Helium's a different matter
I used to use a lot of helium too - in fact "helium evaporator" was more or less my job title for a bit. Any significant disparity between the liquid I collected and the metered gas I returned brought a furious technician to my lab door with forthright suggestions about my gas seals and my parentage.
(ubergeekian, Wed 21 Sep 2011, 12:07, 1 reply)

This reminds me
of helping fill a superconducting electromagnet with liquid helium.

I was on work experience (back when I was 16) at a university and they let me play with high intensity lasers, cray computers, superconductors, extreme vacuums and liquid helium.

Not at the same time, unfortunately, that WOULD have been fun...
(Imaginary Ed was dreamed up on, Wed 21 Sep 2011, 13:50, closed)

There's a 1 kW unshielded laser lying around in one of my labs
it's aimed at the door. as you do. Fun times.
( the mighty badger Aphrodite, on a bar stool, by your side, Wed 21 Sep 2011, 14:06, closed)

Liquid helium
is an awful good way of making high (if not very extreme) vacuums. Cryopumping, it's called. ah, happy days and great fun.
(ubergeekian, Wed 21 Sep 2011, 16:35, closed)