ONLINE GREASING / SEALANT LUBRICATING ON BALL VALVE

SEALANT LUBRICATING ON BALL VALVE

KEY POINTS FOR SAFE VALVE MAINTENANCE
Effective valve maintenance can be accomplished using cleaners and introducing
the proper lubricant at regular and frequent intervals. This will assure efficient and
safe operation of thousands of valves that are now being removed and repaired or
discarded each year.


It has been suggested that increasing the frequency of servicing valves automatically
places more grease into pipelines and other facilities. Not so. Injection of small
amounts of our high-quality, insoluble lubricants will provide proper lubrication of
valves at all times, and, ultimately, require less lubricant. Cleaning and lubricating a valve, like changing oil in a new car, is a MUST if economical operation and long life are expected.

1. ALWAYS get specific authorization from your supervisor or the control room BEFORE cycling (turning or operating) any valve in the system.

2. Do NOT open the body vent/drain fitting in the body cavity unless it is safe to do so.

3. Most gases are lethal in high concentrations. Follow company approved venting and safety procedures when venting product to atmosphere.

4. Many types of hydrocarbon liquids and gases can explode violently in certain mixtures and concentrations.

5. Take your time when servicing valves, be patient. The problems have taken many years to develop, it may take a few hours or even days to get some of the more difficult valves working properly again.

6. NEVER use excessive force or torque when trying to turn a seized valve. Excess stem torque may cause the valve stem to bend or break making the valve inoperable.

7. ALWAYS keep the high-pressure gauge on the sealant injection pump working properly.

8. Most hand-held sealant injection pumps are capable of generating

10,000 to 15,000 PSI. Learn to ‘read’ the high-pressure gauge attached to the pump.

9. Read the original maintenance manual supplied with the valve for specific details regarding safe valve maintenance routines.

10. Watch the needle on the gauge drop as sealant moves into the valve. If blockage occurs the needle will not drop. Stop pumping and inject Valve Cleaner/flushing to open the passage.

Cleaning Valve

Valves which hang up, are hard-to-turn or do not seal properly usually require cleaning. Inject sufficient quantities of cleaner to displace all of the lubricant/ sealant in the valve sealant system*. Leave the valve cleaner in the valve for at least 30 to 40 minutes and cycle the valve, if permitted, to ensure complete coverage. ALWAYS displace the valve cleaner with equal quantities of lubricant/ sealant after cleaning. For problem valves, leave the cleaner inside the valve for several days and top-up frequently. Tests prove that periodic lubrication with valve cleaner prevents formation of gums and lacquers in valves, preventing costly repairs and down-time. Valve cleaner is used as an internal valve cleaning compound in ball, gate and plug valves, as well as orifice fittings. Use in wellhead valves, at pump and compressor stations and distribution systems. Ideal for use on valves with plugged sealant fittings, seat leakage problems or valves which are hard-to-turn. The best results are achieved by injecting while the valve is in the full open or full closed position. Purge valve cleaner from the system after use. ALWAYS attach Adapter to the valve fitting prior to injecting valve cleaners.

Topping-Up Lubricant/ Sealant

Routine maintenance often consists of topping-up the lubricant/ sealant in the valve sealant system.* The sealant system is a network of grooves and channels inside the valve leading to seal points around the ball, gate or plug. Quantities required to top-up any valve can vary greatly depending on the valve size, design, cycle frequency, service conditions and riser pipe height, if applicable. Use correct volumes of grease, too much and the excess is washed downstream, too little is a waste of time, money and manpower. Learn how to properly ‘read’ a high-pressure sealant injection gauge (mounted on the pump) to help determine when the sealant reaches the seal points.

Emergency Sealants

The introduction of heavy sealants provides the ability to achieve a reliable temporary seal even if more serious seal damage has occurred. ALWAYS displace extra heavy sealant and double extra heavy sealant with a lighter lubricant/ sealant when the seal is no longer required to avoid the risk of plugging complications at some future date. Valves which constantly require extra heavy sealant should be adjusted, repaired or replaced.

Injection Techniques

The best results are achieved by injecting while the valve is in the fully open or fully closed position. When attempting to seal a valve, if leakage persists, check the valve stops to ensure the valve is fully closed.

Valve Fittings

Many existing lubricant fittings have a two-piece body construction. Some valve manufacturers install this type at the factory. Usually reliable, the fitting pieces have been known to separate under pressure causing serious injury or fatality. Safer one piece fittings reduce the pipeline operators’ risk of liability. Due to the absence of industry standards many dangerous types of fittings have been put into service. Fitting failure is the cause of technician injury and/or death.

Greasing on Ball Valves

Valve Seat Leaks
Inject Sealweld® Valve Cleaner Plus then cycle the valve 3 times (if permitted). Wait 30 to 40 minutes and cycle valve again. If there is no physical damage to the seals this will be all that is required. The cleaning procedure will remove the build-up of contaminants from seal faces, allowing the seat rings to sit down tightly on the ball.
Purge the cleaner by injecting an equal amount of lubricant or sealant.


Valve Stem Leaks
If the valve is equipped with a buttonhead sealant injection fitting in the stem seal area, inject lubrication Valve Sealant. DO NOT exceed 3,000 PSI injection pressure. Refer to the ball valve lubrication quantity below.



BALL VALVES LUBRICATION QUANTITY PROCEDURE
Inject approximately 1 ounce of lubricant/ sealant per inch of valve size into each
seat ring.
Example: 10” ball valve x 2 seat rings = 20 ounces lubricant/ sealant

BODY FITTING RELIEF TOOLS

This tool is specifically designed to allow you allow you to un-seat the ball check in body grease fittings and sealant injection fittings. A MUST when servicing many types of wellhead gate valves. Also ideal for equalizing pressure when servicing wellhead gate valves.