Plant Utilities worked example

Steam Trap Loss at 61% share of surveyed traps confirmed leaking: a worked example

Suppose share of surveyed traps confirmed leaking falls to 61%. This page works the full calculation at that level so you can see exactly which result moves and by how much. Estimate the cost exposure from failed open steam traps so maintenance and boiler teams can prioritize trap survey repairs.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Failed-open steam traps found in survey: 12 traps (held at the documented default)
  • Estimated annual steam loss cost per failed trap: 420 $ / trap (held at the documented default)
  • Share of surveyed traps confirmed leaking: 61 % (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 85)
  • Trap survey and repair mobilization cost: 250 $ (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Total steam trap loss cost = failed open steam traps × estimated steam loss cost per trap × traps confirmed leaking + survey and repair setup cost.
  • Total steam trap loss cost works out to 3,324 $ at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Cost per item or period works out to 277 $ / item at these inputs.
  • Variable steam trap loss cost works out to 3,074 $ at these inputs.
  • Fixed utility adder works out to 250 $ at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where share of surveyed traps confirmed leaking sits at 85% and the headline result is 4,534 $, this scenario comes in 26.68% below the baseline at 3,324 $.
  • It computes the total annual steam trap loss cost by multiplying failed-open traps by the per-trap loss cost and the confirmed-leaking fraction, then adds the fixed survey and repair mobilization cost. When the numbers land here, the stressed input is the lever to work; the walkthrough above shows exactly how much each output recovers as it climbs back toward the baseline.

Results at a glance

  • Total steam trap loss cost: 3,324 $ (headline result)
  • Cost per item or period: 277 $ / item
  • Variable steam trap loss cost: 3,074 $
  • Fixed utility adder: 250 $

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Steam Trap Loss calculator, set share of surveyed traps confirmed leaking to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.