Every industrial facility has piping systems that carry hot fluids, steam, or gases. And most of those systems have lengths of pipe, valves, and flanges that are uninsulated — not because facility managers don’t understand the energy loss, but because traditional insulation creates a maintenance problem.
When you need to access a valve for inspection or repair, you have to remove whatever insulation is covering it. With hard insulation, that means cutting and disposing of material. The replacement costs time and money. Do it a few times and the insulation often just stays off.
Pipe and Component Insulation
The Department of Energy’s identifies poor insulation on piping and ductwork as a recognized source of energy loss. Surfaces such as piping and ductwork that have poor or no insulation are sources of energy loss that are “often overlooked” in process heating assessments.
This is common precisely because the losses are diffuse and continuous rather than dramatic. A valve loses heat quietly, hour after hour, day after day. The impact is real but easy to ignore.
What Removable Insulation Covers Actually Do
Removable insulation covers for valves, flanges, and pipe components are engineered to be installed and removed without tools or specialized labor. They’re typically made from high-temperature-rated materials, stitched or sealed to fit specific component configurations, and secured with straps, lacing, or fasteners that allow for quick removal.
The key advantage over traditional insulation is that the covers are designed from the start to be removed and reinstalled. The insulation material doesn’t get damaged in the process, so the cover remains effective after repeated use.
UniTherm’s IsoCovers are removable insulation covers for valves and flanges. They’re available in standard sizes through the UniTherm shop and can be custom-manufactured for non-standard component configurations. Visit unitherm.com/pipe-and-components for the full range, or contact UniTherm to discuss a custom solution for your system.
Industries That Use Them
Removable pipe and valve insulation is used in oil and gas, power generation, chemical processing, food processing, marine applications, and anywhere else that high-temperature piping systems require regular maintenance access. The ROI case is generally straightforward: the energy cost of an uninsulated valve running continuously at operating temperature is often large enough to recover the cost of the cover within a single heating season.
For facilities in cold climates, there’s an additional benefit: reducing surface heat loss can help maintain consistent process temperatures in areas where ambient conditions vary seasonally.
For our standard removable insulation solutions, visit shop.unitherm.com.
To request a quote for a custom insulation solutions click here.