10 Facts About Bubble Wrap
Bubble wrap provides a sturdy barrier against impacts, making it ideal for keeping goods safe during transit, which often includes rough handling
There aren't many things more satisfying than taking a sheet of bubble wrap and popping those bubbles one after another. Aside from its propensity to relieve stress, bubble wrap is used to protect fragile items during transit. Yet, bubble wrap is a product with a unique history. Here's our ten facts about bubble wrap that you didn't know before.
1. Intended Originally As Wallpaper
That's right, originally, bubble wrap was created to be used as wallpaper. In the 1950s, two inventors named Alfred Fielding and Marc Chavannes created bubble wrap as a three-dimensional wallpaper. However, the idea didn't take off. Forcing to switch gears, they discovered that bubble wrap made great packaging material. In 1960, they created the company Sealed Air (a play on words of how air is trapped inside the hemispheres on a bubble wrap sheet.)
2. Used By Actors To Stuff Their Backpacks On Film Sets
The days can be long for actors when filming a film and if a scene calls for an actor carrying a weighted backpack, those days can be painful. However, Hollywood has a solution to this problem. Instead of real items, bubble wrap is stuffed into backpacks, giving them a filled appearance and easing the strain across the actor's shoulders.
3. Stopped A Giant Pumpkin From Exploding
In 2000, the organisers of a Pumpkin dropping contest in Iowa, USA, decided to hold a potentially messy test. Could bubble wrap protect a giant 812kg Gourdzilla pumpkin from destruction when dropped from a 35-foot-tall crane? Donning waterproof jackets and visors, the test went ahead. The pumpkin fell, landed on a sheet of bubble wrap and remained in one piece.
Bubble wrap can be reused multiple times as long as the bubbles are intact, offering an eco-friendly packaging option and potential cost savings, especially for businesses that handle returns
4. Has Had Roles In Major Films Most Actors Would Die For
Here's a partial list of films where Bubble Wrap has starred in:
Wall-E
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult
Liar, Liar
Dude, Where’s My Car
5. Was Used As A Wedding Dress
Rachel Robinson, a primary school teacher from Toft, near Bourne, Lincolnshire, in 2010, ditched wearing a traditional cloth-based dress, opting instead for a wedding dress manufactured from bubble wrap. The dress was created to celebrate an end-of-term recycling project at her school.
6. Can Be Used As Insulation
Following their failure to market bubble wrap as 3d wallpaper, Alfred Fielding and Marc Chavannes successfully used bubble wrap to insulate greenhouses, as the product retained heat. However, the idea failed to be implemented by companies in the agriculture sector. Despite this, bubble wrap can still be used to trap heat from escaping by applying it around windows. For it to work, you must fight the urge to pop the bubbles.
7. Has Its Own Holiday
January 27 is Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day when folks worldwide show their love for bubble wrap by destroying it and gaining satisfaction at the same time.
8. Allows For A Better Night’s Sleep On A Camping Trip
For people unfamiliar with sleeping outdoors or inside a tent, bubble wrap can help you to sleep better and keep warm. Simply slide a large piece of bubble wrap under your sleeping bag. The bubble wrap will act as an insulator, providing warmth and moisture protection.
9. Stops Pipes From Freezing
Frozen pipes in winter can be a nightmare, though by using bubble wrap, you can avoid this from happening. Using tape, affix multiple layers of bubble wrap around pipe sections prone to freezing, and thanks to their insulation qualities, bubble wrap will keep those areas warm and stop them from freezing.
Being mostly air, bubble wrap is one of the lightest packaging materials available, which can lead to significant savings in shipping costs, particularly when shipping items in bulk
10. Cushions Office Chairs
Sitting for long periods on worn-out office chairs can not only be painful on the body but bad for your health as well. There is, however, a cheap and quick-fire way of increasing cushioning support on old chairs. Tape multiple layers of bubble wrap into a square shape and then attach the piece to whichever area of your chair needs extra support, be it the seat or the lumbar area.
