Check-list For Installing A Steam Humidifier

Choosing A New Steam Humidifier:  12 Point Check-list 

1. You are going to need to know the geographical area of where the unit is to be installed, mainly because different areas of the UK specifically have different average temperatures and levels of relative humidity in the atmosphere.  So, installation of a steam humidifier in London compared to Leeds will have different implications and may need a larger more powerful unit to supply the right level of steam.
2. You will also need to know the level of humidity required for the room that is to be humidified - this will differ from application to application - for example, a food ripening facility will need a different level of humidity to a proofing workshop.
3. Make sure there is ample power supply to power the unit as some of the CAREL steam humidifiers we supply can draw up to 40, 50 or even 90kW of power on full steam.
4. Is there three phase or single phase power available?  Check with your facilicites manager or local electrician if you are unsure, and ask for the available power. This wil save a lot of headaches wen it comes to running the steam humidifier and will help to avoid overloading the power board.
5. Is the steam humidifier going to be mounted on the wall?  If so, where will it be mounted and can it be mounted so that it is out of reach of the general  public? other factory machinery? but accessable enough for workers to operate and make changes to the settings?
6. Will the steam need to be directed in to the room or into a duct?  If the intenton is to add humiditty directly in to the room in question, you will need to select a fan distribution unit that will sit on the top of the steam humidifier or moutned above the humidfier with steam hose connecting the fan distibutor to the top of the humidifier cylinder.
7. If the steam is to be directed into the air handling unit, as part of the air conditioning system, you will need to know air flow speeds and volumes so that a calculation can be made as to how much humity needs to be produced to achieve the required humidity level.
8. In terms of kg/h how much humidity losses (absorbtion) is there likely to be.  For example, if the humidity is being applied to an office there will be carpet, people, plants etc that will absorb some humidity from the atmosphere. If however, the humidity is being applied to a warehouse with hard surfaces, no boxes, and minimal levels of absorbent surfaces , there will be very little in terms of humidity losses.
9. Whilst on the subject on of humidity losses, we calcuilate that the average number of air changes (total volume of air changing in the room from outside to inside) is 3 times per hour.  So, if you have an area that is susceptable to high levels of infiltration (such as windows open all day, or poor insulation) you may have to double the number of air changes to allow for the amount of extra humidity that needs to be suppllied in to the room.  
10. Then we move on to the type of controls that you will need.  Would you like the unit to operate on a simple on/off mode so that when the level of relative humdirty readhces the set point, it ill turn off.  When the relative humidty then drops to say 5% below the set point, it will fire back up, boil the water and produce enough steam to add humidity to the room to bring it back up to the oringinal set-point of, for example, 60%.  Or, you can select a control package that will modulate the power of the humdifier to obtain a more accurate control over the relative humidity in the room.  For example, you can set the CAREL humidifier controls so that the humidifier is always running at a lower level, producing low levels of steam on a more constant basis.  The advantage of using this type of system is that less energy is used to heat the water back up and to produce enough steam to maintain the relative humidity in the room, plus it means the electrodes are placed under less stress meaning less maintenance costs.
11. In terms of servicing and spares, it is best practice to check the humidifier at least once a year using a qualified engineer or air conditioning contractor, asking him to perform electrical connections test, to clean the unit and service it to mainatin the smooth running of the unit, and to avoid any serious technical issues.
12. Typically, the humidifier cylinders will need repacing on a regular basis - after a while limescale will build up on the electrodes and while they can be cleaned, you may find that they have worn down after hours of usage and need replacing completely.  The cylinders are easy to replace, just remove the old bottle, pop in the new humidifiier bottle, reconnect, and start the humidifeir running again.

Euro Controls UK Ltd supply the latest in steam humidifier technology.  Contact us for a quotation.

www.humidifiers-uk.com