industrial boiler Archives

Electric boilers get a bad reputation because they are usually more expensive to operate than their gas counterparts. However, industrial electric boilers offer plenty of advantages that other types do not. Here we’ll try to give you the info needed to help you determine if an industrial electric boiler is the right choice for your business. Plus, you can always reach out to our resident STEAM team to answer any questions you might have!

What is an industrial electric boiler?

First, we must determine what an industrial electric boiler is. An electric boiler passes water through en electric element, which heats it up to either heat your building or to have hot water and, in some cases, steam.

It is well known that electricity is usually more expensive than gas. However, industrial electric boilers can heat water overnight when the tariffs are lower. That allows them to store the water in an insulated tank for later use. The stored hot water allows electric boilers to meet demands for hot water much quicker and with high pressure.

Green Options

If you have solar panels installed on your business, you can have a completely green heating system. Solar panel technology has evolved a long way in the past few years. They pay for themselves with energy savings on average in about eight years after installation.

Industrial electric boilers last for around twenty to thirty years with proper maintenance before they need replacing. This option doesn’t burn gases or release harmful waste into the atmosphere. This makes it an even greener option. That means around two decades of environmentally friendly heating with the use of solar panels!

Cheaper to Install

Industrial electric boilers don’t require gas line installation on your place of business. In some areas finding and installing gas lines to a property can become a challenging and expensive proposition.

Having said that, an electrician should look at your building’s electrical grid and see if it can handle the new industrial electric boiler. If it can’t, you may need new wiring, which might get expensive fast!

Always ask for an expert’s opinion before committing to a new boiler!

Highly Efficient

Electric boilers don’t lose energy through waste gases. They are the most efficient out of all the heating solutions. Their efficiency can reach as high as 99%.

Safer than Other Options

They don’t release harmful CO2 like other boiler systems, which could prove lethal if not closely monitored.

No Annual Service Necessary

Natural gas and oil boiler rooms need to be serviced at least once a year. Industrial electric boilers do not. This is one less point of failure and you don’t risk damaging your boiler by forgetting to service it on time.

No Moving Parts

No moving parts means fewer points of failure, less maintenance, less noise, and less wear and tear.

The quiet operation is a big plus, especially on buildings where the work area is close to the boiler room. Working without constant humming is a blessing that we hardly ever appreciate.

Vulnerability to Blackouts

One of the potential downsides of industrial electric boilers is that they go down if the grid goes down. That means that if a snowstorm knocks out the lights, you are in for a bad time. That’s just one more reason to install solar and power banks to be self-reliant.

Are you looking for a new industrial electric boiler?

Here at Teems Electric, we specialize in boiler room installation. If you are interested in purchasing and installing a new boiler or replacing your old boiler, let us help you choose the one that’s right for your business.

An industrial Boiler is a closed pressure vessel that produces high or low-pressure steam or hot water for industrial use. Generally, there are two types of boilers used in industrial applications—Fire-tube and Water-tube boilers.

The use of a fire-tube or water-tube industrial boiler depends on the industrial process for which they are going to generate steam or hot water.

Fire-tube Industrial Boiler

Fire-tube boilers are a cylindrical vessel in which the flames in a furnace produce hot gases that pass through tubes surrounded by water. Consequently, the heat contained in the tubes transfers to the water, heating it, and producing steam.

A fired-tube industrial boiler is employed in processes that require low pressures, up to 250 PSIG. Furthermore, due to their size limitations, up to 50,000,000 BTU/hr, do not produce large amounts of steam.

Operation

The fire-tube boiler holds a firebox where flames produce hot combustion gases. A cooling jacket that contains water surrounds the firebox and connects to the long cylindrical boiler shell. The water surrounds a series of fire-tubes or flues that heat the water, generating saturated (wet) steam. That steam rises to the boiler’s highest point, called steam dome, where it accumulates.

A regulator located in the steam dome controls the exit of the steam. A series of larger flues (tubes) situated at the top of the boiler, conduct the saturated (wet) steam back, turning it into dry or superheated steam. The boiler produces superheated steam and exhaust gases, feeding a steam engine’s cylinders. Those machines turn the energy of the steam into mechanical work. The exhaust gases are recycled to preheat the water that enters the boiler, thus increasing its efficiency.

Maintenance

The maintenance and cleaning operations of a fire-tube steam boiler relatively simple. They have easy access to its firesides, allowing the change of the fire tubes without further repair of the boiler.
The control systems are less complicated than the ones on water tube boilers.
The accessories required by a fire-tube boiler are available at economical prices, due to the relatively low pressures that they have to stand.
They are not only easy to operate, but they are also fuel-efficient.

Water-tube Industrial Boiler

A water-tube industrial boiler has a larger size than a fire-tube. It feeds large amounts of steam (several million pounds-per-hour), at very high pressures up to 5,000 PSIG, to industrial processes.

Water-tube boilers are highly efficient machines that, by their design, produce superheated dry steam at very high pressures. They are the kind of boilers capable of feeding the processes of heavy industry and utility companies.

Operation

In general, the water tube boiler design includes several drums. Specifically, the lower water drum and the upper steam drum. They are connected by tubes that form the furnace and convection section. The tubes that make up the furnace walls receive the heat and transfer it to the water contained in them, producing steam. Afterward, the hot water rises and enters the upper steam drum. There, the saturated (wet) steam exits off the top of the drum to feed processes or to produce superheated steam.

Maintenance

The larger the amount of steam and pressure produced, the larger the size of the boiler. As a result, they have to be assembled and installed on the site of their operation.
The preassembled “packaged” boilers, up to 1,500 PSIG, are easier to maintain than the larger ones.
The assembly and installation process of the boilers at the site where they are going to work can be comparatively difficult and time-consuming.
The difficulty of the cleaning process makes the maintenance process a complicated task that requires highly skilled personnel.
It is not possible to replace the tubes, because there is not a common standard of fabrication.

Conclusion

Fire-tube boilers are widely available in packaged form, allowing smooth relocation and installation. They are also easy to operate, control, and maintain. Nevertheless, due to their design, they are limited in their capacity to produce both–Large amounts of steam and very high pressures.

Water-tube boilers are highly efficient, produce large amounts of steam at very high pressures. The packaged type boilers are easier to maintain than the larger ones. Most water-tube boilers with a pressure capacity beyond 1,500 PSIG have to be custom assembled and installed in their working location. Due to their design and large sizes, they are challenging to maintain.

For information about the operation and maintenance of industrial boilers, contact our steam team here.

Sources: Superior Boilers

From all the industrial boilers in the market, you want to buy one that meets your needs and runs at pick operational efficiencies for the longest period of time. Accordingly, there are many factors affecting the buying decision that you have to consider. Those key aspects are types of boilers available, price, lifetime efficiency, operational specifications, size, safety, maintenance, fuel, and accessories.

Types of Industrial Boilers

There are three types of industrial boilers, water tube, fire tube, and firebox. They are configurable for use in many types of operations.

Water Tube Boilers

They are the type of industrial boilers where water passes through tubes while the hot combustion gas flows on the other side of the pipes. Water Tube boilers are more expensive and efficient and less dangerous than fire tube boilers. They produce high temperatures and steam pressure.

Fire Tube Boilers

They are the type of industrial boilers where heat and gases of combustion (from the furnace) pass through tubes that are enclosed on water. They have a lower cost than water tube type and require less maintenance. However, they are not capable of producing high heat, pressure, and steam.

Fire Box Boilers

They are a traditional “locomotive” type of boiler. The “firebox” is the space where the heat originates, producing hot gases that pass through the tubes, heating the fluid. It is reliable but limited in its applications.

Price of an Industrial Boiler

A steam boiler is an expensive piece of equipment. Consequently, price is a crucial variable to be considered when buying one. Nevertheless, in the long run, you may spend more money in downtime for repairs, maintenance, and fuel consumption if you buy a lower price boiler.

Lifetime Efficiency

It is crucial to make the buying decision with the lifetime efficiency of the boiler in mind. Hence, It would be best if you did a cost-benefit analysis for the expected useful life of the boiler. Specifically, you should consider: running times, operational costs, maintenance schedule, and costs, and expected lifetime of the machine. Buying the right kind of boiler saves you money and trouble in the long run.

Operational Specifications

The operational specs give you the matching points with the demands of your facility. Therefore, it is essential to know them beforehand. For instance, if your plant demands high temperature and pressure for its production processes, you need a high-performance boiler. Furthermore, they are a vital input in the feasibility study. Some of them are heat output capacity, temperature, thermal efficiency, and maximum pressure.

Size of an Industrial Boiler

It is vital for various reasons. The more steam you need for operating the facility, the larger the boiler size that you require. Consider that the run costs of an oversized boiler are higher compared to the run costs of an undersized one. Nevertheless, the latter may not be able to meet the high-temperature requirements needed by your facility.

Industrial Boilers Require Safety First

Safety is a primary consideration when buying a boiler. Handling the operation of a boiler is a highly technical job that requires well-trained personnel. They must follow the operational procedures in detail, due to the potential hazard of the high temperatures and pressures involved. High-quality boilers take safety first as an original manufacturing specification. Accordingly, you should check the safety track record of the specific brand and model that you want to buy.

Maintenance of Industrial Boilers

It is vital to take into consideration the maintenance schedule of the boiler. Since you want it to be functioning at peak efficiency for the longest time possible. Additionally, low-quality boilers require frequent repairs, which means that they have to be replaced sooner than one of higher quality.

Fuel for Industrial Boilers

Before buying a boiler, the owner has to consider the type of fuel that the boiler uses, evaluating its availability and cost. Boilers use oil, electricity, coal, natural gas, and propane.

Accessories

Many accessories are necessary to complement the operation of the boiler: de-aerators that remove excess oxygen from the water, safety valves, and others.

Conclusion

You are responsible for the operation of a facility that depends on the high efficiency, long-running times, and extended use-life of an industrial boiler. Therefore, it is crucial to make a decision that you are not going to regret later on. Because you don’t want to have your plant shut down for boiler repairs. Or worse, to have part of your personnel suffering injuries for malfunction of the boiler that you selected.

Accordingly, you want to buy the right model and size of the boiler for your plant requirements. Afterward, you should install it correctly and keep it well operated and maintained by highly skilled personnel. Then, you will have your facility operating at optimal levels for a long time. We have that boiler, call us here to have a conversation about it.

Sources: Superior Boilers