Why failed steam traps cost so much, and how SteamIQ finds them in days
Your plant 90 traps, checked once a year
1 · The problem you cannot see
A failed steam trap looks exactly like a working one.
Between surveys, a trap can fail and go unnoticed for months. Without a maintenance program, the Department of Energy puts the failed share at 15 to 30% after three to five years.
Every number in this story comes from the SteamIQ whitepaper or the Cascade-24 demo brief.
Steam Trap Monitoringai
Intelligence
SteamIQ connects the patterns across your plant and explains what needs attention, what it’s costing you, and what to do next.
Analytics
See how each trap is performing and what its failures cost, with repairs ranked by potential savings.
Sensor Data
Ultrasound, temperature, vibration, and cycle counting build a detailed picture of how each trap behaves.
Live demo Cascade Manufacturing · 90 traps
The brief
Take a closer look at Cascade-24.
This sample brief explains the failure, its cost, and the recommended repair. You can ask SteamIQ about the findings, too.
Cascade-24 remains the fleet’s highest-cost device at $37.56/day ($13,709 annualized), failed open for 15 days with an active critical alarm. At 136 lb/hr, this is the most aggressive steam loss in the fleet.
This is the second failure for this device. Cascade-24 failed open roughly 10 months ago and was repaired shortly after — it ran clean for 8 months before degrading again about 3 weeks ago. The telemetry tells a clear story: leak rate climbed from under 2% to over 60% across a 5-day transition window, with the characteristic cycle spike and temperature rise confirming a full mechanical failure rather than a transient.
At $1,200 estimated repair cost with a 32-day payback and 11.4x ROI, this is the single highest-value repair opportunity in the fleet. The seasonal transition continues to accelerate fleet exposure ($122.26/day, up from $116.58 last cycle), and this device alone accounts for roughly 31% of total daily fleet loss.
Financial Summary
| Weekly Loss | $263 |
| Annual Loss (Projected) | $13,709 |
| Total Loss (90 Days) | $557 |
| Repair Cost (Est.) | $1,200 |
| Payback Period | 32 days |
| ROI | 11.4x |
Trap Details
| Location | Building A — Header #P16 |
| Type | Float & Thermostatic |
| Mfr / Model | Spirax Sarco FT-125 |
| Pipe / Pressure | 1 1/4 inch / 125 PSI |
| Equipment | Heat Exchanger |
| Client Tag | ST-A-024 |
This is one of four kinds of brief, and the brief is where Mission Control starts.See the whole platform
Request a demo
See what’s hiding in your steam system.
Tell us about your plant. We’ll show you how SteamIQ could help your team find failures and prioritize repairs.
Questions? Click the chat icon.
Customers
Trusted by industry leaders.
From pharmaceuticals to food processing, leading facilities rely on SteamIQ.