The safety advantages of running process equipment shaft seals flushless and leak free are numerous.

By eliminating flush water and product leaks, you can prevent the slimy algae that grows on facility floors and walkways. This eliminates slip hazards, lowering all personnel exposure to hazardous conditions, and generally improves plant housekeeping.

Reducing flush water and product leaks lowers unscheduled maintenance hours and the associated risks associated with exposure to equipment and operating dangers. This in turn, lowers a facilities expenses from lost time and accident claims and improves workman’s compensation rates from fewer on the job accidents.

Weyerhaeuser’s North Bend Container Board Utilities Process Manager, Mr. John Cox, writes:

Falls are nothing to laugh at, in fact some estimates put the number of disabling injuries resulting from falls at over 30,000 per year. Wet spots and water are one of the more common fall hazards cited by the National Safety Council. With the installation of the WeeSeal Cage at North Bend, we have enhanced the sealing characteristics of an injectable sealing compound, thus we have reduced slippery floors and maintain a clean work environment. Since customers and other visitors constantly see our work areas, by not having water running all over our floors, it helps maintain a safe, clean work environment and a high standard of housekeeping.

On March 3, 1997, Bob Reichlein, Secretary of the Oregon Area Safety Steering Committee wrote:

Dear Dennis;

Having been involved in the Safety Arena for some 20 years, in various capacities representing working people, I feel compelled to comment on the benefit to the safety process, in contributing to a much safer workplace with your invention the “WeeSeal”.

I’ve observed that installation of the “WeeSeal” has in most instances eliminated leakage of gland water along with the resultant slippery water mess, growing algae and slime in these areas. Using your “WeeSeal” and the injectable packing compound has cleaned up some fairly dangerous areas and in the process made our mill a lot safer place to work in!!

Thanks for your contribution to safety !

Bob Reichlein Secretary
Oregon Area
Safety Steering Committe

Most industrial pumps leak profusely and use enormous amounts of flush water to cool the seal stuffing box. Water that leaks into the process combined with flush water that leaks onto the ground adds up to significant water usage even in a small plant. Consider a facility that has 100 pumps on line leaking 1 gallon per minute and using 1 gallon per minute of flush water per pump. In one year, this facility is loosing over 100 million gallons of water. This is water that must be paid for and is lost needlessly.

Sample Calculation:
2 gal./min. X 60 min./hr. X 24 hr./day X 365 day/yr. X 100 pumps/facility = 105,120,000 gal.pumps/facility

The WeeCraft Corporation has developed proven technology that enables a pumping facility to work leak free using absolutely no flush water. When properly installed, the WeeSeal Cage System, working in conjunction with a high quality Injectable Sealing Compound, enables pumps to run leak free for well over a year with no seal repack down time. The WeeSeal Cage System and Injectable Sealing Compound will:

Economic Savings

• Reduce the need for expensive mechanical seals in applications were they may not be needed. A typical WeeSeal Cage / injectable sealing compound installation will cost less than US$300.00 per 3″ pump shaft.
• Save the cost of significant amounts of water. Water rates vary from location to location, but if you have a facility with 100 pumps loosing one gallon of water per minute due to leaks and one gallon per minute of flush water, your facility is paying for over 100 million gallons of water needlessly. Our experience tells us the numbers are actually much higher. This means your potential savings can be much greater.

Lower Down Time

• Save down time re-packing seals with conventional seal material. With the WeeSeal System you can stop minor leaks without process interuption by re-injecting small amounts of injectable compound as the pumping equipment continues to work. If a pump requires two to three repacks per year using conventional packing, your facility will save at least one manhour per packing job. That can be well over $100 per pump per year. A facility equiped with 100 pumps using conventional packing could save $10,000 or more per year.

Energy Savings

• Save the energy cost to re-heat a heated process when flush water leaks into the process stream. Leaks can be both into the process and onto the ground. If you see a pump leaking onto the floor in your facility, you can be assured that the process is getting diluted with an equal amount of flush water. The leaks that dilute the process will be robbing a facility of energy. The energy required to re-claim the lost heat in a heated process can be significant.
• Save the energy cost to reclaim and decontaminate water that has leaked onto the ground and into the drain system. Today’s environmental requlations require reclaimation of water spilled or leaked onto the ground. This water must be contained and moved to a reclaiming process where even more energy is spent in the reclaiming process. This all becomes unnecessary with the use of the WeeSeal System.

Hidden Costs

• Save on facility infrastructure. There are hidden savings that may not be obvious when using the WeeSeal System. Many facilities have reported that with lower water usage, they have eliminated the need for reclaimation equipment expansion, reduced the demand on municipal water supplies, and lowered electrical demand on their local power systems.