3 Calculators For Water Hammer And Pressure Drop

We've been talking a lot about filtration media and how to select the right one for your application over the last few weeks. Since every application is different there isn't a "one size fits all" solution. To help you through this process, Eaton Filtration developed three calculators to calculate pressure change due to water hammer and pressure drop (or loss) for water and non-water applications. 

WATER HAMMER CALCULATOR

Water hammer is a pressure surge or wave that occurs when a fluid in motion is forced to suddenly stop or change direction. It can cause excessive noise and vibration, and ultimately will destroy pipes. This calculator allows you to calculate total pressure change due to the sudden shutting of a valve or water hitting the end of a pipe (water hammer). For this calculation you'll need: 

• Pipe size (inches)
• Line pressure (psi)
• Flow rate (GPM)

PRESSURE DROP CALCULATOR (WATER)

In last week's post about selecting the right filtration media, we discussed pressure drop (or loss) and the consequences if pressure drop is too high to begin with. You'll risk system downtime and increased labor costs because the filter media will quickly clog and need to be replaced. The pressure loss calculator calculates the pressure loss, so you can be confident with your decision. For example, if pressure drop is more than 2 psi (as recommended for most applications), Eaton recommends using a larger strainer or filter to help reduce initial pressure loss. For this calculation, you need:

• Flow rate
• Cv value 
• Mesh size

PRESSURE DROP CALCULATOR (NON-WATER)

This calculator will compute the pressure drop (or loss) for liquids with a viscosity other than water. You will need:

• Flow rate
• Cv value 
• Mesh size
• Gravity of the fluid
• Viscosity of the fluid (in SSU)

We hope you find these calculators helpful when working on your next filtration project! Read more about filtration, including helpful advice and case studies on Eaton's Filtration blog!

Need assistance selecting filtration media, or simply have questions about a current filtration system? Ask us about it! We gladly provide technical assistance to businesses in Wisconsin and upper Michigan.