Tethering from the roof rather than the parking lot solves two problems at once: the balloon starts higher, and it stops eating a parking space.
Why the roof
A flat commercial roof gives you a clean anchor point with nothing to snag, and it adds your building height to the balloon’s altitude before the tether even starts.
It also keeps the tether out of reach of the public, which removes the most common cause of trouble in a busy lot. Nobody walks into a rooftop tether.
What it takes to hold one
Net lift on the 13-foot blimp is about three pounds. That is the whole load. A sandbag, a ballast block or a solid tie-off to existing rooftop steel is enough.
You are not engineering an anchor for an aircraft. The mistake people make is over-thinking the anchor and under-thinking the forecast.
The rule that matters more than the anchor
If winds over 25 miles per hour are forecast, bring it in. Not when the wind arrives, when it is forecast.
Wind is what takes balloons. Normal use does not wear them out in any way you will notice, and customers are still flying the same balloon after fourteen years. Almost every serious loss traces back to somebody deciding to ride out a forecast.
On a roof this matters twice over, because retrieving a balloon that has wrapped itself around rooftop equipment is a bad afternoon.
Height and the FAA
We fly at 120 feet above the ground. Below 150 feet the FAA is not involved, so 120 leaves margin and keeps the paperwork at zero.
Within five miles of controlled airspace, call the local tower and ask permission. In forty years we have never been refused. Johnny Mulder, who runs the company, holds an FAA commercial pilot certificate, which is why that answer is specific.
Check your city’s sign ordinance separately. Local rules vary and they are not the FAA’s business.
Ask for a quote. Call 1-800-791-1445 or email sales@arizonaballoon.com and tell us the size and whether you want it printed.
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