r/instrumentation

Anybody that has applied to the Freeport Dow Apprenticeship for Process Operator heard back for interviews yet? I sent in my documents in February, ahead of the 3/20 deadline, but haven’t heard anything. I sent a follow up last week, but still nothing.

I’m 28 a welder originally from Texas but live in Reno Nevada. Been welding for 10 years but want a career in instrumentation. How long is training for instrumentation and where could i go for training? Thanks in advance

Hey everyone,

I’m an international student currently living in Halifax, Nova Scotia. I’m planning to go into a 2-year trade program, and I’m stuck choosing between Power Engineering and Instrumentation & Control Technician.

Both programs take about the same time, so my main concern is really about job opportunities and long-term career growth after graduation.

A bit more about my situation:

I’m in NS right now (Halifax), planning to start study in September 2026

After graduating, I’m planning to move to a bigger city like Toronto, Vancouver, or Calgary to start my career

I’m open to relocating for better opportunities

From what I’ve heard:

Power Engineering seems more tied to plants/industrial settings

Instrumentation & Control sounds more technical and maybe broader?

But I’m not sure how that actually translates into:

Job availability (especially for new grads)

Salary growth

Ease of getting the first job

Long-term stability

If anyone here works in either field (or knows someone who does), I’d really appreciate your advice or experience.

Thanks a lot! 🙏

So I work in the New England area at a combined cycle. This was my first IC&E job and been there for 4 years. For the past 2 years we’ve constantly had at least one position always open, someone’s always leaving it seems so there’s always one empty spot. It’s usually a 4-5 month period by the time we get a guy and the applicants or lack there of, are always zero experience or entirely different job experience. I’m currently at $60/hour so I feel the hiring pay would be 55-60 at this point so I don’t see why it doesn’t attract people. (One of our guys just left for another plant for 62/hour)

Is there just a shortage in general? I ask cause I’m trying to leave New England and land another I&E job eventually and know the job scale won’t be as high I am now but still wondering if I would have negotiation advantage if every plant is desperate.

our foreman swapped to a new food grade mold release in the CNC area. two weeks later three of our catalytic bead LEL monitors were reading weird, way underreading on bump tests. thought we had a cal gas issue. nope. the silicone in the release spray had poisoned the sensors.

this is a known issue with Cat Bead, silicones are basically death to the platinum bead. the vapor binds permanent, no amount of bump or calibration will bring it back once its poisoned. sensor just looses sensitivity for good.

ended up replacing all three sensors at about 400 a pop and switching purchasing to a silicone free release agent. the worst part is the guys had been saying the monitors felt slow for weeks, nobody connected it to the spray bottle change.

if you run catalytic bead detectors around any machining or fab work its worth checking what aerosols your crews are spraying. lubricants, release agents, even some hand sanitizers have silicone in them. IR sensors are immune but they cost more up front so most places dont spec them.

anyone else caught this one the hard way?

Opening with Kinder Morgan here in Savannah, GA for an Electrical and Controls technician.

https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/4402765096/

Help needed! I HAVE TO PERFORM CALIBRATION OF GAS DETECTORS CLOSED PATH.

I HAVE DONE CALIBRATION OF GAS DETECTORS (OPEN PATH) BUT NEVER CLOSED PATH.

I HAVE QUESTION THAT, DO I NEED GAS CYLINDER FOR IT? SINCE IT IS CLOSED PATH GAS DETECTORS. CAN ANYONE GUIDE ME, I WOULD REALLY APPRECIATE IT.

There are 2 RTDs in two locations:

1. On a steam line going out from the LP header of a power plant going to the process side.

2. On the header of a process side, the steam line of the power plant is coming in here.

In the power plant side, RTD shows 160 celcius and in the process side it is 200 celcius.

I checked manually and the RTDs are correct.

How is the +40° C happening?

Hi guys, im having a hard time with this instrument, I've placed the sensors correctly and the instrument is reading 1400 m3/h who is a acceptable value, the old one used to read the same on the pipeline ( water cooling line).

The problem is that the PLC can't read the current signal (around 11.45 mA) by any means.

He has a cable for the 24v and another for signal.

1. The 24V for the signal is active and configured this way on the options. I've tried to change to passive but still didn't work.

2. I'm using the output 4-20 mA hart, and is configured as "current". I have another output but he is a frequency/pulse one.

3. I measured the output with a fluke and is really providing 11.45 mA.

4. Disconnected the cable from the bornes and simulated with the fluke to the PLC who reads successful all the values i provide. So the cable and the plc card are okay.

5. The values for LRV and the URV are the same on the instrument and on PLC, 0 - 3000 m3.

Really don't know what could be, after the test with the fluke simulating the current and measuring the cable my options are gone.

I have a reverse osmosis system at work, and the sensor and/or device mentioned in the post title periodically stop reading the flow rate. This is an intermittent problem. It can run for a long time, or it might not start at all. If anyone has encountered this or a similar problem, please share how you resolved it. Thanks in advance.

Hey guys, I’m not too sure if this is the right group but, I have an I&E degree and right now I work as electrical maintenance (1yr) at a plant down the road from the local refinery, i had a interview with this refinery 4 months ago and just recently they called me to schedule one later this week for electrical maintenance but this time I really want to land this job, I can give a brief description of all that I can do at my old job but what are some things I can say that will really help guarantee I get hired? The last time they interviewed me they asked only 2 technical questions and they tested me, but they have the old test so I don’t need to take it again.

We use a handful of fixes Hach pd1r1 pH probes connected to sc200 controllers or the occasional sc400. The probes typically last quite awhile, up to several years (manufacturer lifespan states 1 year I believe). We can usually go a long way on them with routine maintenance, salt bridge replacements, and cell solution refreshes.

The issue we are having, however, is that when it comes time to replace the sensor, a new in box one ends up bad 2/3rds to 3/4ths of the time. Some have been on the shelf for a while, but the last 4 have been a between one week and three months from date of manufacture.

I read on another forum that it’s not uncommon for the protective cap to leak storage solution put during shipping, which we have seen. We are also seeing them arrive with very little cell solution.

For 1500 a piece, this seems like very poor quality control and shipping. We have returned a couple back to Hach but it is a slow and difficult process due to the white tape of our plant and governing body. Thinking about switching to E&H or something at this point.

Has anyone else experienced this with Hach pH or pH probes from other manufacturers?

I have a full tool bag that I bring with me if I don’t know what tools I need, But I’m looking for something to carry a few screwdrivers, pliers, and some tape. My Jean pockets always end up getting overwhelmed with 3 screwdrivers and a pair of channel locks and strippers.

Currently I am an industrial maintenace tech trainee at a automotive manufacture working in there body show. It is heavy automated , 1,700+ robots, we are considered multicraft. I was an industrial electrician at a small mom and pop shop that gave me my start and I learned a lot, because we did everything. Including motor install, fab work, basically if we were asked to do it we did. There is a local ethanol plant looking for E&I tech, I applied and they want to interview me. However I’ve never had an E&I job so not really sure what it all instails. They start out at $33 as an entry level and top out at $46 and only have day shift hours. Current making $31.49 on third shit but top out is $45 but it’s gonna take 6-7 years to get there. I really like what I do now and it is a super laid back facility that offers 1.5x after 8, 1.5x on Saturday and 2x on Sundays, however the drive is 45 minutes.

Basically wondering has anyone made the switch to a E&I job from a maintenance position and did you like it? What does the job include? Speciality skills involved? Been wanting to get into oil and gas because it’s not going anywhere. Any advice/insight is extremely appreciated.

Anyone know of any general GC training material online? Also if there’s Maxum II training material available? Thanks

nstrument air from the header line is supplied to the intake filters and distributed into three banks. Each bank contains approximately 30 solenoid valves, and each solenoid is connected to a diaphragm.

During operation, when the system pulses, the solenoid valve is energized, allowing air to actuate the diaphragm. This action opens the path for air to flow into the filters for cleaning.

However, sometimes when the system pulses, no air is released. In such cases, it is difficult to determine whether the issue is caused by a faulty solenoid valve or a problem with the diaphragm.

Is there a way to determine the exact issue ?