Home / Tank Heaters / Custom Engineered
Tank Heaters
Custom Engineered Heating Systems
The jobs that do not fit a catalog page. Odd tank geometry, difficult chemistry, an obsolete heater with no replacement, or a duty nobody wants to quote.
What counts as custom
Custom is not the exception here. Industrial Electric Heating Supply was founded more than fifty years ago by a chemical engineer and military veteran, and the large one-off flange and tank heater jobs have been the backbone of the business since. The list below is not a list of things we will reluctantly attempt — it is a description of the normal week.
- Tank geometry that does not suit a standard heater. Very shallow, very deep, narrow, baffled, or already crowded with racks and agitation.
- Chemistry outside the usual charts. Mixed acids, high-concentration caustic, unusual solvents, anything where the standard sheath recommendation is a guess.
- Obsolete replacement. An existing heater from a manufacturer or a series that no longer exists, where the tank was built around the heater.
- Multi-zone and staged systems. Several tanks, several setpoints, one control scheme.
- Non-standard voltage or a hard power constraint. You have what you have at the panel, and the heater has to work inside it.
- Classified areas and code work. Hazardous location builds, ASME vessels, agency documentation.
How the work goes
You send what you have
Tank drawings, photos, nameplates from the failed heater, a bath analysis, your electrical panel rating. Incomplete is fine. Photos with a tape measure in the frame are genuinely useful.
We work out the heat balance
Heat-up load, losses through the walls and the liquid surface, maintain load at temperature, and the watt density the liquid will actually tolerate. The last number is what decides how much element area you need.
We specify the wetted materials
Sheath, fittings, and anything else touching the liquid, selected against your chemistry at your temperature and concentration — not against a generic compatibility chart.
You get a quote with the reasoning in it
The kW, the material, the watt density, the assumptions, and what changes if an assumption is wrong. If a standard product would do the job for less, we will say so.
It gets built and documented
Nameplate data, wiring diagram, and the specification you can hand to whoever replaces it in ten years.
Capabilities
| Specification | Range or option |
|---|---|
| Heater styles | Over-the-side, flange, screw plug, circulation, bolt-on strip and band, cartridge, tubular, duct and air heaters |
| Rating range | Under 1 kW to several hundred kW per unit, staged for larger totals |
| Sheath and wetted materials | 316 and 304 stainless, Incoloy 800 / 840, titanium, Monel 400, Hastelloy, PTFE-coated steel, quartz, carbon steel, nickel plated |
| Voltage | 120 V through 600 V, single and three phase, plus non-standard voltages on request |
| Enclosures | NEMA 1, 4, 4X, 7, 9, outdoor rated, insulated, epoxy sealed |
| Controls | Contactor panels, SCR power controllers, PID controllers, multi-zone panels, over-temperature limits, flow and level interlocks, data logging |
| Sensors | Type J and K thermocouples, RTDs, capillary thermostats, thermowells |
| Documentation | Nameplate data, wiring diagrams, bill of materials, replacement specification sheet |
Lines we work with
Custom builds and replacement heaters are supplied alongside components and controls from established manufacturers, so a system can be maintained with parts that will still exist later.
Common questions
Can you replace a heater from a manufacturer that no longer exists?
Usually. What matters is the physical envelope and the electrical rating, not the original brand. Send the nameplate if it is still legible, measurements of the mounting and immersed length, and photos of the terminal end. If the nameplate is gone we can often work back from the tank, the breaker size and the wiring.
What is the minimum order?
There is no minimum. Single replacement heaters are normal work, and a one-off custom unit is quoted the same way as a repeat order.
We do not know what kW we need. Can you work it out?
Yes, that is part of the quote. Send tank volume, the liquid, starting and target temperature, how quickly it has to get there, and whether the tank is insulated or covered. You can also run the numbers yourself first with the sizing calculator.
Do you handle hazardous location and classified areas?
Yes. State the Class, Division and Group on the inquiry, along with the temperature code required. Explosion-proof enclosures and appropriate element construction are specified from there.
Can you quote the controls with the heater?
Yes, and it is usually a better outcome. A heater and a control panel specified together get matched watt density, sensor placement and safety interlocks. Bought separately, those three things routinely do not line up.
Send the job nobody else wants to quote
Odd tanks, difficult chemistry, obsolete replacements, hard power constraints. Photos and rough measurements are enough to start a conversation.