What is your go-to gauge brand?

BigRob

I've had terrible luck with gauges over the years, especially temperature gauges. All the gauges I have bought become wildly inaccurate or literally break. There is nothing special about my application.. normal hydronic pressures and temperatures.

So, what are your favorite indicator and gauge brands? Do any last these days?

cross_skier

Dwyer Magnehelic has impressed me.  Unbeatable American quality, giant 4" display.  Almost all are rated to with stand 15psi.  Expensive but great bargains can be found on new ones posted on eBay

ratio

+1 for the Mangehelic. They're cheap enough that I can buy them in the correct range, with a case. That keeps me from needing to swap them around, e.g. gas inlet & outlet pressures (including med. pressure gas), as well as profile plate ΔP when I'm starting a MAU.

I think @ChrisJ has one showing the pressure drop across his filter, maybe he'll post a pic of one in its panel trim.

ChrisJ

ratio said:

+1 for the Mangehelic. They're cheap enough that I can buy them in the correct range, with a case. That keeps me from needing to swap them around, e.g. gas inlet & outlet pressures (including med. pressure gas), as well as profile plate ΔP when I'm starting a MAU.

I think @ChrisJ has one showing the pressure drop across his filter, maybe he'll post a pic of one in its panel trim.

It's setup to show total static pressure including the filter drop.

The adjustable flag is nice and I think has been set at 0.4" since this picture as that's my "new filter" pressure.

hot_rod

Pretty much all the major gauge brands offer good, better, best. Most of the stuff on the shelf is what is considered economy, lowest price.

Go to Winters or Trerice and order the better quality line, it will be more $$. You can spend 10 bucks or 100 bucks for a 30 psi gauge for example. Gauge companies online can usually supply the better models.

For pressure gauges I like stainless case liquid filled. They handle life on the truck shelves best, and should last years.

I'm not sure there is a quality, top line, tridicator version out there? Best to use separate gauges, pressure and temperature if you can.

BigRob

Appreciate the tips, guys.

Are all pressure gauges vulnerable to water hammer?

EBEBRATT-Ed

@BigRob

Vibration and water hammer can kill any gauge or thermometer but for gauges liquid filled as @hot_rod mentioned will last longer

hot_rod

Snubbers will he’ll take pulsing away and catch some spikes. The come with some of the pricier gauges or buy them separately 

JUGHNE

I was getting temp gauges that had a 1/2" well, the gauge just pushed into the well with a friction collar.
For in and out temps you could read the two of them and then switch wells to check the reading in the same location.
They would usually be accurate for that test.
Johnstone Supply had them at one time.

BigRob

How do digital pressure gauges hold up? Anybody tried them?

ratio

The digital manifolds seem to work fine, they're certainly using the same technology for the actual transducer & I know that mine take a beating.