What should I do if the balloon started to deflate after delivery?

Some settling is normal, and the material tells you how much. Latex is porous and loses helium continuously, so a plain latex balloon sinks within hours while a HiFloat-treated one lasts into the following days. Foil should hold gas for days, so a foil balloon dropping the same evening is a sign of a real problem.

Before assuming a defect, look at the room. Cold air blowing straight from an air conditioner contracts the gas and the balloon visibly shrinks, then recovers when it warms up. Direct sun through a window heats and stretches the latex, a rough ceiling or a hot spotlight abrades and softens the surface, and a knot or valve that was not sealed properly lets helium escape steadily.

A foil balloon that has simply run down can be refilled through its valve and reused, which is not possible with latex. If a set began sinking within a few hours of handover and none of the conditions above apply, treat it as a fault and get in touch with us.

• Move the balloons away from air conditioner airflow and direct sunlight
• Keep them off rough ceilings and away from hot spotlights
• Check that knots are tight and foil valves fully sealed
• Let a cold-shrunken balloon warm up before deciding it is faulty
• Foil can be topped up with helium and reused; latex cannot

If a set sank far too early, tell us through the contact page.