Heater Types, Sensors, Controls, and Test Equipment Available for On-Line Purchase at OEMHeaters.com
Air Heaters
Air Heaters are used in industrial applications from shrink tubing to plastic welding. Air heaters are designed to provide air temperatures up to 1500°F. These high temperature heaters have a fast response and long life.
We have general purpose air process heaters and pure flow cartridge air heaters available for on-line purchase. General purpose air process heaters should be used in applications where cleaniliness of the heated air is not a primary consideration. For instance, in industrial applications such as heat shrinking tubing for industrial cable assemblies. Pure flow cartridge air heaters would be used in applications such as medical and pharmaceutical packaging.
If none of our stock air heaters will work for your application, consider a Built-To-Order part. Minimum purchase of a Built-To-Order air heater is $350 and lead time is 3 to 4 weeks ARO. If you're interested in finding out more, give us a call at (866) 685-4443 or send us an e-mail at info@oemheaters.com.
Band Heaters
Band Heaters are either mica, ceramic, or mineral insulated. Type selection is dependent on the temperature requirements of the application. Mica insulated band heaters support temperatures up to 900°F, ceramic insulated heaters have maximum operating temperatures of 1200°F, while mineral insulated band heaters will support temperatures up to 1400°F. Besides differences in maximum temperature ratings, the allowable power densities are different; mica gives you the lowest allowable power density—or Watts per square inch (W/sq.in.)—mineral gives you the highest. If you're not sure which insulation type you need, we'll be glad to help you figure it out—probably 80% of all the applications we've encountered work just fine with mica.
We have one-piece mica band heaters and two-piece mica band heaters available for on-line purchase. If none of our stock heaters will work for your application, we'd be happy to help you out with our Built-To-Order band heaters. There are no minimum quantities, standard lead time to ship is 10 to 12 working days ARO for mica or ceramic or 14 to 21 working days for mineral, and expedited deliveries are available. To tell us exactly what you need you can call us toll-free at (866) 685-4443, send us an e-mail at info@oemheaters.com, or use the Band Heater Configuration Tool. We also recommend that you take a look at either the Mica Band Heater Brochure or the Ceramic Band Heater Brochure to see what's available in the way of electrical terminations, closures, and other options.
Cartridge Heaters
Typically used for heating blocks of metal (e.g., sealing bars in packaging applications, die blocks in plastics extrusion, molds for injection molding, et al) and also available with NPT fittings for liquid immersion applications, cartridge heaters are available in either round, rectangular, or square shapes. Standard cartridge heaters are built with a stainless steel sheath for application termperatures up to 1,250°F, and cartridge heaters can be built with Incoloy sheaths for use at temperatures up to 1,400°F. Cartridge heaters are used in every step from R&D to the finished product in a diverse range of industries: aerospace, medical, plastics, food packaging, and energy exploration, to name a few.
Our stock cartridge heaters are available for on-line purchase in 1/8", 5/32", 3/16", 1/4", 3/8", 1/2", 5/8" and, 3/4" diameters. If none of our stock cartridge heaters will work for you, 1/4", 5/16", 3/8", 1/2", 5/8", 3/4", 1", 8mm, 10mm, 12.5mm, 16mm, and 20mm custom cartridge heaters can be built to your exact specifications in as little as 2 working days—standard lead time is 10 - 12 working days—with no minimum order quantities. If short lead time isn't an issue, and you're willing to make a minimum purchase of $350, in addition to the diameters listed above, the following cartridge heater diameters can be built to your exact length, power, voltage, and termination style specification: 5/16", 15/16", 1", 1-1/4", 1.90", 2-3/8", 6mm, 6.5mm, 12mm, 13mm, 15mm, 17.5mm, and 20mm. Lead time for these Built To Order heaters typically ranges from 2 to 3 working weeks ARO.
For specifications, options, and installation tips, see our Cartridge Heater Brochure. You can also use our Cartridge Heater Configuration tool under the Custom Heaters tab to see what's available and to submit and RFQ.
Drum Heaters
For use with plastic and metal drums, pails and totes, these heaters provide freeze protection and viscosity maintenance. They all come with built-in thermostats, but most styles are available without thermostats—if you want one without a thermostat you will need an external control.
Drum heaters are available in several differrent styles. The most common drum heater style is the silicone rubber "belt style" (we refer to it that way, because whenever we see one it reminds us of the championship belts that pro-wrestlers wear) with a spring closure. These are available for standard 5gal., 15gal., 30gal., and 55gal. (U.S. gallons) pails and drums. Heaters for metal containers have built-in adjustable thermostats with a 50° - 425°F range. The thermostat on Heaters for plastic containers has a range of 50° - 160°F. Besides the differences in the temperature ranges on the t'stats, the heaters for metal containers output 3.5 to 4 times the power of their counterparts for plastic containers. You could use a metal model on a plastic container, but we really don't recommend it; someone could adjust the thermostat to a point where the plastic would melt. For on-line purchase we carry: the economy series (only available for metal containers); the heavy-duty series; and the extra-heavy-duty series. What are the differences among the three styles? The economy series uses lower density fiberglass reinforced silicone rubber than the other two. We only recommend these to customers who are going to be removing them and re-applying them a few times per week. (The stresses and flexures involved in taking the heater off the drum/pail and putting it back on again is one of the factors that contributes to eventual failure.) The heavy-duty and extra-heavy-duty heaters use higher density material with the extra-heavy-duty part having one extra layer of fiberglass reinforced silicone rubber. If you're going to be using the heater in an environment where it could possibly be subjected to a lot of bumps and splashes (for example, on a construction site) then we recommend the extra-heavy-duty version. All three styles are CE marked, but don't carry UL or CSA listings. If you need a belt style drum heater with agency approval, give us a call at (866) 685-4443, send us an e-mail at info@oemheaters.com, or fill out a contact form. We can have a belt style drum heater that carries a CSA and CSA-US listing built for you in 10 to 12 working days. Finally, we have belt style drum heaters for 30 and 55 gallon drums that are Factory Mutual (FM) approved for use in hazardous areas—Class I Division 2, Groups A, B, C, and D and Class II Division 2, Groups F and G. Some of our customers prefer a metal sheathed heater for 5gal., 16gal., and 55gal. pails and drums. These heaters are more resistant to damage from the occassional splash than are silicone rubber drum heaters. Metal sheathed drum heaters should only be used on metal containers.
One of the shortcomings of the belt style pail and drum heaters is that heat is only applied directly to a small area of the container being heated. Once the liquid that's in contact with the drum in the area adjacent to the heater has warmed, then convection currents begin mixing the warmer fluid with the cooler. This isn't a problem if all you're concerned about is general liquid warmth—e.g., freeze prevention of paints, water for masonry work, etc.—however, there is no temperature uniformity assured with the use of a single band of heat. If you are concerned with achieving temperature uniformity in a 55gallon drum, then you should consider a full coverage drum heater. One of the advantages of a full coverage drum heater is that you get 1/2" of insulation over the entire vertical surface area of the drum. This helps to hold heat in and maintain temperature uniformity. Full coverage drum heaters are available in single zone and dual zone versions. The single zone heaters give you 1,600W of heat output distributed evenly over the entire surface of the drum and controlled from a single controller. The dual zone model supplies 3,200W of heat output in two separate 1,600W zones, each controlled by its own digital, on-off temperature controller.
Finally, if you are trying to warm or heat a non-flammable liquid in a non-hazardous area, you may want to consider an immersion drum heater. These should only be used with aqueous solutions that are compatible with Incoloy® sheathed heating elements. As always, if after reading through our information about drum heaters, you're still not sure what it is that you should be using, you can give us a call at (866) 685-4443, send us an e-mail on info@oemheaters.com, or fill out one of our contact forms.
Flexible Heaters
Versatile, light weight, and available in custom shapes, flexible heaters are available in a wide range of styles for a number of different applications including use at extreme (up to 1,400°F) temperatures.
Heat Trace Cables
Constant wattage and self-regulating heat trace cables are each used in applications as different as preventing frozen valves to roof de-icing.
Heating Tapes
Providing direct contact heating, heating tapes and cords supply viscosity and temperature co
ntrol upto 1400°F.
Duct Heaters and Process Air Heaters
Duct heaters and process air heaters can be designed to fit in most ducts.
Strip Heaters
Available in a number of constructions, strip heaters are used in applications ranging from dies and molds to ovens and food warming equipment.
Drum & Gas Cylinder Heaters
Used to reduce condensation and reduce waste, gas cylinder heaters are effectively used with propane, nitrogen, oxygen and other gases. Available to fit most size gas cylinders.
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Ceramic & Quartz Heaters
Ceramic heaters are generally used with a reflector to direct the heat directly at the application area. Available in flat, trough, hollow and buld configurations, ceramic heaters can reach temperatures of over 1300°F
Quartz heaters provide rapid response in applications where controlled response is required. Providing infrared radiation that provides rapid response, quartz heaters are best used in applications with long heater off cycles because of the ability to reach their operating temperatures so quickly.
Coil & Nozzle Heaters
Coil and Nozzle heaters offer high temperatures in confined spaces, or where irregular shaped heaters are required. Used on injection molding machine nozzles, they provide quick heat transfer.
Cloth Heating Jackets
Easy installation makes cloth heating jackets perfect for complex pipe systems and all applications requiring uniform heat distribution. Increased safety and reduced down time make cloth heating jackets an excellent choice for industrial applications.
Foil Heaters
Light weight and thin, foil heating elements provide rapid heating, able to provide greater thermal transmission than resistance wirtes alone.
Immersion Heaters
With durable sheath materials, immersion heaters can be used in a range of applications from water to oil and with both high and low viscosity fluids.
Infrared Emitters
Quartz Halogen lamps transmit IR energy with a rapid response. Able to withstand temperatures up to 2750° infrared emitters have a life of upto 5000 hours.
Radiant Heaters
When contact with the target isn't an option, efficient radiant heaters offer a solution. With many styles and sizes of elements and reflectors radiant heaters supply a controlled direction and width of thermal transfer.
Tubular Heaters
The precision fit that tubular heaters offer creates efficient heat transfer from an economical, and adaptable source.