Saturday, April 6, 2013

Five Considerations When Looking at Gas Leak Detectors


Most businesses in the industrial, marine, food-stuffs and public services industry make use of refrigeration or air conditioning; and most of these business owners will know that these units sometimes break and start leaking gas. This can create an array of complications, including operational down-time, damage to produce and / or hitches in processes, as well as great expenditure in reparations and possible law suits. Although these gas leakages should be detected and repaired as soon as possible to avoid large monetary losses, the cheapest gas leak detector may not always provide the best solution in the long run.

Regulatory Compliance

If the refrigeration and air conditioning gas leak detector you are looking at does not tick this box, none of the other four considerations matter. As a result of the many harmful effects of gas leakages, such as global warming and health and safety risks to humans and animals, various standards and regulatory have been put in place governments. Crucial as it is to comply with these, and obvious as it seems, it is surprising to realise however, that there are still some gas leak detector manufacturers and service providers who do not comply with and adhere to these standards and requirements. The reason for this is usually because they see it as an expense without which they are able to offer the refrigeration and air conditioning service to the consumer at a much more competitive rate. However, when considering the likelihood of malfunction because installation and manufacturing requirements were not met, and possible ensuing law suits, it becomes evident that the initial saving in costs is much less than the large expenses further down the line.

Reputation - who is detecting your gas leakages?

When having looked beyond the price, this is usually the next consideration for businesses utilising refrigeration and air conditioning. Here it is good to have a look at how many years the manufacturer, supplier or installer has been in the industry for. It is also a good idea to do some company and / or product research by checking if they had any good or bad reviews in the media. The internet is a great source of information here. However, a certain gas leak detector may have an excellent reputation but lack the products or expertise to cater to a business's unique refrigeration and air conditioning requirements.

Fields of Expertise - can they detect my gas leaks?

Even though the most common gas leak detectors are for refrigeration and air conditioning purposes, all applications of refrigeration and air conditioners are by no means the same. One needs to consider whether the gas leak detectors are to be used as fixed or mobile devices, whether their application requires the use of electricity, batteries, or both and whether they are able to detect the specific gasses used in particular refrigeration and air conditioning. Although the most common gasses are Ammonia, Carbon Dioxide, hydrocarbons, halocarbons (freon)-CFCs, HCFCs and HFCs, not all gas leak detectors specialise in the detection of all these gasses. In addition, your business may require leak detection of a gas which cannot be provided by the ready manufactured devices. In such a case one would need to look at a manufacturer that can tailor make devices according to specific business requirements. Here it would be particularly helpful to discuss options and special requirements with the service provider under consideration.

After sales service

The problem with these consultations is that you could end up having three different discussions - one with the provider, another with the installer and another with the company responsible for maintenance. For this reason it is wise to consider a gas leak detector that offers all the services associated with refrigeration and air conditioning gas leak detections - from start to finish. This will include tailor made manufacturing of cutting edge, top quality manufactured devices; qualified and experienced consultants; trained installers, continues monitoring and effortless maintenance. This allows the business owner to explain their requirements once and have the service provider take all of these requirements into consideration when providing the end-to-end solution. Generally, one can also expect one standard of service and quality throughout the end-to-end solutions from one service provider. Apart from managing expectations, such a service provider would also provide one with a much more certain warranty, as the same company is responsible for the manufacture, installation and maintenance on the gas leak detector.

Price

Finally, when all of the above have been considered and meet the specific refrigeration and air condition gas leak detector requirements, price should be considered. A solutions provider who can add a competitive price on top of quality of service, is more likely to go the extra mile, as they are invested in their clients and want to form a life-long relationship with them.

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