How to Clean Your Heat Exchangers – Checklist Download
We’re continuing our series this week on cleaning boilers and heat exchangers. This second post discusses cleaning heat exchangers, including the tools/products you need to get the job done. Below are the two printable checklists.
Checklist 1: How to Clean Industrial Boilers
Checklist 2: How To Clean Heat Exchangers
(Note: You must provide your email address to get access to each checklist.)
Here’s more about this week’s topic – cleaning heat exchangers:
Clean heat exchangers equate to tremendous energy savings, according to the U. S. Department of Energy. Scale deposits from magnesium, calcium and silica (from the water supply) form a layer on heat exchangers. Layers of deposits insulate the exchangers and slow down heat transfer, causing the exchangers to overheat or fail, reducing energy efficiency and causing more wear and tear on the system.
The Northwest Food Processors Association identifies soot as another cause of deposit build-up. Fuel oil combustion deposits as well as coal or wood waste can melt onto heat transfer surfaces. Once these deposits have melted, they can form a glass-like insulating layer that’s difficult to remove.
The association recommends reducing fuel costs by regularly cleaning heat exchangers to prevent fouling, which is often caused by a dirty, malfunctioning burner. Inspect heat exchangers at least once per year and clean them when they look dirty.
Inefficient heat exchange is caused by scale and sediment buildup. A heat exchanger tube cleaner from Goodway can quickly eliminate the problem. Goodway offers a variety of tools to remove scale and other build-up so your heat exchanger can operate at optimal level.
Our step-by-step “How to Clean Heat Exchangers” checklist walks you through the cleaning process. Choose heat exchanger cleaning tools based on the type of system you have. Rotary tube cleaners work best on large heat exchangers. Tube cleaning drills clear small diameter tubes.
Use a biodegradable liquid descaler to loosen and remove tough deposits, while keeping the environment safe. A portable video scope that’s built for industrial use identifies deposits, for a thorough inspection. Using a descaler system circulates the descaling fluid through the unit automatically. The scale is gone when the pH of the solution rises or the fluid stops foaming.
Next Steps:
- Download the How to Clean Heat Exchangers checklist.
- Subscribe to our blog to receive the full blog series via email and stay informed about the latest HVAC news and insight.
- Stay up to date on facility maintenance tools such as chiller tube cleaners, boiler tube cleaners, hose/pipe cleaners, descaler systems, industrial vacuums, commercial pressure washers, and drain cleaners.
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Peco
I like the savings clean heat exchangers produce!
Patricia Dulaney
This is a good guide. Thanks for this information.
Richard
A clean heat exchanger will provide optimal efficieny and increase the lifetime. Blocked tubes on a shell and tube heat exchanger will lead to a drop in performance and an increase in pressure loss.