Instructions on how to use the Cost comparison model

1 Evaluate the type of Insulator needing coating and assess the surface area of the insulator in the appropriate sheet
(Fixed Shed Diameter, Alternating Shed diameter, Tapered Shed)
2 Evaluate the amount of grease or coating needed to cover this area
3 If you currently Water Wash your insulators then procede to the Water Washing Sheet to fill in required cost
and timing information
4 Complete the cost and frequency for greasing in Grease Sheet using quantity calculated previously
depending on pollution level
5 Complete the information for HVIC coating in the HVIC Sheet
6 Review Cost differences in the cost comparison sheet
Summary information sheet gives details of quantity calculations for greases (silicone and hydrocarbon) and HVIC depending on pollution level

HIGH VOLTAGE INSULATOR COATINGS - QUANTITY CALCULATIONS.

To be able to calculate the quantity of material required to coat high voltage insulators, it is
necessary to firstly establish the surface area of the insulators.
From the coating manufacturers published information on coverage rate per square metre, the
volume of coating material can then be calculated.
The simplest way to calculate an approximate surface area is to use data supplied by the
insulator manufacturer.
i.e. dl = approximate surface area, where d is average diameter and l is creepage distance.
The coverage rate per square metre, taken from data published by the various coating
manufacturers, is as shown below.
Manufacturers Recommended Thickness
SYLGARD HVIC
SILICONE GREASE
HYDROCARBON GREASE

Low Pollution Medium Pollution

0.5mm Cured
0.5mm Cured
1.5mm
2.25mm
3.0mm
4.0mm

High Pollution
0.5mm Cured
3.0mm
5.0mm

Quantity for 1 square metre of insulator

SYLGARD HVIC
SILICONE GREASE
HYDROCARBON GREASE

Low Pollution Medium Pollution

1.06kg
1.06kg
2.27kg
3.4kg
3.0kg
4.0kg

High Pollution
1.06kg
4.5kg
5.0kg

Notes:
1. Thicknesses stated are manufacturers recommendations.
2. A factor of 10% for wastage/overspray etc has been included in each case.
3. For small insulators, where overspray may be greater, and/or where the applicators are
inexperienced, a higher factor of wastage/overspray may be required.
The following exercises on sheets 2, 3 and 4 assist in calculating the approximate coating
quantities required for different styles of insulators and coating materials. By inserting the
insulator core and shed diameters the material quantities for varying pollution levels are displayed
automatically.
N.B. The Sylgard quantity is constant for all pollution levels, whereas the grease quantities increase with
higher pollution levels.
The calculations are based on approximate surface areas and a material overspray/wastage factor of 10%.
To be used as a guide for estimating purposes only.

INSULATORS WITH ALL SHEDS THE SAME DIAMETER.

Dc

Diameter of core (Dc)

metres

Diameter of sheds (Ds)

metres
metres

Creepage distance

Ds

Coating Qty (kgs)

Medium Pollution High Pollution
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00

Low Pollution
Sylgard HVIC
Silicone Grease
Hydrocarbon Grease

0.00

0.00

0.00

INSULATORS WITH SHEDS OF DIFFERENT DIAMETERS

Dc

Diameter of core (Dc)

Diameter of smallest Shed (Ds)
Diameter of largest shed (Dl)
Creepage distance

Ds

Dl
Coating Qty (kgs)
Sylgard HVIC
Silicone Grease
Hydrocarbon Grease

Low Pollution Medium Pollution High Pollution

18.62
18.62
18.62
39.88
59.74
79.06
52.71
70.28
87.85

metres
0.5 metres
0.517 metres
11.84 metres
0.4

INSULATORS WITH TAPERED CORES AND SHEDS OF DIFFERENT DIAMETERS

(Wall Bushings, CT Bushings )

Ds
Dcs

Diameter of small end core

metres

Diameter of large end core

metres

Diameter of smallest shed

metres

Diameter of largest shed

metres

Creepage distance

metres

Coating Qty (kgs)

Low Pollution

Dcl

Dl

Medium Pollution

High Pollution

Sylgard HVIC

0.00

0.00

0.00

Silicone Grease
Hydrocarbon Grease

0.00
0.00

0.00
0.00

0.00
0.00

Exercise No 1:
Estimating Water Washing Cost for a 40-Year Period
I. Cost to wash your high voltage insulators one time.
Water washing costs are determined in a variety of ways. If you hire a contractor to water wash,
enter their total charge on labour line and proceed to item II.
If you use your own crew and equipment to perform the water washing operation, determine the
total costs by completing the following:Labour
Supervision
Travel
Accommodation
Materials (water, rags etc)
Chargeback for capital equipment
(water washers, trucks, etc)*
Cost for shutting down substation (if required)
Safety equipment
Any other extra's
Total

350

( a ) 350
(cost per washing)

Note: An additional cost frequently incurred in most insulator maintenance procedures is the loss of
revenue resulting from an outage in the area being maintained or the costs involved in avoiding an
outage (e.g. planning for and carrying out rerouting and switching)
II. Total cost to water wash for a 40 year period
No of water washes per year

the number of washings required in a 40-year period**

(b) 160

(b) number of washings x (a) cost per washing

( c ) 56000
(total cost, 40 years)

Total Cost over 40 Year Period

*

56,000

A common practice is to determine a standard charge for equipment, including a depreciation factor.

** In a Dow Corning survey of several utilities, the frequency of water washing ranged from weekly to once every other
year. Two to four times a year was quite common.

Exercise No 2:
Estimating Hydrocarbon Grease Application for a 40-Year Period
I. Quantity of grease required to coat your high voltage insulators one time.
Refer to the accompanying table to determine the number of kgs of grease required to coat your
insulators.
Enter the total on this line
(d)
87.85
(grease required, kg)

II. Cost of grease required to coat your high voltage insulators one time.
Cost of grease per kg

(e)

3
(cost of grease per kg)

Total cost of grease ( d ) x ( e )

(f)

263.55
(total cost of grease)

III. Cost of labour required to coat your high voltage insulators one time.
Greasing costs are determined in a variety of ways. If you hire a contractor to remove the old
grease and apply new, enter the total charge on labour line and procede to item IV.
Note: Actual grease application costs vary significantly from insulator to insulator, depending on the
location, accessibility and geometry of the insulator. In a Dow Corning survey of several utilities, the
cost to coat an insulator requiring 1kg of grease was found to range from 7 to well over 65.
If you use your own crew and equipment to remove the old grease and apply new, determine the
total cost by completing the following:Labour
1400
Supervision

Travel

Accommodation

Materials (rags, solvents etc)

Chargeback for capital equipment (grease

sprayers, trucks, etc)*

Cost for shutting down substation (if required)

Safety equipment

Any other extra's

Total
( g ) 1400
Note: An additional cost frequently incurred in most insulator maintenance procedures is the loss of
revenue resulting from an outage in the area being maintained or the costs involved in avoiding an
outage (e.g. planning for and carrying out rerouting and switching)
IV. Total cost to apply grease one time
( f ) cost of grease + ( g ) cost of labour etc
( h ) 1663.55
V. Total cost to apply grease for a 40-year period
Enter the number of years between application
on line ( i ). Regreasing every 18 months is typical.
(i)
3
Years between application

Total Cost over 40 Year Period

( j ) 23289.7
(total cost, 40 years)

Total Cost over 40 Year Period

23,290

* A common practice is to determine a standard charge for equipment, including a depreciation factor.

Exercise No 3:
Estimating Silicone Grease Application for a 40-Year Period
I. Quantity of grease required to coat your high voltage insulators one time.
Refer to the accompanying table to determine the number of kgs of grease required to coat your
insulators.
Enter the total on this line
(d)
79.06
(grease required, kg)

II. Cost of grease required to coat your high voltage insulators one time.
Cost of grease per kg

(e)

10
(cost of grease per kg)

Total cost of grease ( d ) x ( e )

(f)

790.6
(total cost of grease)

III. Cost of labour required to coat your high voltage insulators one time.
Greasing costs are determined in a variety of ways. If you hire a contractor to remove the old
grease and apply new, enter the total charge on labour line and procede to item IV.
Note: Actual grease application costs vary significantly from insulator to insulator, depending on the
location, accessibility and geometry of the insulator. In a Dow Corning survey of several utilities, the
cost to coat an insulator requiring 1kg of grease was found to range from 7 to well over 65.
If you use your own crew and equipment to remove the old grease and apply new, determine the
total cost by completing the following:Labour
787.5
Supervision

Travel

Accommodation

Materials (rags, solvents etc)

Chargeback for capital equipment (grease

sprayers, trucks, etc)*

Cost for shutting down substation (if required)

Safety equipment

Any other extra's

Total
( g ) 787.5
Note: An additional cost frequently incurred in most insulator maintenance procedures is the loss of
revenue resulting from an outage in the area being maintained or the costs involved in avoiding an
outage (e.g. planning for and carrying out rerouting and switching)
IV. Total cost to apply grease one time
( f ) cost of grease + ( g ) cost of labour etc
( h ) 1578.1
V. Total cost to apply grease for a 40-year period
Enter the number of years between application
on line ( i ). Regreasing every 18 months is typical.
(i)
3
Years between application

Total Cost over 40 Year Period

( j ) 22093.4
(total cost, 40 years)

Total Cost over 40 Year Period

22,093

* A common practice is to determine a standard charge for equipment, including a depreciation factor.

Exercise No 4:
Estimating Costs of Using SYLGARD HVIC for a 40-Year Period
I. Quantity of SYLGARD HVIC required to coat your high voltage insulators.
Refer to the accompanying table to determine the number of kgs of SYLGARD HVIC required to
coat your insulators.
Enter the total on this line
( k ) kgs 18.62
(SYLGARD HVIC, kgs)

II. Cost of SYLGARD HVIC required to coat your high voltage insulators
Cost of SYLGARD HVIC per kg
( l ) 55
(cost SYLGARD HVIC, kg)

Total cost of SYLGARD HVIC ( k ) x ( l )

( m ) 1024.1
(SYLGARD HVIC, total)

III. Cost of labour required to coat your high voltage insulators.

Costs to apply SYLGARD HVIC to insulators are dtermined in a variety of ways. If you hire a
contractor to apply SYLGARD HVIC, enter the total charge on labour line and procede to item IV.
Note: Field studies indicate that the total labour cost to coat a specific insulator is roughly the same
for SYLGARD HVIC and for grease application*. Actual costs vary from insulator to insulator,
however, depending on the location, accessibility and geometry of the insulator. In a Dow Corning
survey of several utilities, the cost to coat an insulator requiring 1kg of SYLGARD HVIC was found
to range from 9 to well over 90.
If you use your own crew and equipment to apply SYLGARD HVIC, determine the total cost by
completing the following:Labour
834.75
Supervision

Travel

Accommodation

Materials (rags, solvents, etc)

Chargeback for capital equipment (sprayers,

trucks, etc)**

Cost for shutting down substation (if required)

Safety equipment

Any other extra's

Total
( n ) 834.75
Note: An additional cost frequently incurred in most insulator maintenance procedures is the loss of
revenue resulting from an outage in the area being maintained or the costs involved in avoiding an
outage (e.g. planning for and carrying out rerouting and switching)
IV. Total cost to apply SYLGARD HVIC
( m ) cost of SYLGARD HVIC + ( n ) cost of labour

( o ) 1858.85
(product and application cost)

Anticipate Life of SYLGARD HVIC

(p) years 10

Total Life cost over 40 year period

Total Cost over 40 Year Period

(q)

7435.4

7,435

* In a typical grease application, old grease must be removed and new applied. Both steps require significant labour.
** A common practice is to determine a standard charge for equipment, including a depreciation factor.

Cost of Different Protection Methods

Silicone Grease
Hydrocarbon
Grease
HVIC
Water Washing

2 Year 4 3 Year 5 4 Year 6

5
7 Year 9
8
10
Year
1 0 Year
2 1 Year1578.1
3
7 6 Year4734.3
8
109 Year
11
1578.1
1578.1
3156.2
3156.2
3156.2 Year
4734.3
4734.3 Year
6312.4
6312.4
1663.55
1663.55
1663.55
3327.1
3327.1
3327.1
4990.65
4990.65
4990.65
6654.2
6654.2
1858.85
1858.85
1858.85
1858.85
1858.85
1858.85
1858.85
1858.85
1858.85
1858.85
3717.7
1400
2800
4200
5600
7000
8400
9800
11200
12600 14000 15400

Year 1 Year 5
Silicone Grease
Hydrocarbon Grease
HVIC
Water Washing

Year 10

Year 15 Year 20 Year 25

Year 30 Year 35

Year 40

1578

3156

6312

7891

11047

14203

15781

18937

22093

1664

3327

6654

8318

11645

14972

16636

19963

23290

1859

1859

1859

3718

3718

5577

5577

7435

7435

1400

7000

14000

21000

28000

35000

42000

49000

56000

Cost of Different Protection Methods

60000
50000

Cost ()

40000

Hydrocarbon Grease
HVIC
Water Washing
Silicone Grease

30000
20000
10000
0

333932079.xls

Cost Comparison based on Data input by user

333932079.xls

11 Year 13
12
13 Year 15
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
Year
12
14
6312.4
7890.5 Year
7890.5
7890.5 Year
94691Year
94691Year
94691Year
###1Year
###2Year
###2Year
###2Year
###2Year
###2Year
###2Year
###2Year
###2Year
###2Year
###2Year
###3Year
###3Year
###3Year
###3Year
###3Year
###3Year
###3
6654.2
8317.75
8317.75
8317.75
9981
9981
9981
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
###
3717.7
3717.7
3717.7
3717.7
3718
3718
3718
3718
3718
5577
5577
5577
5577
5577
5577
5577
5577
5577
5577
7435
7435
7435
7435
7435
7435
16800 18200 19600 21000 ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ###

333932079.xls

333932079.xls

36
37
38
39
Year
###3Year
###3Year
###3Year
###40
###
###
###
###
7435
7435
7435
7435
### ### ### ###

333932079.xls

333932079.xls