Heater Life in Two Application Extremes

At Tutco, we manufacture a large variety of electric heaters for a wide range of applications. These heaters get treated very gently in some applications or utterly abused in others. 

Following are the extremes of what our heaters have been through, and how we’ve been able to keep customers happy with what we’ve provided. 

Several years ago I recall receiving a single failed cartridge heater from a customer that used it in a wax stamping machine. We didn’t learn much more about the application than that. Upon examining the heater we knew the operating temperature must have been pretty low because there wasn’t too much discoloration on the sheath. Upon checking the date code marked on the heater and the build history for the part number, we were able to determine that the heater was 30 years old. Yes, we had built the heater once, 30 years ago. After some further inquiries we discovered that the heater hadn’t been installed recently, but had been in use the entire time. People that worked at the business for over 25 years had never seen the heater being replaced. Well, it finally failed, and the customer returned it wanting a full 8D analysis of the failure and a corrective action to prevent future occurrences. When we told them the heater was 30 years old they apologized, retracted their request and ordered another one. 

At the other end of application extremes was a band heater customer that used our heaters at the end of an extrusion machine in a filthy environment, and at a temperature higher than we recommended. Failed heaters were initially returned to us and they were caked with burned plastic and black oily soot. The customer knew their application was bad. It was so bad they got an average of about 3 weeks of life out of our heaters. They couldn’t be happier because several competitor’s heaters had only lasted a few hours or a day at the most. It got to a point that we told the customer to just dispose of the failed heaters on-site as there wasn’t anything we could do to improve things if their application and operating temperature weren’t going to change. They ordered the heater from us on a regular basis for about three years. They went through many heaters. I’m still amazed by that. Three weeks of life, and they were happy. 

These contrasting extremes illustrate the remarkable durability and adaptability of our heaters. Whether lasting for decades or performing under harsh conditions, our heaters consistently met the needs of our varied customers. This range of experiences underscores our commitment to quality and customer satisfaction in every application.