Portable Helium Leak Detector

A portable helium leak detector is a small device used to detect leaks in a helium pipe or a series of pipes used to transport helium. The fact that they are portable means that they can easily be carried around by an engineer looking for leaks in a factory’s helium delivery system. Helium is a very important and common gas used in the manufacturing industry; a leak can not only result in a loss to the business but also results in downtime for a factory’s assembly line resulting in a rise of manufacturing costs. When a detector is used it is easy to find the smallest leak and patch it up before it becomes a big problem resulting in the halting of production.

A portable helium leak detector can be used for the following types of manufacturing plants:

It can be used to perform maintenance work on a semiconductor process tool line either with or probably without the support of an external pump
It can also be used to inspect installations of a gas system
They can also test various components to ensure that they do not contain leaks prior to installing them on to a system
They can also be used for application that need high speed pumps, clean testing and sensitive conditions.

How does a portable helium leak detector work?

Helium is a gas which is an integral part of most types of manufacturing especially in the aerospace and computer industry. However, because of the nature of this gas it also tends to be dangerous if people are exposed to it for a long period of time without proper protection. This is why a portable helium leak detector is used to find and close all leaks in a system. The way a detector works is by using its sensors that detect the presence of a gas in the air, in the case of a helium detector the ‘sniffer’ or the sensor will pick up on helium gas particles in the air and begin to beep informing that there is a leak. This leak can then be traced by the amount of helium in the atmosphere.

How much does a portable helium leak detector cost?

The cost of a helium leak detector varies depending on the brand and the technology used to detect the leak. Many sensor based detectors are often cheaper than ones that use microwaves or other technologies; in addition detectors which are manufactured in China are also cheaper as compared to ones manufactured in the United States. A detector can cost anywhere from $50 to $1000 depending on the factors mentioned above. However it is always a good idea to purchase a high quality detector manufactured by a known name in the industry.

Using a portable helium leak detector

Most portable leak detectors are easy to use and require almost no training. However, a person will need to learn about the symbols and number displayed on the detector if they are to be able to find a leak efficiently.