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Immersion Heater Wattage Calculator

This tool, part of our collection of articles and tools on how to choose the right immersion heater (/t-
immersion-compatibility-guide.aspx), will allow you to easily calculate the wattage you need for an
immersion heater (tank heater). We have a huge variety of immersion heaters available for online
ordering; once you know your wattage, watt density, and sheath material (/t-immersion-compatibility-
guide.aspx), you can choose any heater from our standard list (/c-552-immersion-heaters.aspx), or
enter your specifications in our configurator (/configurators/im/config.aspx) to get a 1-day quote on a
built-to-order heater.

All wattage totals and subtotals shown include a 20% safety factor.

Units: Imperial Metric

Step 1: Find the liquid's properties.

Material Specific Heat Boiling Point Density

Look up properties:
0.43 120 869.8
Crude Oil (average) cal °C kg / m³
g•K
I'll input my liquid's properties: Show note

Select if your immersion heater will be maintaining or increasing temperature.

Increase

Step 2: Enter the process details for your liquid.

Volume of Liquid Starting Temp. Ending Temp. Time to Reach Temp.

120 L -20 °C 40 °C 2 hr,

0 min.

. . . . . wattage
Total . . . . . . . .required
. . . . . . . .to . . . . .liquid
. . raise . . . . . .to
. . operating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1880
. . . . . . . . . temperature: . . . . watts
......
 Check here if you will be adding solid objects to this tank. (This opens steps 1a and 2a for
properties of your object.) You can uncheck this to remove this subtotal from the total wattage.

Step 3: Find surface area of your tank (for wattage loss calculations).

Tank Shape Tank Measurements Surface Area

Square/Rectangular Length: 50 cm Top: 0.25

Cylindrical m²
Width: 50 cm
Other (or input Sides (total): 1
surface area directly) Height: 50 cm
m²

Bottom: 0.25
m²

Step 4: Find total wattage losses.

Ambient Air Tank Wall Material Wattage Total Wattage

Temp. Losses per m² Losses

Top: Any material, 1 in. insulation 170 42.5

-20
°C
Sides: Any material, 1 in. insulation 142 142

Bottom: Any material, 1 in. insulation 85 21.3

. . . . . wattage
Total . . . . . . . .losses . . . . .all
. . . . . .from . . walls
. . . . . .at. .operating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .206
. . . . . . . . .temperature: . . . watts
......

Total heating wattage required from immersion heater:

2090 watts

Please note that, while this tool uses the same math we use to calculate wattages, we cannot be liable for incorrect
information or misuse of the calculator, and results from this calculator do not constitute a guarantee on any product.
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Phone: (866) 685-4443
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