Thermal Camera Use

[Former Sponsor TM]

Hi Guys,

Over the last two or three months, we've received hundreds of enquiries from tradesmen and women who are considering using a thermal camera to benefit their line of work.

As some of you may know, section 4.9 in the back of the IET Guidance Note 3 publication highlights the benefits of using a thermal camera as part of an Electrical Installation Condition Report, or even electrical/mechanical inspection within a premises where mechanical downtime is not an option.

Has anyone ever used or thought of using a thermal camera for use during an electrical inspection or fault finding?

For those who aren’t aware, we also have a range of thermal camera on our hire fleet. If anybody is looking for a device for inspecting electrical switchgear, components and cables as part of an EICR, or would like to try a thermal camera to incorporate into a preventative maintenance system, we have a three Level 1 ITC trained thermographers in house that will be able to assist if you give us a call. We’re also happy to offer the ELECFORUM 5% code from the price of a hire or new camera purchase, too.

Cheers guys, any thoughts or discussions would be very welcome :yes:

 

[UNG]

I have looked into these but in the current climate don't see how there could be reasonable return on investment, whilst the images may look good attached to an EICR it is whether the cost concious customer in these lean times would see any benefit coupled with the additional cost to facilitate it

A thermal camera is a considered purchase given the cost coupled with any necessary training and lost time while training. With probably a minimum £4k - £6k investment to recover this would significantly add cost to an electrical inspection and while it could also be used for fault finding and reduce the time to locate a fault would the customer pay the high hourly rate this would attract

The number of customers I come across that believe all electricians are carrying the same tools and test equipment amazes me and having a thermal camera would just add to this with minimal return to show for the investment IMO

While rental may offer a solution to outright purchase of the equipment the significant investment of time and money in training is still there, until the costs come down I think this will remain a niche area

 

[Former Sponsor TM]

The investment of thermal imaging equipment certainly is something that has to be taken into consideration.

You're absolutely right. A few years ago, a thermal camera would have set you back at least £3k. Having said that, an entry level thermal camera today would be a similar financial outlay to a purchase of a high end multifunction tester like the Megger MFT1730. Coupled with a 1 day training course to familiarise with basic aspects (emissivity & reflected apparent temperature) of thermography, you'd be looking at an investment of around £1k.

Electrical & mechanical inspection is certainly one of the most popular areas in which to use a thermal camera (and also one of the easiest applications so far as operating a thermal camera is concerned). Most camera manufacturer's provide very easy to use guides that would certainly assist a new owner into how to obtain the best results from their camera in an area like electrical inspection. I certainly think training comes into its own if you analysing a building for heat loss, or perhaps for detecting areas prone to damp and mould.

For discussions sake I think being able to issue a client an advisory on (for example) worn motor bearings without having to spend time isolating machinery, and ultimately costing the customer money in mechanical downtime, is really attractive. As contractors, you could also look into the possibility of offering a full electrical thermographic survey as well.

Just ideas!

 

[UNG]

So what type of thermal camera do you get for under £1k I may just may be getting interested

 

[pennywise]

Flir do one for around £850+ VAT I think

I must be reading this wrong but it says the camera is included!!! :whatchutalkingabout £636 inc VAT????
Ahhhh I see now you have to prove your in education to apply. Still worth slipping a collage lecturer a few notes and they "buy" it for the collage

FLIR i7 Educational Package. Buy online or call

 

[grantr37]

customers want cheap and free, and if anybody goes out and buys a car (sorry thermal imager - same price) in the current market, everybody will expect it as normal, most of the time it will have no meaningful use in household inspections other than to look important and official to general public.....but they will all start to want it..
I have used things like this before in Data centres and have seen them used to look at large motors (lifts/elevators+cranes etc) where it is useful, but have not seen a use for household inspection...the times I have needed to use kit like this it has been supplied by the company (which rented it out from a wholesaler) it was too expensive for them to even buy(they even used to lock away the MFT's and grudgingly sign them out to workers who did not bring in their own test kit) there are a lot of sales people out there who would get really very angry with me saying this, some would even happily sell them to DIY'ers without batting an eyelid as the margins are good for the manufacturers which pressure them to sell sell sell for a relatively small salesman commission and if they got cash to splash.....

 

[Former Sponsor TM]

Flir do one for around £850+ VAT I think

I must be reading this wrong but it says the camera is included!!! :whatchutalkingabout £636 inc VAT????
Ahhhh I see now you have to prove your in education to apply. Still worth slipping a collage lecturer a few notes and they "buy" it for the collage

FLIR i7 Educational Package. Buy online or call

The one you are referring to is the Flir i3 Thermal Camera which is generally sold for £895.00 + VAT. This is currently the most cost effective camera on the market. It is a basic camera but OK for general fault finding on electrical applications.

The Flir i7 Education deal is ridiculously cheap. I think it is just a way for Flir to get their cameras into educational establishments. To get the discount, the school/uni has to purchase the camera using an official purchase order to prove the validity of the purchase. These are the instructions from Flir.

If anyone ever needed a better insight to the capabilities of the different camera's you are welcome to contact us and we can provide you with actual images taken with the model in question. Something that can be hard to determine when looking at such a product online.

Like the profile pic/name Pennywise. Massive fan myself, check out the new record All Or Nothing if you haven't already got it...:yes:

 

[UNG]

The Flir education deal looks very good but why don't the people who are likely to use them get any preferential deals like that one?

 

[Former Sponsor TM]

The Flir education deal looks very good but why don't the people who are likely to use them get any preferential deals like that one?

I THINK (I don't know this) that this is purely a ridiculous price that FLIR are trying to promote to get the camera's in front of students (potential future customers). The general range of cameras have come down over the last years to try and make them more affordable to smaller companies, but admittedly it is still an investment. I cannot speak for Flir in regards to the i7 deal for the educational sector, the above are just my assumptions.