Piping Hydro Test after a Construction/Maintenance Activity

Hydrotest is often carried out after a construction or maintenance activity of a piping system. It is more significant to Hydrotest piping after a new piping system is installed, it is essential to the commissioning activity.

Read also: Pressure Sensing Devices in the Industry

Need to Hydrotest

After new piping is laid in the plant or facility. There are multiple reasons to Hydrotest a line. Few of these are listed below:

• To verify the integrity of the piping system.
• To ensure the safety and reliability of the piping system.
• To check out the weld joints’ quality.
• To make sure the system is leakproof.
• To relieve the stresses from the system.

Equipment required for Hydrotest

• Pump – To create pressure inside the system
• Hose and fittings – To connect the pump, piping system, and other equipment
• Test medium – Most of the time water is used as a test medium
• Pressure Gauge – To measure inside pressure. The range of gage 1.5 to 4 times the Hydrotest pressure.
• Temperature Gauge – To notify the allowable temperature
• Torch Flash – For visual inspection of leakage
• Torque wrench – For proper tightening of joints
• Supports- To fix the pipe or vessel, before the test starts

Properties of water used for Hydrotest

The water used for Hydrotest must-have characteristics near to potable water, which is as follows:

• Percentage of Hydrogen (pH) – should be between 7 to 8.5
• Water Hardness – it should be between 150 – 400 ppm
• Calcium Hardness (Ca) – it should not be more than 80 ppm
• Magnesium Hardness (Mg) – below 40 ppm is acceptable
• Iron Content (Fe) – should be within 0.3 ppm
• Turbidity – allowed till 10 – 20 ppm
• Total Suspended Solids (TSS) – Should NIL
• Temperature – it should not be less than 17°C

Quantity of water required for the test

The quantity of water can be calculated by using the following formula:

Where,

d = Diameter of pipeline

L = Length of pipeline

V = Gallons of water required