Why do I need a heat-sealer?

There are dozens of mini foil balloons on the market but not all are self-sealing. For those that aren’t, a heat-sealer is required. Heat-sealers are handy gadgets with a number of other uses as well. For more information about mini foil balloons and other uses for a heat-sealer, see our blog on Mini Foil Balloons.

How-To:

1. Plug in the heat-sealer and select the right setting for the job
2. Inflate your mini foil balloon with and the neck tightly with your thumb to hold in the air
3. Place the neck of the balloon onto the lower surface of the heat-sealer as high up the neck as possible
4. Bring the top handle down to make contact
5. After you hear the click of the thermostat reaching temperature, wait a couple of seconds more before breaking contact*
6. Release the top handle and take out your nicely sealed balloon!

*At this point, if you want to follow Top Tip 3 below to ‘seal and slide’, slightly release the pressure of the top handle whilst still maintaining contact and pull the neck of the balloon slowly through the contact surfaces to create a wider seal.

Top Tips

1. Do not put it on too high a setting; if the balloon is exposed to too much heat it will melt. We use a setting of 2-2.5 for foil balloons but you may need to experiment with your new heat-sealer.

2. If you’re intending to put the balloons on sticks, try to seal the balloon as close the balloons as possible. If you seal it at the bottom of the neck, you’ll find air is trapped in the neck making it more difficult to tie snugly into the cup.

3. You can seal balloons in one straight line across the base of the balloon, however, with a bit of practice, if you can ‘seal and slide’, it creates a wider sealed ‘band’ across the neck of the balloon which a) should help to avoid a weak point in the neck (particularly important if you’re pulling the balloon tightly for a snug fit onto a cup and stick) and b) create a stronger seal.

4. The heat-sealer is safe to leave plugged in as it does not get hot until the two plates make contact.

5. The heat-sealer we supply comes with a spare Teflon strip which covers the bottom plate. After a while, you will find that this strip will need to be replaced when residue from sealed balloons sticks to the surface. This happens over time but may occur more quickly if the setting has been too high (similar to an iron really!).

As well as sealing foil balloons, heat-sealers are really useful for:

• Sealing a ‘normal’ sized foil balloon which has a faulty valve
• Bespoke shape, such as creating a vertical seal in a star foil to make a holly leaf!
• Re-sealing bags of balloons which have become open

It may take some practice but investing in a heat-sealer and going the extra mile will provide you with a whole range of extra options. Happy sealing!

James