Alan S. Bandes, Vice President, UE Systems, Inc., Elmsford, NY

Ultrasound simplifies steam trap inspection

The cost of leaking steam traps can be huge. If steam, for example, costs $5/1000 lb, a leaking trap with a 1/8 in. orifice in a 50-psi system would waste 29.8 lb/hr, or 260,333 lb/yr. The energy waste from this trap would be $1302 annually. In a system with 100 traps and an estimated failure rate of 25%, the annual cost would be $32,541.