We have recently moved these pages to the newly created Q & A section of our site, for your convenience. Here, you will be able to find some answers to questions that may arise when you are contemplating decor for your next party. Questions,
for example, about balloons and their float times or the environmental
issues related to releasing balloons outdoors. This section
will provide you with as much information as we can gather,
in hopes of settling to rest some myths about the party and
event decor industry and balloons as a decorating tool.
We
would like to thank Qualatex and the dedicated people at The
Balloon Council for a lot of the information pertaining to
balloons.
Helium
Safety Precautions:
click HERE for detailed HELIUM
SAFETY AND SPEC SHEET
-
DO
NOT allow anyone to inhale helium from the filling equipment
or from balloons. Rapid suffocation can take place by reducing
the concentration of oxygen in the air necessary to support
life. Inhaling helium causes headaches, dizziness, labored
breathing, and eventually unconsciousness, which could cause
serious lung damage which could result in death.
-
DO
NOT leave cylinder unattended in a public area.
-
DO
NOT use leaky equipment.
-
ALWAYS
secure the cylinder to prevent it from falling over.
-
ALWAYS
use the cylinder cap, for aluminum tanks make sure there
is a cylinder handle, when transporting cylinders. If cylinder
falls and the valve breaks, the cylinder can act like a
missile and cause injury or damage.
Balloon
Safety:
-
Balloons
are not intended for children under 3 years old. Balloons
that have not been inflated can cause suffocation if swallowed.
-
Children
should never inflate helium balloons without adult supervision.
-
Certain
institutions, such as Childrens Hospitals, will not allow
latex balloons in the building because of a concern over
the choking hazards involved when a young child puts a piece
of latex in their mouth. For these types of places, mylar
( foil ) balloons are a much better alternative - they last
longer and are much safer; please inform yourself with the
hospital administration prior to sending balloons of any
kind.
-
Although
safer for children, mylar ( foil ) balloons do require certain
precautions. The foil used in mylar balloons conducts electricity.
A few stray mylar balloons released outdoors may come in
contact with electric cables and as a result, potentially
cause damage and/or power loss to affected properties. Mylar
balloons should be used indoors and be properly weighted
to prevent their release in the air. The same applies to
regular helium-filled balloons attached to metallic curling
ribbon. California law prohibits the use of foil/metallic
string or ribbon, or other attachments that conduct electricity,
with helium-filled latex or foil balloons, regardless of
whether the balloons are for indoor or outdoor use. Foil
balloons and metallic ribbon has been known to cause power
outages when balloons become entangled in power lines.
Balloon
Facts: ( Special thanks to our friends at
Qualatex, our choice for balloons )
-
Qualatex
latex balloons are made from 100% natural latex — not
plastic. Their latex balloons are biodegradable, and decompose
as fast as an oak leaf in your backyard!
-
Latex balloons come from rubber trees. Latex is collected
by cutting the tree’s bark, then catching the latex
in a cup. Latex harvesting doesn’t hurt the tree!
-
Latex balloons are Earth-friendly! Rubber trees grow in rain
forests. Latex harvesting discourages deforestation because
latex-producing trees are left intact. A tree can produce
latex for up to 40 years!
-
If
the sound of a balloon popping startles you, you’re
not alone. A bursting balloon actually creates a small sonic
boom! Once a hole is made in an inflated balloon, the quick
release of the balloon’s energy, or air, causes the
hole to grow at almost the speed of sound in rubber. Since
this speed is much higher than the speed of sound in air,
the hole in the balloon actually breaks the sound barrier,
creating a sonic boom.
-
Balloons were invented in 1824, the same year as the electromagnet.
-
Helium-filled balloons float because helium is lighter than
nitrogen and oxygen, the two components of air.
Balloon
Origin: ( Special thanks to the Balloon
Council )
Balloons,
in one form or another, have been around for centuries. But
the modern latex balloon ( the kind you can blow up yourself
) was invented in New England during the Great Depression.
A
chemical engineer, frustrated in his attempts to make inner
tubes from this new product, (liquid latex ) scrawled a cat’s
head on a piece of cardboard and dipped it in the latex. When
it dried, Neil Tillotson had a “cat balloon,”
complete with ears. He made about 2,000 balloons and sold
them on the street during Boston’s annual Patriot Day
parade.
In
the late 1970s, silver metalized balloons were developed for
the New York City Ballet. These balloons are commonly called
Mylar, but they are actually made from a metalized nylon and
are more expensive than latex balloons.
Releasing
Balloons & The Environment: (
Special thanks to the Balloon Council )
Often
latex balloons are released either on purpose or accidentally.
Research shows that most of these latex balloons—the
ones that are well-tied and have no structural flaws—rise
to an altitude of about five miles, where they freeze, breaking
into spaghetti-like pieces that scatter as they return to
earth. While we do know that animals occasionally eat these
soft slivers of rubber, the evidence indicates that pieces
ultimately pass through the digestive system without harming
the animal.
Although
many stories have been repeated about sea creatures dying
from balloons, extensive research by the industry and reporters
has yet to verify one such story. In one study of 439 dead
sea cows over an 8-year period, Cathy Beck of the U.S. Fish
& Wildlife Service did not find a single balloon inside
a single deceased sea cow. The
most frequently cited case is one in which the Marine Mammal
Stranding Center in Brigantine, NJ found a balloon in the
intestinal track of a dead sea turtle. Bob Schoelkopf, the
director of the Center, has said himself that the balloon
could not be identified as the cause of death.
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