The goal of any utility maintenance service is to ensure that service is disrupted as little as possible and only during scheduled downtime. Cleaning is often ignored as part of a preventative maintenance in Pakistan. Costly repairs, outages, and unscheduled labour overtime easily outweigh the cost of preventive maintenance in the power distribution and transmission industry.

A transformer’s exterior is exposed to the full force of the elements for the duration of its operation. Thermal cycling, blown dust abrasion, emissions, precipitation, and ultraviolet light all wear down the paint that keeps the steel from oxidising. No coating can last indefinitely, particularly if it has been exposed to the elements for decades.

In the event of contamination, high voltage insulator cleaning can prevent failure. These accidents can easily be avoided by cleaning and inspecting insulators. Because the majority of transformers in use at the distribution level are several decades old, transformer painting to replace their external coatings to protect them from corrosion damage should be introduced.

Determine the cleaning method by looking at the type of contamination to be removed and the amount of time before the equipment can be put back into service. When cleaning electrical equipment with liquid solvents or water, allow enough time for them to dry. Before re-energizing equipment, test the insulation to see if it has been correctly reconditioned.

Contaminant buildup can be avoided by cleaning high voltage insulators and inspecting them on a regular basis. Damage from other sources, such as manufacturing defects, should also be detected.

Painting, cleaning, and inspecting transformers on a regular basis will help them last longer and detect corrosion as soon as possible. When you notice rust on a transformer, it’s time to schedule transformer painting into your regular maintenance schedule. The failure of the coating in one location indicates that it is on the verge of failing on the other surfaces.

Other substation equipment should be washed, inspected for rust, and repainted as well. Instrumentation transformers have many of the same corrosion issues as power transformers, and can drain entirely or have moisture contamination of their dielectric oil from a small rust leak much faster than power transformers, resulting in thermal failure, service outage.

Transformer maintenance can be divided into two categories. One is done on a daily basis, while the other is done when there is a pressing need. If routine maintenance checks are performed, you may avoid the need for breakdown maintenance and therefore save time.

For proper efficiency and reliability, cleaning should be done properly and the interior/exterior of heavy duty electrical equipment should be kept clean. The cleaning method is critical in determining whether the risks and minor damages incurred during the cleaning process are alright.