Heat tracing is a vital process for any tool or system that may need freeze protection. Using self-regulating technology, heat tracers work
to raise or maintain temperatures in pipes, vessels and equipment
that may be exposed to colder environments.
What is electrical heat tracing system?
Electric heat tracing, heat tape or surface heating, is
a system used to maintain or raise the temperature of pipes and vessels using heat tracing cables
. Trace heating takes the form of an electrical heating element run in physical contact along the length of a pipe.
What is electrical heat tracing?
Electric heat tracing uses
cable designed to provide constant wattage per unit of length
, in order to have uniform heating along pipes. Insulation is applied on all sides except the direction of the pipe, to concentrate the heat output towards the fluid inside.
How does a heat trace work?
Current heat trace technology utilizes a self-regulating polymer that controls the wattage of the element. When the ambient temperature drops, the polymer
creates conductive pathways that allow current to flow and heat to be produced
.
What is heat trace for pipes?
Pipe Tracing (a.k.a heat tracing) is commonly
used to ensure that process, fluid, or material temperatures within pipes and piping systems
are maintained above ambient temperatures during static flow conditions along with providing supplemental freeze protection in certain applications.
Does heat tape stay on all the time?
A Safety Alert on Heat Tapes. Heat tapes look like electrical extension cords. But unlike all other wiring that can become hazardous if it gets hot, these tapes are specifically designed to produce heat. …
Those tapes do not draw electricity all the time
, even though they remain plugged in.
Does heat trace require insulation?
An effective heat tracing setup requires high-quality components,
including insulation
, which largely influences how efficiently the system maintains and manages heat.
What is steam tracing in piping?
Steam tracing is
a form of heat tracing that circulates steam around process pipes to keep the process media within a specific temperature range
. Tracer lines are the tubing that carries the steam alongside the process pipe. Both electrical heat tracing and steam tracing are commonly used at process plants.
What temperature does heat tape get to?
Lower power densities and temperatures, with maximum temperatures ranging from
150°F to 500°F
, and including low-intensity cables well suited for freeze prevention. Higher power densities and temperatures, ranging from tapes with a maximum of 305° up to very-high-temperature tapes rated for up to 1400°F (760°C).
How do you troubleshoot a heat trace?
- a thermostat or process controller setpoint is not correct.
- a thermostat is not wired correctly.
- a cable is not connected to power.
- a cable is connected to the wrong voltage.
- a temperature sensor is incorrectly placed.
- a temperature sensor is wired incorrectly.
Can you heat trace plastic pipe?
You can use
heat cable
on plastic pipes as long as you follow precautions, such as determining your pipe’s thermal capacities, selecting a self-regulating, low wattage heat cable and using an automatic heat trace control with safety functions.
What is heat trace cable made of?
Modern-day heat traces are made from
polymers that are self-regulating
. In other words, these traces can automatically regulate the current flow based on the outside temperatures.
