Harsh winter weather can lead to breaks, leaks, frozen piping and equipment, and costly unplanned outages. Sometimes, damage isn’t evident until the temperature rises, ice thaws, and a leak develops due to a pipe splitting. More subtle hazards, such as the formation of a hydrate, may also occur, blocking pipes and leading to severe accidents.
Unfortunately, when temperatures drop, insulation alone might not be enough to stop process fluids from freezing. Winterization programs – the process a plant, refinery, or other facility undergoes to prepare for cold weather – provide a necessary level of protection for assets that might otherwise fail due to temperature extremes and the resultant damage.
Here are five ways you can prepare your facility now, before the temperatures plummet:
- Start early! Ideally, winter preparation activities begin in late summer or early fall to allow sufficient time to identify and resolve potential problems.
- Plan a walkdown to identify heat trace leaks, bare piping, stripped insulation, faulty steam traps, and anything else that might cause lines to freeze up in cold weather. Address these issues right away to help prevent costly unplanned outages throughout the winter.
- Repair steam leaks before temperatures plummet to help prevent ice buildups that can create overhead hazards to process equipment and personnel.
- Employ grab sampling to help detect dead legs that could rupture if not purged before cold weather hits.
- Consider investing in a turnkey winterization program like MISTRAS Group's – a single team that can identify, access, isolate, repair, and return assets to service, reducing the need for multiple contractors onsite.
MISTRAS Group's maintenance teams can install and repair heat tracing, eliminate ice build-up, remove and install insulation, and more, to help prevent hazards to equipment and personnel. To learn more about MISTRAS’ Winterization Programs, click here.