Using oil sight glass level indicators
Sight glasses are used in many applications across a range of industries all over the world. Oil sight glasses are explicitly used to measure oil within a pipe, tank or vessel in a safe way, negating the need to open the oil receptacle, which could put the observer at risk. In this article, BM Engineering explores the different types of oil level sight glass and how they work, giving you a deeper understanding of this simple, yet essential tool in the oil processing industry.
What are oil sight glasses?
A sight glass is a transparent tube that is used for observing the level of liquid contained within a tank or boiler. Oil level sight glasses are useful for monitoring oil or lubricant quality and quantity inside pipes, tanks and reservoirs. As well as monitoring how much lubrication is inside the component, oil sight glasses can also show you the quality of the lubricant in question. This includes the colour, clarity, and if there has been an accumulation of water.
Oil sight glasses are used across many industries, including:
- Manufacturing plants
- Chemical
- Food and beverage
- Biofuels
- Pharmaceuticals
Oil glasses are available in a variety of materials, allowing different fluids or levels of pressure. In general, oil sight glasses come in two different styles: columnar and bullseye.
Columnar sight glasses
Columnar sight glasses typically made of plastic, acrylic or glass and allow visualisation of the oil level fluctuating up and down. They are typically attached to an oil-bathed component, usually at the drain port. Columnar sight glasses are recommended for use when the levels of oil within the container are likely to fluctuate by large amounts.
Bullseye sight glasses
Bullseye sight glasses are made of similar materials to columnar sight glasses and are placed into a port, sitting just above the oil level inside the reservoir. 3D bullseye sight glasses are also available to give industries a better view of what the oil level is within the oil receptacle.
How does an oil level sight glass work?
Once installed, sight glasses work as a window enabling the user to observe processes inside tanks, pipes, reactors and vessels. Oil level indicators can be used in conjunction with sight glasses to measure the exact level of an oil or lubricant within a vessel.
BM Engineering – sight glass suppliers
As one of the UK’s leading industrial sight glass suppliers, BM Engineering can help find the solution you require for your process industry. With over twenty years of experience, our family-run business puts the customer at the heart of everything we do.
We hold a range of sight glasses from world-leading sight glass manufacturers INOXPA and Valsteam ADCA as well as many other industrial valves, actuated packages and instrumentation for your oil processing industry.
Get in touch with us today to find out more.
