Alright, so today I tackled this thing with my old helium tank from last year’s birthday party. Gotta figure out if there’s any juice left before buying a whole new one. Started by hauling that heavy metal cylinder outta the garage, dust flying everywhere. Man, that thing looked ancient.
Gear Gathering
Rummaged through my toolbox for the hose attachment kit. Found this adapter piece I bought online ages ago – cheap plastic thing with sketchy instructions printed in like 4-point font. Grabbed my kitchen scale too, since my bathroom one only goes up to 300 pounds. Pro tip? Weigh before attaching anything.
Initial Check Fumble
First mess-up: Forgot to close the tank valve before connecting the hose. Heard that scary PSSSSH sound when I screwed it on. Panic-unhooked everything real quick while yelling bad words. Second try? Valve closed tight. Hooked up the adapter with Teflon tape like the YouTube guy showed. Still felt janky though – kept imagining gas spewing everywhere.
The Weigh-In
Slid the scale under the tank bare. Reading said 14.3 pounds. Checked the crappy label on the tank neck – total weight when empty should be 13.8 pounds. Did the math in my head twice: 14.3 minus 13.8 equals… half a pound of gas left? That can’t be right for party balloons. Maybe my math sucks? Maybe the scale’s busted?
Pressure Test
Figured I’d test the old-fashioned way. Slowly cracked open the valve with a balloon on the hose end. Watched it inflate slooooowly like dying octopus. Took like two minutes for a medium balloon. Last year? Five seconds tops. Confirmed my scale math wasn’t totally whack – definitely running on fumes.
The Verdict
Less than 20% gas left. Could maybe fill ten more balloons if I squeeze hard? Not worth saving. Lesson learned: Helium tanks don’t sit well for months. Should’ve sold it on marketplace when I had the chance. Ended up draining leftover gas into random balloons for my kid to mess with. Floating balloon fights beat video games any day.