Apparatus for determining the condition of a pressure transmitting fluid

A method of measuring the water content level in a liquid, comprising the steps of:

• determining the constant electrical current magnitude which when passed through a length of a geometrically configured and dimensioned electrically conductive wire which will heat the surrounding liquid in a thin layer over said wire to establish a boundary layer stream and steady state heat transfer by cellular convection from said wire into said liquid over a range of water content levels in said liquid;
• stretching said length of conductive wire between a pair of electrodes, fixing either end of said length of wire so as to be mechanically stabilized and extending the longitudinal axis of said length of electrically conductive wire at an at least partially vertical inclination within said liquid;
• passing said previously determined constant magnitude of electrical current through said wire extended within said liquid to cause the length of electrically conductive wire to be heated to a temperature varying with the water content level in said liquid;
• determining the electrical resistance of said wire at said temperature;
• and
• analyzing the results of said determination by comparison with previously determined electrical resistance values of said length of electrically conductive wire with said constant electrical current magnitude passed therethrough corresponding to varying water content levels of said liquid to ascertain the actual water content level of said liquid.