Trapping elusive pressure

By Staff -- Plant Engineering, 9/1/1999

Problem: During off-hours, a fluid pressure fluctuates (example: fire water line). It's desired to know the maximum pressure, but there is no chart recorder or other trending device on the line.

Solution: Make a simple pressure trapping gauge setup. This arrangement traps the highest pressure applied to it. Reset it by momentarily opening the bypass valve so that it can equalize to the current process pressure. For best results, use a vertically mounted, soft-seat check valve with the spring removed.

Contributor: Ralph Dewey, Solvay Polymers Corp., Deer Park, TX; 713-307-3784