Above: Doug Robertson inflates his 77,000 cf balloon using his 24-inch Honda GX200 VENTRY Fan. Balloons make for the most beautiful photographic subjects, don’t they?

Doug and his balloon - and his VENTRY Fan - are featured in an expose on YouTube! Click here to watch (it opens in a new window).

(Photo used with the permission of Mike Bollea and Mark Sand)

Above: 24-inch VENTRY Fan with Honda GX160 engine beginning to inflate Mark Sand’s 88,000 cfm balloon.

Thanks to Connecticut pilots Mike Bollea and Mark Sand for this picture, the one on the Inflation page, and the next three, as well as for their permission to share them here!

Below: Excellent illustration of how far away to set the VENTRY Inflator Fan. Note: Always run VENTRY Fans with legs fully extended to get the most air, preserve your propeller, and keep your crew and balloon safe. We also recommend setting the fan back 1.5 times the diameter of the throat (or height of a doorway, as the case may be). For instance, if the throat is 10 feet, set the fan back 15. You can experiment, as Mark has, to find the ideal positioning for your balloon.

You can just barely see the VENTRY Fan in the lower right corner of this shot.

(Photo used with the permission of Mike Bollea and Mark Sand)

Looking from the inside out at Mark Sand’s 24GX160 during inflation.

(Photo used with the permission of Mike Bollea and Mark Sand)

South Dakota balloonist Gary Palmer flies this Cloudhopper and uses a 20-inch VENTRY Inflation Fan. Here is his setup.

(Photo used with the permission of Gary Palmer)