No matter what industry or type of building you’re in, your boiler system is essential to daily business operations. While the average commercial boiler will last for decades, a boiler’s effectiveness does lessen with age. Fortunately, you can often address this issue with boiler control upgrades.
Upgrading your old, outdated boiler controls is a must. Otherwise, they will become obsolete and begin to fail (if they haven’t already). There are many benefits to boiler control upgrades.
As a business owner or plant manager, you are responsible for ensuring that day-to-day operations are as efficient as possible. One way to accomplish this goal is with boiler control upgrades.
As noted above, even the best boiler systems will experience a decline in efficiency over the years. Upgrading the control components will drastically improve your boiler’s efficiency and improve energy savings. Even though these upgrades will require a high upfront cost, they will pay dividends over the life of your boiler through lower operating costs and improved fuel efficiency.
In addition to improving efficiency, boiler control upgrades will help you avoid emergency maintenance and repairs. If you wait until your boiler stops working, you will lose thousands of dollars in unscheduled downtime. You may even have to rent a temporary boiler while your existing unit is repaired or replaced.
Boiler-related emergencies are not only costly, but they can also endanger your employees. By opting for proactive boiler control upgrades, you can maintain a safe and environmentally friendly worksite, with lower emission levels and enhanced remote monitoring capabilities. This can help you avoid employee injuries, worker’s comp claims, and potential fines or lawsuits.
While any boiler control upgrade will benefit your existing system, there are three listed here that can dramatically improve efficiency.
If your facility operates multiple boilers at once, then sequencing upgrades are a must. This particular type of equipment will analyze your current load conditions. It will then select the boiler(s) that will best handle the load, thereby eliminating waste and improving efficiency.
Without sequencing boiler control upgrades, your network of boilers is likely to create more capacity than necessary. This excess in load capacity can become incredibly wasteful. Sequencing is the most effective way to limit excess and reduce wasted energy.
Perhaps the best way to assess your boiler’s combustion efficiency is to examine the flue-gas composition. When you upgrade to trim controls, it will constantly monitor the chemical composition and temperature of the flue gas. The trim system will make any changes necessary to limit the amount of excess air brought into the boiler.
Excess air can dramatically impact the efficiency of your boiler system. By eliminating it, you will improve your boiler operating efficiency. Even a one percent improvement in efficiency will save you thousands of dollars over the life of your boiler.
An automatic blowdown controller will regulate the amount of water that your technicians need to bleed from the boiler system. It constantly analyzes contaminants and provides precise guidance on when to perform a blowdown. Once you have installed an automatic blowdown system, your technicians will no longer have to assess the boiler on the fly. Instead, they will receive invaluable data from the automatic blowdown and be able to adjust your boiler accordingly.
If you think you’re due for boiler control upgrades, Tate can help! For decades, we have served clients in a variety of industries. Our expert technicians can conduct an efficiency audit on your existing boiler and install needed upgrades to boost performance. Contact us today to make a safer, more efficient working environment for your employees.