Did you blow all of those up with your lungs? - Club manger.

What's funny when doing a house or apartment prank, is that the people outside of the company almost always knee-jerk the question "did you blow all of these balloons up yourself"? Obviously we did - but the question is actually more geared with the idea that we used our lips and lungs to inflate hundreds of 11", 16", 20", 3' and 20' balloons. Obviously this isn't the case - but we don't use "air compressors" either. What is used in the profession are - basially - a vacuum cleaner motor stuck into a shell of some kind, with enough compression to inflate a balloon. This sounds obvious, but most typical vacuum cleaners don't provide the necessary pressure - and air compressors don't have enough flow or available volume to quickly do a multi-hundred balloon gig.

Now, if you've heard me bash Qualatex in the past, it's not only because of shyster marketing programs - but also because there's a truism that applies to them. They make great balloons - in a wide assortment of colors and sizes. That's it. If you find them trying to sell you an inflator or a decorator book - run away as fast as you can. The product they and other hack hardware orgs sell are either overpriced, or of such a shoddy nature that I've had them actually fail in the middle of a gig - requireing an on-site overhaul that delays the production process. Then there was finally a well designed product from a company that makes nothing but balloon related hardware. Conwin Carbonic. I'd provide a link to their site - but their URL has been in the deadzone for 2 years, as "coming soon" - so I thought I'd throw a little bit of good karma their way here (as well as tell you how cool this toy actually is).

For a professional balloonatic, Conwin Carbonic is the Rolls Royce of hardware. The stuff works, takes a beating, and can shorten the set-up time of any event exponentially. The funny thing is their designs are so simple - I'm left wondering why the hell no one thought of this stuff before. The Air Force 3 inflator is a bucket. Similar to a large paint bucket with a large ventelated motor inside. They then attach three micro-grilled nozzles that are replaceable on the outside of a top-mounted air vent that stays cleaner than a top and bottem vent system. Combine that with an industrial strength power cord that reaches as far as most "extension cords", and a continual flow design (rather than a pressure trigger), and you've got a device that can inflate more than 100 16" balloons in less than 15 minutes, or 300 11" balloons in nearly 10 minutes.

The result is a tool in Balloon Squared's larder that can fill a room, create a cloud contruct, build a balloon drop in hours - or usually minutes. That means that it won't take us days to bang your event into shape, or even nearly as long as most decorators since they're usually restricted to one nozzle. We can do it in a third of the time since - quite simply - we have three times the jets available for willing hands that can do your even faster than Fed-Ex. Another product note - it's also faster than hell - because it's louder than hell. You don't get slow-poke results from a device that carries a warning in big, bold letters that workers MUST wear hearing protection when using the device. If you want us to decorate a library - choose another company. Just don't pick one that you'll have to pay by the hour for.

For proof, the 15 foot weather balloon displayed took less than 5 minutes to inflate for a private New Year's party. The shot of balloons extending to the ceiling behind the nylon netting? All 3000 worth? Was done in less than 8 hours with just one and two alternating pairs of hands. Imagine if it was three pairs of continual hands! The Balloon Drop net that shows the "bully bucket of blow" on the side? 6 Hours for 1500 16" balloons. Could have been done faster if it weren't for logistical details outlined in the portfolio section. And the balloon cloud cluster that was done on the ceiling of the Denver Lodo nightclub formerly known as "I Beam", less than 3 hours for over 600 16" balloons and assorted 3 footers. That one also could have gone faster if one of the crew members hadn't gotten approval from the club owners to test his mettle behind the bar for the rest of the crew. The project was good to go on deadline and on budget estimate, but certainly there was plenty of hangovers to go around afterwards.

Proof that if you have the right tools - you not only end up with a job being done faster, but with enough time left over for labor to actually have fun doing it. A win-win situation that Balloon Squared has in it's corporate charter and philosphy. If we have fun, the work looks like fun, the client's customers have fun. Otherwise - why do it? The Air Force 3 is a lot of fun. Fly us.
-mgabrys

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