Steam Traps

The purpose of a steam trap is to discharge the condensate , air and other gases from the steam system while trying to prevent the escape of the live steam. The steam trap is an important part of any steam system, it is a very vital link between good steam and condensate management. The retention of steam in the process for the utmost use of heat but at the same time the traps release condensate and incondensable gases at the right time.

Steam traps are often looked at as individuals but you really need to look at the entire steam system to really get a good appreciation for what it does. With so many steam traps out there on the market, you want to make sure that you have the correct traps, if you don?t have the right traps it could lead to a system that does not function properly.

The pressure that steam trap operates can be vacuum to well over a hundred bar. The mistake that some people make is that they do not use the correct steam trap for a specific application. To keep a system going it is very important that the proper selection is made. Steam traps can be subjected to very extreme temperature or even water hammer. The traps have to be resistant to dirt or corrosion.

For air venting, when you start the process, the heater space gets filled with air and unless it is moved, it will not decrease the heat transfer and increase the warm up time. The start time increases and the efficiency of the system is reduced. In this case thermostatic traps have an advantage over float traps and bucket traps.

With condensate removal, the air is being vented and the trap must allow the condensate to pass but not the steam. If the steam leaks at this point it becomes a waste of money and the system becomes useless. The trap has to let the condensate pass while trapping steam at the same time.

The reliability of a steam trap is important, experience has shown if you have the right steam traps then your system will be as reliable as you need it to be. Here are some warning signs that you have an unreliable system. Corrosion will occur because of the condition of the condensate. Water Hammer will occur due in part to a lift after the steam trap and allows condensate to get into the trap. Dirt will accumulate from a system when the water treatment compound is carried over from the boiler or when the pipes have debris and tehya allowed to interfere with the steam traps.

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