Electrical Heat Tracing in Warmer Climates
Posted Friday August 18, 2023
Temperature regulation is a major challenge for many industries, and even in warmer climates, unregulated electrical heat tracing can be disastrous. At EHT Group, we work with facilities across North America to ensure that their electrical heat tracing is operating properly, and that their production, output, quality and overall operations are not compromised due to poor electrical heat tracing. Here is how we help customers in warmer climates manage their electrical heat tracing for optimal facility performance with SmartTrace.
Before we jump into managing electrical heat tracing in warmer climates, let’s explain what electrical heat tracing is and how it works.
What is Electrical Heat Tracing?
In order to keep contents flowing through pipes, and facility operations running efficiently, pipe temperatures need to be controlled. When heat is lost from these pipes, it is a threat to operations, and overall production, creating potentially disastrous outcomes such as facility shutdowns, operational upsets and lost revenue. Electrical heat tracing can ensure that pipe temperature is controlled, and prevents such disruptions from occurring. The pipe temperature is usually managed by an electrical heating element that runs alongside the pipe to retain the heat, and heat generated by the element keeps the temperature of the pipe regulated to the desired temperature to ensure the contents run smoothly.
Electrical Heat Tracing in Warmer Climates
Here in Canada, many of our customers use electrical heat tracing to protect pipes from freezing, however, electrical heat tracing can be used in warmer climates as well to maintain a specific temperature to ensure a constant flow of substances. For some industrial applications, the need for electrical heat tracing can often be found in chemical plans, oil refineries and nuclear power plants. For example, electrical heat tracing can be used to maintain the temperature of a specific pipe that transports substances that solidify at atmospheric temperature such as heavy, waxy oils or sulphur. So for a facility operating in a warmer climate, electrical heat tracing is imperative for their operations to ensure their product or resource is maintained and running smoothly through their facility. To explain this concept in a bit more detail, wax for example is a material which starts to solidify below 70°C, which is usually much much higher than the surrounding temperature. In order for the wax to run smoothly through the facility, the pipe must be provided with an additional heat source to prevent the pipe and its materials from cooling down.
At EHT Group, we provide electrical heat tracing solutions for various sectors, including industrial and those operating in warmer climates. We have mined a solution that can give you the heat trace visibility you need to operate your facility effectively. SmartTrace is a monitoring and management solution providing you with peace of mind knowing that your heat trace infrastructure won’t cause you operational issues.
In warmer climates, it’s easy to forget the importance of your electrical heat tracing, or even forget you have any in your facility. This is why a monitoring and management platform like SmartTrace is crucial. An automated tool that manages your heat trace maintenance process, not just providing an easy to ignore blinking light.
SmartTrace is the only effective solution when it comes to electrical heat tracing in warmer climates. Don’t let your operations be disrupted by poorly managed heat trace and have your surrounding temperatures threaten your production.
If you are looking for additional information on SmartTrace, connect with us.
