The achievement of 1,000 users is not just a number; it’s a reflection of the trust and satisfaction of our community.

Our users come from various industries, each utilizing Chateau to streamline processes, boost productivity, and achieve their goals. It is this diversity and the success stories of our users that drive us to keep pushing boundaries and setting new standards.

Chateau’s growth is not merely about numbers; it’s about the stories and the successes of our users. With a focus on delivering the best possible service, our platform has evolved significantly over time. Each update and feature has been carefully crafted to enhance user experience, ensuring that Chateau remains at the forefront of the industry. We’ve listened to user feedback and made continuous improvements, resulting in a platform that is both user-friendly and highly functional.

Click here to receive celebration stickers!

You can also email sales@ldartools.com with the following information:

  1. City, State  ZIP
  2. Street Address Line 1
  3. Street Address Line 2
  4. Complete shipping address (cannot be a PO Box)
  5. Email address
  6. First and Last Name
  7. Site ID or Company Name
  8. Number of stickers requested at your site

Thank you for being part of the Chateau community. Here’s to your continued success—and to reaching new milestones together!

Exciting News from LDARtools!

 

We are thrilled to announce our new monthly webinar series, Chateau Connect, dedicated to all things Chateau! Through Chateau Connect, we will provide all of you with a quick-dive into various Chateau topics each month. The purpose of this webinar, of course, is to not only improve your experience using Chateau, but to also show Chateau’s full capabilities in the world of LDAR database software. With this being our first webinar in the series, we would love to have you join us!

 

If you are a current Chateau user, you should have received a registration link in your inbox. If you do not see the email, please reach out to sales@ldartools.com. We look forward to seeing you there!

 

And if you are not a Chateau user but are curious as to what our new monthly webinar series will entail, you can get a sneak peek by booking a no pressure meeting with our Client Success Specialist.

LDARtools will be closed Monday September 2, 2024 in recognition of Labor Day.

We will be conducting normal business operations Friday August 30 and Tuesday September 3.

Price increases are not surprising. In spite of rising prices for virtually everything we need, we have continued to invest in making our products the most innovative and valuable tools for the LDAR industry.
Effective August 13, 2024, all new Chateau quotes will include a Chateau Set-up/Import Fee to cover the cost of basic imports. All existing quotes will be honored with POs received before September 1, 2024, or the quote expiration date.

 

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact sales@ldartools.com.

 

Through it all, we appreciate your business.

Negative Flameout Values

A recent firmware update addressed the representation of negative values in the phx42 FID analyzer, also commonly known as a Toxic Vapor Analyzer or TVA*. Negative values always indicate a flame-out condition, where the FID is not detecting any VOCs due to a lack of ignition. The firmware update ensures these negative values are represented in a specific manner, avoiding confusion and ensuring accurate readings. The specific negative value displayed indicates the reason the phx42 is not ignited.

*This is a misnomer, but also a term the industry has accepted to describe portable FIDs.

Reading Error Message
-40 “Pump at max power for too long, report the issue.”
-41 “Probe Flow is blocked. Check Probe/ Change Filter.”
-42 “Feels like you just removed my filter. Please give me a fresh filter so we can get back to work.”
-45 “Looks like we just found a high PPM leak. Wait 30 seconds and reignite me. (Chamber overtemp)”
-46 “Trying to ignite! If 3rd attempt fails, report the issue.”
  • Note: Most monitoring applications show this text as a popup.

 

Contamination During Calibration

When any analyzer is calibrated, any contamination from previous days leaks that burns off during the day can cause the readings to shift slightly. This is a linear shift across the scale. That is to say, 1 ppm (parts per million) of contamination is burned off, it will reduce ambient by 1 ppm as well as 10,000 ppm.

Previously, if the phx21 detected a value below the zero-calibrated level, it would enter a pattern of alternating 0.0 and 0.1 readings. This pattern was implemented to avoid displaying a negative value, which is not possible in practical scenarios as readings cannot be less than 0 ppm. This would result in lower readings throughout the calibration scale. All portable FIDs at the time could experience this drift, resulting in lower readings throughout the day as well as during drifts.

 

Calibration Adjustments to the phx42

When the phx42 is calibrated under contaminated conditions and then later burned off, causing the ppm level to drop below 0 for more than 1 minute, the calibration table is edited in real-time. This adjustment is crucial for maintaining accuracy, as it corrects all the calibration points for any leftover VOCs which may have affected the calibration process and are no longer impacting the machine.

Conditions must be met for this adjustment to take place. The firmware monitors multiple conditions to ensure the machine is ignited and running properly. If a flame out/reignition occurs, the calibration table will revert to the original version to prevent an outside factor, like a probe or filter change, from impacting this feature (the phx42 will shut down during filter or probe changes). If, after reignition, the ppm returns to negative for the required time, adjustments will be made again as appropriate.

 

Practical Implications

In the older portable FID models—including phx21, TVA1000, and TVA2020—negative drift would cause interruptions, requiring work stoppage, recalibration, drift failures, and rework. The phx42, with its improved firmware, eliminates these issues by ensuring readings never fall into negative territory and that accuracy is maintained.

 

Conclusion

The phx42 portable FID by LDARtools is an advanced instrument for VOC detection, with sophisticated firmware to handle calibration and negative values efficiently. By continuously improving its firmware, LDARtools ensures the phx42 remains a reliable and accurate tool for environmental monitoring, minimizing the need for manual interventions and providing consistent accuracy.

We recently encountered an issue with some phx42 units due to an update on 7/14/2024 of a third party tool used for sending settings.

 

This update started truncating decimal places for numbers controlling temperature compensation, which has the potential to impact flame stability and make drift assessments challenging. We have identified and resolved the problem.

 

Immediate Action Required:

 

For SpanBox Users:
Ensure your SpanBoxes are online using the Test Network Connection feature before calibration. If you have already calibrated and are unsure if your SpanBox was online at the time, connecting with the phxApp and running a self-check as soon as practical is advised.

 

For Non-SpanBox Users:
Run a self-check as soon as practical.

 

We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and understand its impact. We are committed to implementing preventative measures to avoid future occurrences by transitioning away from this third party tool to a service with which we maintain and can control updates.

 

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Our home office and warehouse in Dickinson have resumed normal business operations.

We are available for customer drop off and pick up. If they are in stock, items ordered by noon can ship today.

Phone service is still spotty, but Hardware and Software Support are available.

Our home office and warehouse in Dickinson are open until 4:00 PM today (Tuesday, July 9th), but our internet is down and our phone service is spotty.

We are available for customers to drop off or pick up orders, but shipping will be difficult until our internet service is restored. Support and Store responses might be delayed. We will be answering emails as quickly as we can.

You can also call 887-788-1110 (Repair – Ext 5, Sales – Ext 2, Software Support – Ext 1 and Warehouse – Ext 6), but because our phone service is spotty, you may need to leave a message.

Due to Hurricane Beryl, our home office and warehouse in Dickinson will be closed Monday, July 8th.

Support responses might also be delayed.

We will provide updates regarding Tuesday by 5:00 PM tomorrow.

Thank you all for participating in our 17th Brownie Celebration.

This was all possible because we had NO phx21s or phx42s in our repair lab due to our experienced Level 1 Certified Repair Techs, enhanced automated support system, and improved technician training methods.

We also want to give special acknowledgement to the extraordinary work of Anthony, Warren, and Scott in our repair lab.