Balloonplace Balloon and Delivery Facts

Latex and mylar (foil or metallic) balloons pose no threat to the environment, humans or wildlife when they are handled in a responsible manner.

All of our latex balloons are friendly to the environment and are 100% biodegradable.

This does not mean though that you should release them into the air. After your party or event is over, they should be disposed of in a proper trash receptacle.

Latex balloons are the standard elastic type rubber balloons. Latex balloons are usually inflated with a gas known as helium. Latex is a porous material which when inflated can only hold the helium gas for about 10 to 18 hours, this time varies and is dependent on local conditions. Mylar balloons are made of a non-porous material and can hold the helium for up to two weeks.

Latex balloons are made from a milky soap found in the Hevae Brasiliensis tree, this is a 100 percent natural substance that will break down both in sunlight and water. The degradation process begins almost immediately once they are removed from their factory sealed package. The balloons will exhibit oxidation, a frosting effect that happens to latex balloons after a while; it is one of the first signs of this process. Exposure to sunlight quickens this degradation process, but even at night tiny microorganisms attack natural latex once they have been removed from their sealed packages. Under similar environmental conditions, latex balloons will biodegrade at about the same rate as a leaf from an oak tree. The actual degradation time will vary depending on the precise conditions, but it can be as short as several weeks.

Not unlike any other latex or plastic bags, broken or uninflated latex balloons can cause harm to very young children and should be disposed of immediately.

Children under the age of 7 should be under constant adult supervision while playing with latex balloons.

We strongly recommend you not order latex balloons for delivery to hospitals; many hospitals and institutions do not allow such deliveries, choose instead a non-alergenic alternative like mylar (foil) balloons to compliment your special message mylar balloon. We have many different solid color and special shape mylars to choose from.

Foil balloons, also referred to as metallic or mylar and are actually two sheets of plastic (polyethylene) and nylon that are sandwiched together, then coated with a thin layer of aluminum. Mylar balloons first appeared in New York City in the late 70's and quickly became popular worldwide. A mylar balloon can float 30 times longer than a standard latex balloon, but the float time depends on just how well the two sheets of plastic were sealed at the factory and the altitude. Most foil (mylar) balloons will not float at altitudes over 6500 feet. Foil (metallic) balloons are not biodegradable and they can (and will) conduct electricity, they should never be released outdoors because they could become entangled with power lines and lead to power outages.

Helium is nonflammable and non-explosive, but do not inhale helium. Helium displaces oxygen necessary for life and can cause headaches, dizziness, labored breathing, and eventual unconsciousness.

Helium is actually an environmentally friendly gas, it is non-flammable, non-toxic and non-radioactive. It is the second most abundant element in the Universe. However, on Earth, Helium is very rare. In the USA it is mined, or more precisely, drilled for in the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles from natural gas wells that also happen to be encased in radioactive rock. The rocks decay over millions and millions of years and, in the course of that decay, they release a non-radioactive by-product know as Helium one molecule at a time! The Helium gas accumulates in the same pocket that produces the natural gas. Both are recovered together and then later separated.

Balloons are not intended for children under the age of 3. Balloons that have not been inflated can cause suffocation if swallowed. Never attach balloons to a crib or a child's bed. Balloons with ribbons can cause strangulation of children under 3 years old.

Approximate Float Time For Helium Filled Balloons
Size/Type	Flying Time	With High Float
9"/Latex	6-12 hours	NA
11"/Latex	10-16 hours	2-3 Days
12"/Latex	12-24 hours	3-4 Days
16"/Latex	18-36 hours	4-7 Days
24"/Latex	22-44 hours	5-10 Days
36"/Latex	24-36 hours	6-12 Days
18"/Mylar	2-4 Weeks	NA
36"/Mylar	3-6 Weeks	NA

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Reservations

We require a booking fee (retainer) when placing an order, planning your event or party. We do not mearly call it a deposit; it is your guarantee that we will reserve a particular date and time for your event or party, what we need from you is a non-refundable event reservation fee. We require a 50% reservation fee on all scheduled events and parties.

Unless something unavoidable should happen like a blizzard, flood, or hurricane. Your reservation fee to book your event is non-refundable.

You are asking us to be somewhere at a given date and time, to supply you with fresh merchandise and have the appropriate equipment and experienced personnel available to make your event exactly what you had planned. By placing a non-refundable reservation fee, we are entering into a contract, we in turn agree to provide you with our services.

Please make sure that the arrangements for delivery are explicit as there are extra charges if no one is home at the time of delivery or pick up, or for delivery or pick up at other than ground level.

You will need to supply us with the proper address, contact person, date and time of your event. Should we make delivery and the recipient is not present at the time of the delivery, the balloons and or arrangement will be left in the safest place with a card denoting to whom they are being sent to.

Sorry, but we cannot redeliver and are not responsible for theft.

If you contract us to be at a given location at a specific date and time and we are either not allowed to set-up or deliver there will be an additional charge for re-delivery at our discretion. If we show up at the designated place at the designated time and are either refused access or are made to wait, a detention charge may be invoked if our delivery person decides to wait until access is granted.

There are no COD's.

The full amount of the agreed price is due at least 2 business days before your event or party is to take place. On orders that require us to make a local delivery, or to set up an event that is scheduled to happen in less than 48 hours, the full amount of the agreed price must be paid by secured funds before we can make delivery; there are no exceptions.

For all outdoor parties and events there must be a bad weather contingency plan in case of foul weather. This means it is your responsibility to schedule an alternate indoor site should weather conditions not permit your party or event from being held outdoors.

When it rains we still have to work, when it is sunny and warm we still must work, we don't run off to the shore to bask in the sun and leave you guessing whether we will deliver or not on sunny days.

Business is business, if you schedule us to be somewhere at a given date and time, we will be there whether it rains or shines. We have been delivering balloons since 1981 to the New York City metropolitan area in good weather as well as bad, in snowstorms, heat waves and heavy rains. If we commit to your party or event it means we agree to turn down others, that is why we call your deposit a booking fee, a retainer or non-refundable event reservation fee.

You are responsible for ALL permits & permissions associated with each job.

Check with the management of hired halls, convention centers, restaurants and parks to make sure they will allow our personnel ample time to deliver or set-up your order. Make sure that they will allow helium filled balloons at your event or party, some convention centers will not allow balloons filled with gas that is lighter than air, some restaurants and hired halls will not allow delivery unless you the customer has made arrangements to have the balloons and or centerpieces removed when your party or event is finished.