A 39" diameter balloon takes 27% more helium to fill than a 36" diameter balloon; 18.0 CF vs. 14.1 CF. However, most 36" balloons are inflated to about 33", which takes 10.9 CF. For the five days of Kibbie, John figured about 30CF per person/balloon which is one fill at 10-15CF and 3-4 top offs at 3-5CF each. This leaves some extra for replacing burst balloons. The two tanks rented/bought for Kibbie will have just over 500CF total.
The Mylar balloons you see some people using are specially made for indoor use. Ray Harlan made a batch for the use by the US indoor team some years back. Bob Bailey made many of the ones used by the Europeans. Bob told me a while back that he could still make one for purchase at a cost of over $200. Ray's Mylar balloons take about 14CF to fill, I think. If there are no holes (doubtful after this long), the Mylar balloons hold helium better than many latex balloons.
Leo
--- In Indoor_Construction_at_yahoogroups.com, Jake Palmer <82.jake@...> wrote:
>
> From what I see online the 100 gram balloons are only designed to be
> inflated to 39". Are they that much bigger than a 36" balloon?
>
>
> On Wed, Mar 27, 2013 at 5:52 PM, Nick Ray <lasray_at_...> wrote:
>
> > **
> >
> >
> > A standard 36" balloon is more than adequate for Kibbie.
> >
> > The 100g balloons both take too much helium and have a habit of floating
> > away with their backer rod and reel attached.
> >
> >
> > On Wed, Mar 27, 2013 at 7:47 PM, William Gowen <wdgowen_at_...> wrote:
> >
> >> **
> >>
> >>
> >> I haven't seen one of those used for several years. They take a huge
> >> amount of helium which won't make you popular if the helium runs low. I
> >> think the most typical setup is the 36" latex balloon even for Tustin and
> >> Lakehurst.
> >>
> >>
> >> On 3/27/2013 6:58 PM, Jake Palmer wrote:
> >>
> >>
> >> I'll probably go with a weather balloon if I can't find anything larger
> >> in mylar. It looks like a 100 gram latex balloon is about the right size.
> >>
> >>
> >> On Wed, Mar 27, 2013 at 3:53 PM, William Gowen <wdgowen_at_...>wrote:
> >>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> One thing to look out for is that commercial mylar balloons are
> >>> specified by their flat diameter. So a 36" mylar balloon may only be 10" or
> >>> 12" thick when inflated. They work okay for retrieval but probably
> >>> wouldn't have enough lift for steering.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> On 3/27/2013 5:29 PM, Jake Palmer wrote:
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> I have a couple balloons that are probably too old to risk using
> >>> anymore. I know Ray sells balloons, but I'd prefer to go with mylar if
> >>> possible. Is a 36" mylar balloon large enough for a building like the
> >>> Kibbie Dome?
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>
> >>
> >
> >
>
Received on Wed Mar 27 2013 - 19:16:16 CET
This archive was generated by Yannick on Sat Dec 14 2019 - 19:13:47 CET