excess of 5,000 balloons, it is a pre-requisite 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 obtained 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 an organic product obtained from rubber trees that are grown in certain regions of the tropics, so balloons are completely organic being manufactured from natural rubber Latex (NRL). These trees are not harvested to produce the NRL. The NRL is obtained by tapping mature trees and is an important sustainable crop providing employment for many agricultural labourers in some of the poorest regions of the world.
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 may very well become just another victim of the clearance of land for arable use. One of the great benefits of NRL cultivation is the considerable contribution to the removal 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.
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 entertainment 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?
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