A Beginner's Guide to Balloons

When it comes to parties, weddings or other fun occasions, one of the things you really need to accomplish is the presence of balloons. However, it's not just regular balloons that can hurt your cheeks when you're struggling to blow them up. We'll take you through some of the standard and helium balloons that exist for your occasion.

Types of Balloons

As you read this article, you will be moving from low quality to high quality, so I will start with standard latex balloons. These balloons are the standard "quality" balloons. They are also the ones that give you a headache and a shaky jaw for blowing up the entire package for your child's birthday party. These balloons are primarily filled with oxygen and do not float on their own, so these balloons are often used with plastic balloon sticks and cups/stands to give the illusion of floating (they also make great harmless game weapons if the right end is used for attack). However, these balloons can be inflated with helium if you wish, but since the skin is not designed for helium, they will last much less time if inflated with helium. These balloons can last 8-10 hours, which is a little longer than the average party.

This brings us to our next generation of balloons, the helium latex balloon. As the name implies, the design of the balloon makes it ideal for helium expansion. Made from a higher quality latex than standard latex balloons, they retain the air inside (in this case helium) for a much longer period of time. As a result, these balloons last much longer than standard latex balloons and have their own float. These balloons can also last 8-10 hours, so if you are deciding between standard latex or helium latex, it really depends on whether you want a floating balloon or a balloon on the end of a plastic stick.

Check out the variety of colors we have in our helium latex balloons

One balloon you may have never heard of is the Hi-Float Latex balloon. This is a term for Helium Latex Balloons, and when they are treated with a special liquid, an extra layer is added to the inside of the balloon to make it long lasting and durable. This can often be thought of as an extra layer of "latex" inside the balloon, trapping the helium inside for longer by extending the retention time of the gas. Balloons treated with Hi-Float can typically float for up to 3 weeks.

As we approached the end of the balloon spectrum, we hit on Foil Balloons, which are non-plastic balloons that often have a variety of printed designs on the front. They are usually sold in closed packages, and unless you have your own helium tank, the store will usually charge you to blow them up using the store's helium tank. These balloons may be slightly wrinkled in appearance at the seams, but they are much less likely to burst than latex balloons. They also usually last longer, 1-4 weeks, depending on size and environment. However, foil balloons can easily burst if left in the hot sun because foil skins are not stretchable like latex.

Finally, we come to the last exhibit, the plastic "bubble" balloons. These are clear, flexible plastic (as the name implies) balloons that are smooth and wrinkle-free. These balloons also come in a variety of printed designs, such as foil balloons, but they also typically have a large number of shape-centric designs. These balloons last the longest of these balloons, reaching a life span of 3-4 weeks.