500 Sight Flow Indicators Headed to a Midwestern Refinery for Upcoming Turnaround

Aug 29, 2023

2 min read

Updated: Aug 10

We have our first batch of 1" Threaded Bulls-Eye Sight Flow Indicators (Model # 100-ST) headed to a major refinery in the Midwest United States. This refinery has ordered 500 Sight Flow Indicators total, to be included on the drain lines and connections of their tanks, ensuring all product is out of the tanks after a chemical wash during their next turnaround.

Why Drain Line Verification Matters During a Turnaround

A refinery turnaround involves taking process units offline for inspection, maintenance, and cleaning - including chemical washing of storage tanks to remove residue before the unit returns to service. Before a tank can be safely reopened, inspected, or returned to production, personnel need confirmation that the chemical wash fluid and any remaining product have fully drained.

A sight flow indicator on each drain line gives operators direct visual confirmation that flow has stopped and the line is running clear - a simple but essential verification step in a process where moving forward prematurely, before a tank is actually empty, creates real safety and process risk.

Why 500 Units

Ordering sight flow indicators at this volume reflects the scale of a major refinery turnaround - potentially dozens or hundreds of individual tank connections, each needing its own drain-line verification point. Standardizing on a single indicator model (the 1" Threaded Bulls-Eye, Model 100-ST) across this many connection points also simplifies both installation and any future maintenance, since technicians are working with a consistent, familiar component throughout the facility.

Why This Refinery Chose Jacoby-Tarbox

Plant personnel at this refinery prefer Jacoby-Tarbox® Sight Flow Indicators specifically because of the quality of these units. They conducted their own bench testing on competitor sight flow indicators and observed failures and leaks under pressure - a problem they have not experienced with Jacoby-Tarbox units in the same service.

This is a meaningful data point: this wasn't a marketing claim or a spec sheet comparison, but the refinery's own internal testing directly comparing units under pressure, informing their decision to standardize on Jacoby-Tarbox for a 500-unit order.

Why Pressure Reliability Matters for Drain Line Applications

Even though drain line verification might seem like a low-stakes application compared to a high-pressure process line, the sight flow indicator still needs to hold up reliably under whatever pressure and chemical exposure the drain line and wash fluid present. A unit that leaks or fails under pressure during a turnaround doesn't just create a maintenance headache - it can compromise the very verification step it's installed to provide, undermining confidence that a tank is actually ready to proceed to the next stage of the turnaround.

Applications

Sight flow indicators for drain line and turnaround verification are used across:

Refining: Tank chemical wash verification, drain line confirmation during turnarounds
Chemical Processing: Similar tank cleaning and verification applications
Any Facility Conducting Scheduled Turnarounds: Where consistent, reliable drain verification across many connection points matters